I Want Relationship Not Religion
Maybe you’ve heard such a declaration. Maybe you’ve made such a declaration. You’ve had experiences that make you push back from “organized religion” or from the church, but you still want Jesus to be friendly to you. So, you make the statement: “I want a relationship with Jesus, but I’m not interested in the church.” For many, even if they haven’t formally made this statement, they live in a way that this is what they are pursuing.
This attitude, if held by parents, translates big time to their children. The parents have taken one step, away from the church, it becomes an easy next step for the children to step away from Jesus. I mean, aren’t the two very much tied together? Indeed.
As we look at the kids growing up today it can become frightening. The Center for Disease Control did a study from 2009 to 2021 that showed “the share of American high school students who say they feel ‘persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness’ rose from 26% to 44%.” In 2019 the American Academy of Pediatricians reported that mental health disorders are now putting adolescents at greater risk than physical conditions! In 2021 the US Surgeon General issued a warning of a “devastating mental health crisis among American teens.” What is causing this? A variety of things can be listed, such as: social media creating a much less truly social environment, an increasingly stress-filled world for young people, and modern parenting methods (or a lack there of). But surely an absence of a truly God focused life with the rituals that keep us tied to it, are also a factor.
In the book Holy Grit, by Chad Ragsdale, he says in May 2022 Taylor Swift was asked to deliver the commencement address at New York University. It was generally a good speech, he says. But drawing on her own experience, Swift stated, “I know it can be really overwhelming figuring out who to be, and when. Who you are now and how to act in order to get where you want to go. I have some really good news: it’s totally up to you. I also have some terrifying news: it’s totally up to you.” Ragsdale then says, surely Taylor Swift doesn’t totally believe this, since in another part of her speech she acknowledged that none of the graduates had gotten to this special day without the help of others. And she knows it is true for her, as well. But this idea, that it is totally up to you, seems both freeing and as she says, terrifying. And it is the mindset of many of our youth growing up. It’s been said, “The modern person belongs everywhere and nowhere at once, the defining dynamic of our modern anthropology is the tension between the excitement and the terror of radical freedom.”
Isn’t there anything worthwhile to guide us, any people who can encourage right behavior? So, back to the original declaration: I want a relationship with Jesus, but not the church. Jesus is not some floating emoji that allows independent connection. “Relationship, not religion” is a catchy cliché, with an element of truth, but thus it’s danger. Is Jesus against religion? Hardly. He gives us plenty of reason to think he expects certain rituals of religion, like prayer, sacrificial giving, regular worship, routine exposure to the teaching of his commands, etc. In such comes the guidance we need, the encouragement for right behavior. Anything you truly believe in, whether sports or politics, to God, reveals itself in various rituals. Which means we are all already religious, it just depends on what religion we are reflecting with our rituals. Jesus does want relationship, but much more than with our “friends” on Facebook, he wants real, intimate, lasting, committed relationship. It includes his church.
The kind of relationship Jesus wants is summed up in a Bible word: covenant. What is a covenant? “The Lord is a faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments” (Deut. 7:9). The English word “love” here is the Hebrew word “hesed.” This word isn’t done justice by our English word for it. It means a caring connection that involves absolute loyalty. A covenant. And we find the word for covenant (berit) has a meaning that involves cutting. Shedding blood. Why would God require the shedding of blood for such a relationship? To point out how important this relationship is! It requires the ultimate sacrifice by God’s son, Jesus. A blood sacrifice. What kind of relationship does that indicate to you? Religion, properly done, is our expression of true relationship with Jesus as Lord. He’s done his part, do yours.
Cross Point: And if you, as a young person, do your part, with the religious rituals it involves, it can alleviate many of the mental issues that plague our youth in modern culture. Read Hebrews 10:19-25.
This attitude, if held by parents, translates big time to their children. The parents have taken one step, away from the church, it becomes an easy next step for the children to step away from Jesus. I mean, aren’t the two very much tied together? Indeed.
As we look at the kids growing up today it can become frightening. The Center for Disease Control did a study from 2009 to 2021 that showed “the share of American high school students who say they feel ‘persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness’ rose from 26% to 44%.” In 2019 the American Academy of Pediatricians reported that mental health disorders are now putting adolescents at greater risk than physical conditions! In 2021 the US Surgeon General issued a warning of a “devastating mental health crisis among American teens.” What is causing this? A variety of things can be listed, such as: social media creating a much less truly social environment, an increasingly stress-filled world for young people, and modern parenting methods (or a lack there of). But surely an absence of a truly God focused life with the rituals that keep us tied to it, are also a factor.
In the book Holy Grit, by Chad Ragsdale, he says in May 2022 Taylor Swift was asked to deliver the commencement address at New York University. It was generally a good speech, he says. But drawing on her own experience, Swift stated, “I know it can be really overwhelming figuring out who to be, and when. Who you are now and how to act in order to get where you want to go. I have some really good news: it’s totally up to you. I also have some terrifying news: it’s totally up to you.” Ragsdale then says, surely Taylor Swift doesn’t totally believe this, since in another part of her speech she acknowledged that none of the graduates had gotten to this special day without the help of others. And she knows it is true for her, as well. But this idea, that it is totally up to you, seems both freeing and as she says, terrifying. And it is the mindset of many of our youth growing up. It’s been said, “The modern person belongs everywhere and nowhere at once, the defining dynamic of our modern anthropology is the tension between the excitement and the terror of radical freedom.”
Isn’t there anything worthwhile to guide us, any people who can encourage right behavior? So, back to the original declaration: I want a relationship with Jesus, but not the church. Jesus is not some floating emoji that allows independent connection. “Relationship, not religion” is a catchy cliché, with an element of truth, but thus it’s danger. Is Jesus against religion? Hardly. He gives us plenty of reason to think he expects certain rituals of religion, like prayer, sacrificial giving, regular worship, routine exposure to the teaching of his commands, etc. In such comes the guidance we need, the encouragement for right behavior. Anything you truly believe in, whether sports or politics, to God, reveals itself in various rituals. Which means we are all already religious, it just depends on what religion we are reflecting with our rituals. Jesus does want relationship, but much more than with our “friends” on Facebook, he wants real, intimate, lasting, committed relationship. It includes his church.
The kind of relationship Jesus wants is summed up in a Bible word: covenant. What is a covenant? “The Lord is a faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments” (Deut. 7:9). The English word “love” here is the Hebrew word “hesed.” This word isn’t done justice by our English word for it. It means a caring connection that involves absolute loyalty. A covenant. And we find the word for covenant (berit) has a meaning that involves cutting. Shedding blood. Why would God require the shedding of blood for such a relationship? To point out how important this relationship is! It requires the ultimate sacrifice by God’s son, Jesus. A blood sacrifice. What kind of relationship does that indicate to you? Religion, properly done, is our expression of true relationship with Jesus as Lord. He’s done his part, do yours.
Cross Point: And if you, as a young person, do your part, with the religious rituals it involves, it can alleviate many of the mental issues that plague our youth in modern culture. Read Hebrews 10:19-25.
Posted in Cross Points