Posted on 12/11/2023 1:37:05 AM PST by spirited irish
Not necessarily. The Scriptures do not condemn religion, only those who are hypocritical in living it out:
9 Women should adorn themselves modestly and sensibly in seemly apparel, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly attire 10 but by good deeds, as befits women who profess religion. (1 Timothy 2:9-10)
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (1 Timothy 3:16)
If any one thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this man’s religion is vain. (James 1:26)
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. (James 1:27)
If one adheres to a set of non-worldly revealed beliefs, prays to a deity, and lives a moral life according to the commands and precepts of that deity, one is practicing a religion whether one chooses to call it that or not. I think when people have a dismissive view of "religion" what they really mean is legalism -- following a set of beliefs woodenly and by rote, and without a true relationship with God.
BINGO! We have to work for the Lord. Being Spiritual could also mean for satan.
being “ spiritual” ?,
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James 2:19 - You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the the demons believe that—and shudder.
even demons are spiritual , doesnt save them either.
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“If one adheres to a set of non-worldly revealed beliefs, prays to a deity, and lives a moral life according to the commands and precepts of that deity, one is practicing a religion whether one chooses to call it that or not.”
Ummmm - if ANYONE could live a moral life according to the commands and precepts of God, Jesus wouldn’t have had to die on the cross....
“26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
27 Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”
“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”
29 Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”
He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”
30 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”
He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”
He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”
32 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?”
He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”
33 When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home”
And we know what happened to Sodom....
Of course I was speaking of religion in general, a bare bones definition. With Christianity, we have the unique benefit of grace given to us by God in virtue of the sacrifice his Son made on the cross. This empowers us, if we cooperate with it, to keep His commandments.
“This empowers us, if we cooperate with it, to keep His commandments.”
If any of us could keep His commandments, His Son would not have had to die on the cross.
IMO, claims of being ‘spiritual’ are just hedging-your-bet social excuses intended to mollify a listener, acquaintance or other without actually naming a clear religion or belief system that could or could not be criticized. It’s a cop out.
I object to that! I have here in my hands my graduation certificate from the Tinker Bell School of Divinity which proclaims that I am a wonderful, wonderful person.
Even if we are not able to keep them perfectly, God still requires us to follow his commandments:
When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. (Genesis 17:1)
"You shall be blameless before the Lord your God." (Deuteronomy 18:1)
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God, and turned away from evil. (Job 1:1)
If you will, you can keep the commandments, and to act faithfully is a matter of your own choice." (Sirach 15:15)
"In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechari′ah, of the division of Abi′jah; and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless." (Luke 1:5-6)
"Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:19)
And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? One there is who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” (Matthew 19:17)
God would not give us commandments and moral precepts to obey if we were not able to keep them. Before the Cross, it was almost impossible to do. As I said, it was the Cross through which we are given grace that we are able to keep them, if not perfectly, at least to the extent we can.
Sorry, I reject this interpretation of St. Paul's words--that the Old Testament was primarily a device by God to foreshow that the Law was impossible to keep. This is a novel emphasis that only came about with the emergence of Protestantism. The Old Testament is much more than that: it shows (among many other things) the eternal character of God and how he deals with his people and how, while most of his people simply did not even try to keep the Law, there were some exceptions (such as I cited) and others (whose faith is lauded in the Book of Hebrews; etc.). Really, if one is a true student of the WHOLE Bible, it's major recurring and connecting theme is not Moses and the Law (Moses is barely mentioned in the OT after the Pentateuch), but about David and his kingdom that is going to be fulfilled by Jesus and the Kingdom of God.
This is a major biblical interpretive difference between Catholics and Protestants (and, yes, I've studied it from both perspectives in 30+ years of Bible study) and we're not going to resolve it here.
How typical - reject that which doesn’t fit your wished for perception and then cite others as your proofs...how convenient....because your “religion” tells you to ignore the parts that weaken those who control your religion....
I perceive this discussion is at an impasse as personal insults unbecoming of Christians are starting to creep in, so it's better to end it here. Have a blessed day.
I accept your surrender.
LOL. You can think that if you wish. Again, have blessed day.
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