What do you think of religious practices?
Do you feel obliged as a Christian to adhere to certain
practices, or do you think that religious practices only relate to those who
enjoy High church liturgy?
What is your definition of religious practices?
Please don’t think I’m pressuring you here…I’m just wanting
you to think!
I was having a conversation with a newish friend today, and
I was surprised at their pre-conceived ideas about my ‘religious practices’. Their rough ideas were based upon their
previous experience with other Christian people, and also the Christian denomination
I am associated with…
Now please don’t get me wrong. I am not saying that this is wrong to do, for
if we are honest we’ll realise that we all do this when we meet new people…don’t
we? Even if it’s unconsciously, we try
to figure out other people as quickly as possible to ‘deal’ with them appropriately. However I must say that I was a bit surprised
at their pre-conceived ideas because they were so different from my
experiences. Again this is not to say
that their ideas were bad or wrong…it’s just what it was…
We chatted a lot and one topic was legalism within
Christianity… now this post is not going to deal with this huge topic. We briefly talked about law and grace and
religious practices. I also mentioned experiencing
God’s grace, my heart’s desire to no longer sin but to live in faithful obedience
to God, and my continued need for forgiveness.
Later I read this passage… Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to
care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by
the world…James 1:27 NRSV. It got me
thinking and hence this post…
Firstly the word ‘religion’ is used here in scripture as a
given…so as Christians we are expected to have religious practices…hmmm
interesting isn’t it J So maybe religious practices are not something
Christians should be scared of, even if they've had a not so good experiences with legalism in the past.
Then how cool is this? The next part tells us about our attitude
and what to focus on! You see ‘pure and undefiled
before God’ I believe is referring to our attitude or our heart…
If we genuinely care for other people, like orphans and
widows in their distress (or people generally having a tough time) from a heart
that wants to love them in response to God’s grace and mercy, then this is cool RELIGIOUS PRACTICE to God! It is pure because our motive and attitude is
honest.
When someone is stained by the world they are ‘tainted’ by
sin and will serve themselves before others…
Spend a moment reflecting upon Hosea 6:6'For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.'
Jesus even referred to this Hosea scripture challenging the pharisees.
Read it here: Matthew 12:1-8
And here: Matthew 9:1-13
So let me ask you…what is your definition of religious practices? Did you realise that by
genuinely helping out another person in a time of need is a biblical, Christian definition?
Wow, how simple yet cool!
Wow, how simple yet cool!
So how are your religious practices going lately?
Melanie J
1 comment:
Hey Mel,
I think that, whether we want to admit it or not, we all have "religious practices". And we should! Praying without ceasing is a religious practice, as is serving others, fellowshipping with one another, and helping the poor and sick and lonely ones among us. The danger of course, comes when our religious practices become more important to us than God himself. Too often we make idols out of our practices, instead of using them as their true purpose: a reminder of God in our lives and a way to share our God with others.
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