True Religion = Jesus

Today I saw a YouTube video titled “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus” posted by numerous friends on Facebook, so I checked it out. The cinematography is well done, but the narration is a mixed bag. It seems this man has quite a story to tell, and some of it is well told. I commend him for that. But when truth is intertwined with half-truths, assumptions, and falsehood, it is dangerous. I wish the author would have focused on his personal story and the Gospel of Jesus Christ for sinners, without all the added baggage. I have no doubt there are some Christians who are messed up with their own religious beliefs. But let’s not paint with a broad brush where God’s Word does not. Below is the four-minute video, followed by the text of the video, interspersed with my own comments. Contrary to this man’s claim, true religion = Jesus!

JESUS>RELIGION

Interesting. True religion = Jesus. So I’m not sure why Jesus > religion.

What if I told you Jesus came to abolish religion.
What if I told you voting Republican really wasn’t His mission.
What if I told you Republican doesn’t automatically mean Christian.
And just because you call some people blind doesn’t automatically give you vision.

Where does Holy Scripture say that Jesus came to abolish religion? He didn’t. He is the sum and substance of true religion. He has been since the creation of man and will continue to be into eternity. And the Republican Party? Really? Moreover, it matters not who I call blind. It matter simply who Holy Scripture calls blind.

I mean, if religion is so great, why has it started so many wars?
Why does it built huge churches, but fails to feed the poor?
Tell single moms God doesn’t love them if they’ve ever had a divorce,
But in the Old Testament God actually calls religious people whores.

Religion has never started a war. Sinners start wars. And almost always for the wrong reasons. There’s nothing inherently wrong with huge churches. The same is true of modest churches and little huts and homes that serve as churches. No one feeds the poor as he should. But do not overlook the fact that Christians have done more to feed the poor in our world than any other group. If your church tells single moms and the divorced that God doesn’t love them, what type of church do you attend? And yes, God did call His own people whores, because they adulterated their relationship with Him by looking to other gods. The same type of spiritual adultery continues today.

Religion might preach grace, but another thing they practice,
Tend to ridicule God’s people, they did it to John the Baptist.
They can’t fix their problems, and so they just mask it,
Not realizing, religion is like spraying perfume on a casket.

Confessional Lutheranism preaches grace correctly. Yet, there’s not a single person on earth who practices it perfectly. What problems does religion mask? Christ’s people carry the darkness of sin into the light of Christ’s forgiveness. But if you’re looking for perfection in this area, you don’t rightly understand man’s sinful nature.

See, the problem with religion is that it never gets to the core.
It’s just behavior modification, like a long list of chores.
Like, let’s dress up the outside and make it look nice and neat.
But it’s funny, that’s what they used to do to mummies while the corpse rots underneath.

True religion gets straight to the core. That’s why true faith must begin with repentance. See John the Baptist’s and Jesus’ preaching as examples. Christianity is not primarily about behavior modification. It is about daily dying to sin and being raised up to newness of life in Jesus Christ (i.e. living one’s baptism). Living in Christ will indeed affect one’s behavior, for a good tree bears good fruit.

Now, I ain’t judging, I’m just saying, quit putting on a fake look,
Cause there’s a problem if people only know that you’re a Christian by your Facebook.
I mean in every other aspect of life you know that logic is unworthy,
It’s like saying you play for the Lakers just because you bought a jersey.

Don’t tell you ain’t judging and in the next breath pronounce a judgment. Not cool. The rest of what you say has validity. It’s not enough to call yourself a Christian. It is a daily dying and rising in Him!

See, this was me too, but no one seemed to be on to me,
Acting like a church kid, while addicted to pornography.
See, on Sunday I’d go to church but Saturday getting faded,
Acting as if I was simply created to have sex and get wasted.

This is your personal account and I have no doubt an honest assessment. God be praised when the Good Shepherd seeks, finds, forgives, and brings home a lost sheep. That is true of every Christian.

