Christianity vs. Religion

Too many people would place myself or any other Christian automatically into the stereotype of a “religious” person. Fair enough. But there is such a vast difference between a Christian and a “religious” person. Why is it that so often Christians are the people that are labeled as “religious” compared to Muslims or Buddhists? Islam is considered one of the world’s leading “religions” right above the likes of Christianity-which I might add, is not a religion.

Jesus tells a hypothetical story in the Bible to illustrate the difference between religion and Christianity. And the story goes 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’”

This story exhibits the epitome of religious people all across the world, since the beginning of time. The religious person is the Pharisee where as the Christian would be better compared to the tax collector. Notice that the confidence and good deeds of the Pharisee did absolutely nothing for him; meanwhile all the tax collector could see was God's glory and His holiness compared to all his shortcomings. Religion seeks to exalt self to be “good enough;” while Christianity says “God, have mercy on me, a sinner”

At the heart of this Pharisee we find not love, not goodness, but religion. Religion's whole philosophical premise is to be good enough to meet the standard so that we can get to heaven or gain for ourselves 72 virgins or some other reward of supernatural proportions. You have seen these people before. They look down their nose at you, judgmentally. They make you completely uncomfortable, and often times, they are miserable and can be some of the meanest, most hypocritical people that you will ever meet. These people attend church every time the doors are open, not out of love, but just to check it off their goody-goody list so they can say, “Thank you God that I am not like so-and-so who talks like a potty mouth and listens to devil music.” In response to this facade of sincerity I say, “Congratulations religious person; you have no idea who Jesus is, and this makes your “religion” is a meaningless crutch on which you seek to validate yourself. And fail. But please, enlighten me to all of the numerous benefits of your “religion”.” I can understand why so many people hate religion, it is completely despicable. Religion will always tell you that with enough boring rituals, eloquent prayers to some “god” (which they treat more like a vending machine and less like a deity), and memorization of their “holy” scriptures, you too can be good enough.

But Christianity wails and screams, “I can never be good enough! Oh, how desperately I need a Savior!” And it is this foundation of a Savior that separates Christianity apart from every other religion in the world. No other world religion offers the redemption of a Savior. Religion finds redemption is by earning it, seeking it out from within yourself, trying with all that you are to be good enough. Religion places the importance on you. It is always about you and what you do and who you can be and how you can save yourself, but Christianity reveals that there is nothing you can do to save yourself or earn your redemption. Christianity is all about Christ, never about you. Jesus is the main ingredient for the recipe of Christianity. And Christianity revolves around being in a relationship with Jesus.

A relationship, not a religion is at the heart of Christianity. It is not about being good enough. It is not about your righteousness because you have no righteousness to bring even of you try to earn it, as your righteousness is as “filthy rags” before a Holy God. Christianity is all about a love relationship with the Savior of the world, who loved you so much and gave himself up so that you could be restored into a right standing with God, able to live and thrive in that relationship. Christianity contrasts religion, religion that is just a bunch of dead, dry rituals to advance self. Real Christianity is not, nor has it ever been a religion. But Christianity is, and always has been, a relationship with the true and living God.