Tag: Christianity

A Christian Perspective

It’s not about religion     

Loring Schultz

Read: John 4:1-26 NLT – Jesus and the Samaritan Woman – Jesus – Bible Gateway

‘“For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.’ The woman said, ‘I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.’ Then Jesus told her, ‘I AM the Messiah!’” John 4:24-26 NLT

Emblem featuring symbols of major world religions including Star of David, Cross, Crescent Moon and Star, Om, Dharmachakra, Sikh Khanda, Yin Yang, and others with a world map and monuments in the background
A colorful emblem showcasing major world religions surrounded by historic monuments and a map background.

A very familiar story in the Bible is ‘Jesus and the Woman at the Well.’ It is found in the New Testament book of the gospel of John. This story would be cataloged under ‘Christianity’ or the ‘Christian Religion.’ One of these placement files is named correctly, the other not so much. The story is about Jesus Christ, God the Son. Believers in Christ, those who have accepted Jesus as their savior redeeming them from eternal punishment, are called ‘Christians.’ Therefore to cataloged this story under ‘Christianity’ is correct. In fact cataloging the Bible under the same label is also correct. The Bible, from beginning to end, is about Jesus Christ and God’s plan of salvation.

Today there are over 4,000 religions in the world. How is religion defined? “Religion can briefly be defined as a specific belief system about God or gods expressed through a code of conduct, ethics, forms of worship, and rituals. Religion includes social, ethical, and ceremonial elements combined with the belief in an unseen world and often a deity.” (1) Christianity does not fit into any form of that definition except for a deity and life after death. Christianity is not a merit system of good conduct, or a form of ethics, and ritual worship. It is the free gift of salvation by grace and through faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus offered the woman at the well this free gift of salvation using water as an illustration. “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” (Jn.4:13-14 nlt) Jesus then told the woman before He identified Himself as the Messiah, “For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” (Jn.4:24 nlt)

It is not about religion, it is about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, fully God and fully man, who took our sins on Himself on the cross that we may have access to the Father and eternal life in heaven. If you are one who is struggling to find the right religion I understand your frustration and confusion, there are over 4,000 and they all can’t be right. There is only one and if you prefer to call it a religion that’s OK, because this religion has no set of rules to follow only to receive the free gift of salvation and live in total surrender to Jesus Christ.

(1) How Many Religions Are There in the World?

Devotionals

Who are our neighbors? 

Loring Schultz

Read: Luke 10:25-37 NLT – The Most Important Commandment – One – Bible Gateway

“The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’” Luke 10:29 NLT

Photo by Marea Wellness on Unsplash

We have come accustomed to the word ‘neighbor’ meaning someone who resides fairly close to us. A neighborhood is a vicinity of family homes on the same street or development where people live. Some of us know our neighbors by name, usually those next to us or across the street. Some may even know most of the people on their block and are close friends with them. But then there are others who don’t know anything about the people who live right next door to them. There may not be that many, but enough to know we’ve become somewhat anti-social in the world in which we live. For the Christian, this ought not to be. Jesus explains who our neighbors are in the gospel of Luke. If we’re having trouble recognizing the people closest to us, what Jesus has to say about who are our neighbors are may shock you, but I trust it won’t.

One day Jesus answered a lawyer, an expert in Jewish law, who asked Him, ‘and who is my neighbor?’ after Jesus told him to ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ The lawyer wanted to justify himself with what he thought was the real question, who exactly then is my neighbor? Jesus told him the story of the good Samaritan who helped a Jewish man attacked and robbed by bandits and being left for dead. This beaten man was passed over by both a priest and a lay associate from the religious community offering no help. But a Samaritan comes along, a hated race among the Jews and vice-versa, he stops and helps this Jewish man. Jesus then asks the lawyer, ‘“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?’ The man replied, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Then Jesus said, ‘Yes, now go and do the same.’” (Lk.10:36-37 nlt)

Our neighbors are clearly all those who need our help, not necessarily only those in our neighborhood. They are those we may have nothing in common with, not even the same language. Christians and the local church have the responsibility to help care for the needs of their community and those we come in contact with who need our help. First and foremost, in the presentation of the gospel message by being the light of Christ in a dark world. Then to be true neighbors in helping those in need in the name of Christ, bandaging their wounds and caring for them until such a time they are restored and are themselves able to help others. May we know who our neighbors are and be good neighbors.

Bible Studies

With whom do you stand, with Caiaphas or Christ?

Loring Schultz

“Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death.” Matthew 26:59 ESV

FreeBibleimages.com

Caiaphas was the high priest in Jesus’ day. He was the head of the whole council of Jewish leaders. They were seeking to find an accusation against Jesus to put Him to death. A guilty verdict was already in from the leaders. They now had to find evidence to support their decision. Not finding any credible evidence Caiaphas finally asked Jesus outright, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” (Mt.26:63 b esv) Jesus answered He was and was guilty as charged of blasphemy by the rulers, that is if He wasn’t who He said He was.  

You may find the title of this devotional ‘with whom do you stand, with Caiaphas or Christ?’ insulting. I insulted myself by asking the question. We can’t imagine ourselves making false accusations about Jesus or denying Him in any way. Doing anything intentionally deceitful to harm His name or hurt Him would be unthinkable. But are we capable of unintentionally, and without thinking, giving in to the pressure of the world system and denying Him by not defending Him at every turn?

The world today views Jesus as a historical figure. More people than not accept the fact of a historical Jesus who walked the earth two thousand years ago. The separation comes when asserting this Jesus was more than a good man, teacher, and philosopher, but God the Son the second person in the trinity. Scores of people, even so-called Christian religious leaders of our day, discount that Jesus is God the Son denying the truth of scripture and bowing to the idols of watered-down Christianity of unity, love, peace, and inclusion.

Leaders of watered-down Christianity and those who followed them have it half right. Jesus is indeed all about unity, love, peace, and inclusion. But the missing half is the acknowledgement of sin and the need to repent and confess. Jesus provided more than an example to follow on how to live. He provided the only way on how to live righteously as a child of God. Jesus provided the only way of salvation and eternal life by His sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. Only one who was perfect without sin, not just a good man, is capable to take away the sin of the world. We are all in need of having our sins removed, and all the unity, love, peace, and inclusion will never accomplish that.

Our modern-day world with watered-down Christianity is standing with Caiaphas denying that Jesus is the Son of God. So again, I’ll ask myself the question, ‘with whom do I stand, with Caiaphas or Christ?’ How about you?

Read: Matthew 26:57-68 ESV – Jesus Before Caiaphas and the Council – Bible Gateway