The Testing Of Pure And False Religion

The Testing of Pure and False Religion

By

Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.

OPENING: - Years ago I collected soda cans and turned them in for money at the recycling center. At the recycling center I would place all the cans I collect on a belt that went through the giant magnet and if the can was collected by the magnet, it was tossed out and wasn’t worth any money. The magnet was testing the soda can, to see if it had value or not. We need to make sure we test our religion to see if it has value or not.

Everyone is religious, because we all are born with a religious instinct, and that instinct is to worship which is in itself religious, but to say that we are religious is not necessarily to say anything good about ourselves. There have been dictators, murderers, child molesters, rapist, etc. that have been known for their diabolical wickedness who have at the same time been religious. As a matter of fact Benito Mussolini, dictator of Italy and founder of fascism, (Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement, characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy, subordination of individual interests for the perceived good of the nation and race, and strong regimentation of society and the economy) who claimed to be a devout Atheist said he was religious and embraced the Catholic church in order to gain a political advantage. Sadly, many people are engulfed in the blindness of dead religious systems which are totally false.

I have said over the years about leaving Religion and entering Kingdom. I have stated how time is too short for us to be stuck in religiosity, in traditions, and habits having a form of godliness and denying the power of God thinking that we are on our way to heaven, having the spirit of the Nicolaitans whom the Lord hates, when we sit idly by and watch people suffer, hurt, depressed, confused in need of help die because they are trying to live in a world without hope and without God. I have used scriptures about Kingdom versus Religion as Matthew 5:20 “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven”. Matthew 23:4-6 says, “For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues”.

In the message I preached last week entitle “Being Concern about Others”. I stated how religion is bound by traditions, habits, customs, etc., but Kingdom is not being hindered by these things but has as a motivating factor joy unspeakable and full of glory which produces within us the incentive to be concerned for others and being the gateway to help for those in need.

When we are talking about a person’s belief in God or not, when we refer or their form of worship we use the phrase religion because the word religion has no one generally accepted definition. Sometimes it is used in reference to worship, whether it be public or private, and sometimes to distinguish between things sacred and those that are profane or worldly. Belief in the immortality of the soul is a concept that is looked upon by some as religious and there are many different types of religion, the Christian religion, the Muslim religion, the Hindu religion, and the Buddhist religion to name just a few.

Today I want to talk about the Testing of Pure and False Religion.

PRAYER: -

SCRIPTURE: - James 1:26-27 “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world”.

The word religion is often associated with what is commonly called salvation. It is interesting that we think of the Bible as a religious book, yet the word religion is not found in the Old Testament and in the New Testament it is only used 3 times and as you have heard me mention before 3 means fullness.

Nowhere in the Bible are we exhorted to preach religion, but always to preach Christ. 2 Timothy 4:2 says, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine”. Acts 8:5 says, “Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them”. We are not called to preach some religion of rituals and tradition but preach the Word - Jesus Christ.