Religion Archives - Page 9 of 9

Mercy One Person to Another

November 10, 2009 by EnnisP 3 Comments

Maintaining Relationships
Without Mercy
Is Like Washing A Car
With A Dry Cloth

It is no surprise that Jesus mentions mercy in the Sermon on the Mount. Of all the characteristics attributed to God mercy predominates.

God was merciful to:

Adam and Eve when they ate the forbidden fruit.
To Cain when he murdered his brother Abel.
To Abraham when he lied about his wife Sara, not once but twice.
To Joseph when he was in prison through no fault of his own.
To the Israelites when He delivered them from Egyptian slavery.
To David when he committed both adultery and murder.

And there are many statements in the Bible which declare mercy to be one of God’s most outstanding qualities. It certainly is the one that most defines His relationship to humanity. [Read more…] about Mercy One Person to Another

GO? To Church

September 14, 2009 by EnnisP 4 Comments

I visited a new church recently and was bored out of my mind. The most predominant sensation was stifling oppression. The second was embarrassment, for them.

The song leader apologized for being tired. I wouldn’t have known if he hadn’t said anything. They had no musicians but insisted on singing anyway. The choruses weren’t bad but if I were new to church and hadn’t known them, would have felt even more out of place.

The pastor was a better than average speaker but he said absolutely nothing new and none of it was relevant. There was no practical use for anything he said and there was nothing stimulating in the way it was presented. The only “do” point was attend church and he made the point by criticizing the cyclists he passed on his way to the service. Obviously, they couldn’t cycle without missing church. I guess it never occurred to him that service times are not God breathed and could therefore be changed.

The most interesting thing in the entire message was a joke about a preacher and a taxi driver both of whom went to heaven. The taxi guy was heavily rewarded and the preacher got nothing. The reason? When the preacher spoke people slept. When the taxi guy drove people prayed!” Sadly, that pretty much epitomized the service.

For those who live elsewhere, the largest percentage of taxi drivers in South African are black and known for excessively dangerous driving. So the comment was more of an racist point than a spiritual one.

[Read more…] about GO? To Church

Blinded by Religion

June 8, 2009 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

Religion Is Nice
Born Again Is Imperative

Most people think that religion can make a person better morally and bring them closer to God but that idea is far from true. In fact, James said people who live a religious life and brag about it (bridle not their tongues) are delusional (James, chapter 1 verse 26). According to James, a religious life is useful but not for moral improvement.

Take, for example, some of the religious regulations in the Old Testament and there were many. Diet, food preparation, sewer management, dress code, work-rest cycle (time management), charitable practices, financial management, personal hygiene and medical procedures were all included in the religious code. When James mentioned religion this is what he was referring to. [Read more…] about Blinded by Religion

God Speaks To Us – Abraham

March 31, 2009 by EnnisP 11 Comments

Abraham Didn’t Find God
He Recognized Him

Abraham is usually recognized as the founding leader of the Jewish religion and he definitely was one of the more prominent contributors. The interesting thing is, much of what he did religiously he received from his ancestors and, other than Abraham’s descendants being selected as the guardians of God’s revelation, there were only two new developments in this religion during his lifetime.

He didn’t wear different clothes or “move his affiliation” or modify his diet. The only additions were:

The institution of circumcision and
The naming of Canaan as the eventual home of those who followed.

Taken together, these additions don’t add up to massive religious changes but both were an inconvenience to Abraham, especially the land issue. It was a constant source of irritation.

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On a religious level, not much changed during his life but on a personal level, his world was turned upside down. [Read more…] about God Speaks To Us – Abraham