See, I spent my whole like building this façade of neatness,
But now that I know Jesus, I boast in my weakness.
Because if grace is water, then the church should be an ocean.
It’s not a museum for good people, it’s a hospital for the broken.

We are weak (dead in our trespasses and sins). Jesus is our strength. Well said. The church is indeed an ocean of grace. I pray no one claims it’s a museum for good people (it would be empty). It always remains a hospital for sinners (in which we remain patients till our Lord calls us home).

Which means I don’t have to hide my failure, I don’t have to hide my sin.
Because it doesn’t depend on me, it depends on Him.
See, because when I was God’s enemy, and certainly not a fan,
He looked down and said, “I want that man.”

Amen!

Which is why Jesus hated religion, and for it He called them fools.
Don’t you see, so much better than just following some rules.
Now let me clarify, I love the church, I love the Bible, and yes I believe in sin.
But if Jesus came to your church, would they actually let Him in?

Again, where does Holy Scripture say that Jesus hated religion? He hated self-righteousness. Would my church let Jesus in? He comes each and every Lord’s Day. Baptism. Absolution. Gospel. Lord’s Supper. He is present with His grace and mercy, calling sinners to repentance, forgiving sins, strengthening faith, and empowering His people to live out their vocations in faith toward God and love toward neighbor.

See, remember He was called a glutton and a drunkard by religion men
But the Son of God never supports self-righteousness, not now, not then.

True.

Now back to the point. One thing is vital to mention,
How Jesus and religion are on opposite spectrums.
See, one’s the work of God and one’s a manmade invention.
See, one is the cure but the other is the infection.

True religion = Jesus. They are not opposite spectrums. Jesus is not the work of God. He is God. And true religion is not a manmade invention. It is Christ’s people gathered around Him to receive His good gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation. In fact, Jesus calls us “My church” (Matthew 16:18). Paul calls several congregations “the church of God” and calls the church of the living God “a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15). So why is religion manmade? Why the infection? Jesus is the cure. But He delivers the cure within religion, within His holy Church, by means of His Word and Sacraments.

See, because religion says Do, Jesus says Done,
Religion says slave, Jesus says son.
Religion puts you in bondage, while Jesus sets you free.
Religion makes you blind, but Jesus makes you see.

True religion does not say Do. It says Repent and Believe. Jesus has taken your sin and paid its penalty on the cross. You are forgiven. True religion grants freedom, sight, hearing, faith. Why? Because true religion = Jesus!

And that’s why religion and Jesus are two different clans.
Religion is man searching for God, Christianity is God searching for man.
Which is why salvation is freely mine and forgiveness is my own,
Not based on my merits, but Jesus’ obedience alone.

The drum you’re beating is not Scriptural. True religion is God searching for man, finding him, and redeeming him via the cross. The last half of this section proves this.

Because He took the crown of thorns and the blood dripped down His face,
He took what we all deserved, I guess that’s why we call it grace.
And while being murdered, He yelled, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”
Because when He was dangling on that cross, He was thinking of you.

Amen!

And He absorbed all your sin and He buried it in the tomb,
Which is why I’m kneeling at the cross, saying, “Come on, there’s room.”
So, for religion, No, I hate it, if fact I literally resent it.
Because when Jesus said, “It is finished!” I believe He meant it.

The first half of this: Nice! But why hate true religion? Why resent it? True religion = Jesus. When Jesus said, “It is finished!” He did mean it. Sin is finished. So is atonement, redemption, salvation. His words have nothing to do with religion. He is the ground and source of true religion. Always has been. Always will be.

Perhaps what this man is trying to say is that most religion is false. With that I can agree. If he is looking for true religion, I invite him (and you) to visit us at Divine Shepherd. Jesus dwells among us in His Word and Sacraments, full of grace and truth, welcoming all. We are His people, sinners made saints through His blood. Don’t expect perfection though. We remain patients in this hospital, daily living from the medicine of immortality Christ gives us. At Divine Shepherd you will find that true religion = Jesus!