Tuesday, January 24, 2012

On religion gone wrong

When we think of the Puritans, we usually think of wholesome, God-fearing, upright people in black clothes with buckles on their hats. Oddly, they left Europe because of religious intolerance, but once in Massachusetts they denied their own settlers any religious freedoms of their own. In fact, religious dissenters were expelled from the colony.

I, personally, have a strong faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, but it seems that when religion joins itself to political power that things always go awry. If the living and actions of the faithful are based on, well, faith (as they are or should be); then why do the religious feel compelled to force those around them into conformity through the law when they have the power to do so?

It makes no sense to me; nor does it, I believe, to God, our Father, and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Certainly God is not glorified by those who keep the law—secular or religious. He is glorified by those who live by Christ and who take Christ as their very life and everything.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

God gave us freedom of choice to choose life or sin. We can't force people to make moral choices. God does not do that because as a test of His children's growth He wants you to choose the best way, to learn through living. A Christian's job is not to force change but love people & set an example for change. If we would do that, a lot more people would be loved into the kingdom of God.

RDCushing said...

Amen. God gains nothing by outward conformity. His goal is to gain us inwardly as vessels for His expression.