Religion resides in the realm of the soul. It is a tool of the enemy to lead Christians astray from the true foundation on which their salvation is established. Our foundation is the Word of God. Jesus, the Word of God manifested in the flesh, came to redeem us and reconcile us back to the Father. Adam abdicated his position of authority by yielding to satan in the garden of Eden.
Satan has used the tool of religion (relying on dead works, our intellect and vain imaginations) to keep mankind bound and separated from God, enforcing the sin (Adamic) nature. God gave the Law to Moses to show mankind that they had a sin-nature. Jesus came with Grace and Truth to be THE Way out of that sin-nature, bringing with Him the very nature of God from heaven. At the cross, He took on man's sin-nature (all of it - along with sickness, disease, poverty, etc.) and upon His resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven, has paved a way for us to enter into the very LIFE of God. We are now FREE to operate in our new nature, obtained through believing and receiving the gift of Eternal Life that is ONLY attainable through faith in Jesus.
The religious mindset exalts "works" over Grace. Comparing the sizes of ministries and churches is the order of the day. Much is made of how much is done "for" God rather than co-laboring "with" Him. This brings to mind the following passage of scripture from Matthew 7: 21-23 (KJV):
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
Isn't that something? "Ye that work iniquity"? It is much more important to the Father that we have intimate fellowship with Him than to brag about ministry size and how much we are doing in the Kingdom of God - sounds a lot like pride... and we all know how the Lord views pride! I would much rather tap into the Grace that is available to me to fulfill the ministry call that the Father has reserved for me before the foundation of the world. There is a fine line between accomplishing things HIS way rather than our way. Whatever type of ministry that we have been given is only about serving the needs of others anyway. The reality is, we are called to be bondslaves, whether we are to serve from behind the pulpit or elsewhere. That is the Father's perfect will.
I have resolved to fulfill my mission - to rescue as many "sons of Adam" through the Grace that has been freely given to me as a son of my Heavenly Father. I believe that our final reward will be based on how much of that Grace we can humbly tap into. This determines the success of our assignment, not how many "works" we have accomplished out of our own human strength. We are called to bear fruit, and to show others how to bear fruit in their own lives as well, expanding the Kingdom of God on the earth. Preach deliverance to the captives. Opening blind eyes. Emptying the wheelchairs. Raising the dead. Financing the spread of the Gospel, and so forth, all the while spending time in His presence in order to know WHO we are, WHAT to do and WHEN, WHERE, WHY and HOW to do it.
Thank God that he has given us the measure of faith and different gifts according to the Grace given to us! Bearing this in mind, it would be rather pointless to get caught up in comparisons - don't you think?
Satan has used the tool of religion (relying on dead works, our intellect and vain imaginations) to keep mankind bound and separated from God, enforcing the sin (Adamic) nature. God gave the Law to Moses to show mankind that they had a sin-nature. Jesus came with Grace and Truth to be THE Way out of that sin-nature, bringing with Him the very nature of God from heaven. At the cross, He took on man's sin-nature (all of it - along with sickness, disease, poverty, etc.) and upon His resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven, has paved a way for us to enter into the very LIFE of God. We are now FREE to operate in our new nature, obtained through believing and receiving the gift of Eternal Life that is ONLY attainable through faith in Jesus.
The religious mindset exalts "works" over Grace. Comparing the sizes of ministries and churches is the order of the day. Much is made of how much is done "for" God rather than co-laboring "with" Him. This brings to mind the following passage of scripture from Matthew 7: 21-23 (KJV):
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
Isn't that something? "Ye that work iniquity"? It is much more important to the Father that we have intimate fellowship with Him than to brag about ministry size and how much we are doing in the Kingdom of God - sounds a lot like pride... and we all know how the Lord views pride! I would much rather tap into the Grace that is available to me to fulfill the ministry call that the Father has reserved for me before the foundation of the world. There is a fine line between accomplishing things HIS way rather than our way. Whatever type of ministry that we have been given is only about serving the needs of others anyway. The reality is, we are called to be bondslaves, whether we are to serve from behind the pulpit or elsewhere. That is the Father's perfect will.
I have resolved to fulfill my mission - to rescue as many "sons of Adam" through the Grace that has been freely given to me as a son of my Heavenly Father. I believe that our final reward will be based on how much of that Grace we can humbly tap into. This determines the success of our assignment, not how many "works" we have accomplished out of our own human strength. We are called to bear fruit, and to show others how to bear fruit in their own lives as well, expanding the Kingdom of God on the earth. Preach deliverance to the captives. Opening blind eyes. Emptying the wheelchairs. Raising the dead. Financing the spread of the Gospel, and so forth, all the while spending time in His presence in order to know WHO we are, WHAT to do and WHEN, WHERE, WHY and HOW to do it.
Thank God that he has given us the measure of faith and different gifts according to the Grace given to us! Bearing this in mind, it would be rather pointless to get caught up in comparisons - don't you think?
