Am I Religious? – I Hope Not!
​
You would probably class me as ‘religious’. After all, I claim to be a Christian and that means that I believe a whole load of things that you don’t maybe. It may surprise you that I try very hard not to be religious! Jesus hated the things that religious people did and said – read the Gospels for yourself. You see religious people follow a set of rigid rules and sadly they usually look down upon those who don’t live up to what they follow. It grieves God that the Christian Church is full of religious people! They don’t follow the principals of what Jesus taught. When you rigidly follow a set of rules, there is a tendency to get puffed up with pride – that you are better (more holy) than others. Pride is one of those words in English where the central letter is ‘I’. It’s the central letter of sin too and that’s where the problem is. It’s all about me! Pride and sin are selfish. I am my own god and I do what I want, at the cost of those round me. The Ten Commandments (the Christian/Jewish rule book to many) are summed up by Jesus in two – “Love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength”, and “Love your neighbour as yourself”. Jesus’ message was a message of LOVE, not rules. Love is not selfish or self-seeking. Rather it is giving, at the cost of what I might want for my own selfish wants and desires. I do what God wants me to do because he loves me and I love him.
Rather than being religious, I try to have a relationship with God, based on love. I try to follow the loving principles of what Jesus taught. ‘Sinful’ people felt comfortable in Jesus’ presence. They condemned themselves and didn’t need others to point out how bad they were. Jesus showed them love and acceptance. He didn’t condone what they did and he tried to encourage them to change their ways. The ‘sinful’ (selfish) things that they practiced were actually self-harming, as well as hurting others. Following the teaching of Jesus means that I submit to what I believe the Holy Spirit wants me to do. That should mean that I will be showing what the Bible calls the ‘Fruit of the Holy Spirit’. This is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. My life should manifest these characteristics and it will, if I am led by God’s Holy Spirit within me. It’s in me because I have asked God into my life, to help me become the person he made me to be. I realise that I am sinful/selfish by nature and acknowledge that I need his help to do life properly. I try to do as he would want me to do - To spread love wherever I am. I do that through my relationship with him, which I have to nurture every day in prayer and Bible reading. Religious people can be as welcome as a fart in a lift – You can’t get away from them quick enough! My desire is to be more like Jesus and I hope that you see him occasionally in me. If you want to know more please ask me. andybelseymodels@hotmail.com