Christianity > Religion

You may feel and say, as many do, ‘I was converted and became a Christian.  I’ve grown.  I’ve grown in knowledge, I’ve been reading books, I’ve been listening to sermons.  But I’ve arrived now at a sort of peak, and all I do is maintain that.  For the rest of my life I will just go on like this.’

My friend, you must get rid of that attitude; you must get rid of it once and forever.  That is religion.  It is not Christianity.  This is Christianity: the Lord appears!  Suddenly, in the midst of the drudgery and the routine and the sameness and the dullness and the drabness, unexpectedly, surprisingly, he meets with you, and he says something to you that changes the whole of your life and your outlook and lifts you to a level that you had never conceived was possible for you. . . . There is always this glorious possibility of meeting with him in a new and a dynamic way.” - Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Living Water: Studies in John 4 (Wheaton, 2009), page 14.

Lately, I’ve been butting up against the limits of religion. I’ve found myself sitting in church wondering, “Is this all there is?” Are the songs and sermons the sum total of what God has for me?

I needed this reminder from Dr. Martn Lloyd-Jones. Yes, there are limits to religion … but Christ is limitless.

Religion is the task of staying faithful to God. Christianity is the gracious reality that God has chosen to be faithful to His own word regarding me. God shows up. God saves. God sends revival. God refuses to be chained by our expectations.

Jesus saw this in Matthew 11, where some people complained that John the Baptist was a prophet of repentance while Jesus was a friend of sinners. Neither catered to the crowds’ religious preferences.

Today, as we reflect on the wonders of grace, maybe we should remember that Christianity is not ultimately about what we do for Jesus. It is mostly about what Jesus has done for us. With His grace, we can continue to encounter Jesus in new and dynamic ways.

With you;
Pastor Tim