One of the biggest misconceptions in the world today is that Christianity is a religion.
This however, is simply not true.
A religion is a formulated set of rules and regulations that a practitioner of said religion is compelled to keep out of fear, in the hope that they will be worthy enough to appease whatever deity they are inclined to worship.
Christianity however, is the exact opposite It is a relationship—a friendship—with God. Not a religion. Religion with its laws, commandments, and regulations can’t save anyone. It is only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that a person can be saved.
Christianity however, is the exact opposite It is a relationship—a friendship—with God. Not a religion. Religion with its laws, commandments, and regulations can’t save anyone. It is only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that a person can be saved.
One of the best summaries of this truth can be found in in the Book of Romans. Chapter 5 is especially to the point:
“Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”
“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.”
“When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. Yes, people sinned even before the law was given. But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break. Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did. Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come. But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
“Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.
“God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
~ Romans 5 New Living Translation (NLT)
Religion commands that followers obey man-made rules in the hope that they will somehow be good enough to be accepted by God. Christianity however, teaches that we are loved and accepted by God regardless of what we have done. All sin results in death, therefore God hates sin. But He doesn’t hate sinners. (If He did, He would hate all mankind, because everyone is a sinner by birth. (Romans 3:23)
That being said, the Bible tells us that it is Satan who hates us and wants to destroy us.
That being said, the Bible tells us that it is Satan who hates us and wants to destroy us.
“As surly as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live. Turn! Turn from your wickedness O people of Israel! Why should you die?”
~ Ezekiel 33:11 New Living Translation (NLT)
“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My (Jesus) purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”
~ John 10:10 New Living Translation (NLT)
God doesn’t want anyone to go to hell, He wants everyone to be with Him. That’s why He came and died for us.
“The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”
~ 2 Peter 3:9 New Living Translation (NLT)
However, God doesn’t make us do anything against our will. He gives us the chance to be saved through Jesus. We were drowning in an ocean of our own sin, but God threw us a lifeline—His son, Jesus. All we have to do is choose to grab hold of it, and let God pull us out of the water.
“So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.”
~ Isaiah 30:18 New Living Translation (NLT)
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me” (John 14:6) The Bible also says that “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.” (1 John 5:12) and “There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
So what does it take to be saved?
First: The knowledge that we are all sinners in need of a savior.
“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”
~ Romans 3:23 New Living Translation (NLT)
(Surprisingly enough, this knowledge appears to be inherent to all people. Even if they refuse to acknowledge it, everyone knows deep within their soul that something is wrong with the world. This conviction of sin is the work of the Holy Spirit according to John 16:8 )
Second: You need to realize that Jesus is the only way to God. This means more than just believing he exists or that “there is a God.” As the Bible says in James 2:19:
“You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.”
~ James 2:19 New Living Translation (NLT)
Belief in Jesus is more than just knowing he exists, you need to make a conscious decision to repent of your sins and accept the gift of salvation that only he can give. You need to confess to him that you are a sinner and that you need his forgiveness; that you believe that he came to die in your place personally and that he rose again three days later, both to prove that he was God, as well as to offer the same resurrection to all those who would follow him.
And that is it. The Gospel Message is so simple even a child could do it: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. (Acts 13:31)
If you repent of your sins, and put your trust in Jesus, believing that Jesus died once for the sins of all men, for all time and rose again three days later, then your sins are forgiven. Your debt is paid in full. Your salvation is assured. You will go to be with Christ when you die. There is nothing you can do to lose your salvation. It is a free gift from God, not something you can work for. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
“We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.”
~ Romans 3:22 New Living Translation (NLT)
Now, it is fair to point out that this doesn’t mean you can just go out there and do whatever you want because you’re saved. The Bible makes it very clear that is wrong to use God's grace as a license to sin.
“Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins. There is only the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies. For anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Just think how much worse the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God, and have treated the blood of the covenant, which made us holy, as if it were common and unholy, and have insulted and disdained the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to us.”
~ Hebrews 10:26-29 New Living Translation (NLT)
Jesus himself put it this way:
“So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven—except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven. Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come.”
~ Matthew 12:31-32 New Living Translation (NLT) [Emphasis Added]
Now you’re probably wondering: What does it mean to blaspheme the Holy Spirit?
Well, given what we know of the Holy Spirit’s purpose here on earth—convicting the world in regards to sin, righteousness, and the coming judgment—blaspheming the Holy Spirit would be to reject the salvation God offers to us through Jesus Christ. i.e. the only sin that can't be forgiven, is the sin of refusing to accept Christ’s forgiveness. After all, if you refuse to repent of that sin, then why should you repent of any other sins?
If you call yourself a Christian, but continue to live in sin—open rebellion against God—then you most likely aren’t really saved. You may have head knowledge about Jesus—you believe there is a God—but you never trusted in him. You never repented—not really. And that is a very dangerous position indeed.
The Bible says you will know a tree by the kind of fruit it produces. (Matthew 7:16) And if your life does not show that you know God, then you probably don’t and you are blaspheming the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 5:19-23 gives us an example of how to tell weather or not a person is following God or their own sinful nature.
“When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”
~ Galatians 5:19-23 New Living Translation (NLT)
If we are in a right relationship with Christ then we are automatically filled with the Holy Spirit. And if we are filled with the Holy Spirit, then our lives will never be the same. There will be a change. It may be instantaneous, or it may take time. But we will be made new. This doesn’t mean we will never sin. We will still make mistakes. But the Holy Spirit will convict us and lead us to repentance. That’s the difference between someone who truly knows God and someone who just knows about Him. The person who knows and loves God, will hate their sin and seek to turn from it. (Romans 6-8, 1 Peter 2:1, 16) The person who is using Jesus as fire-insurance against Hell will continue to live a sinful life without any sign of remorse or repentance. They neither know God nor do they love Him.
That is why Christianity is a relationship and not a religion.We obey God’s commandments not because we have to out of fear, but because we want to out of love. He loved us so much that He sent His son to die for us, even though we were living in open rebellion against Him. (John 3:16) He changed us, gave us hope, and a new life through Jesus’ death and resurrection. And for that we are eternally grateful.
“This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, ‘Come back to God.’”
~ 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 (NLT)
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