God Wants Relationship, Not Religion

Scripture:

14: If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

II Chronicles 7 (NKJV)

16: “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes.  Cease to do evil,

17: Learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.

18: “Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

19: If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land;

20: But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword”; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Isaiah 1 (NKJV)

9: and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;

10: that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,

Philippians 3 (NKJV)

Even when people have the best intentions, some of the things they do in the name of the Lord are not of God nor for God. They pride themselves on their religious routines – praying an hour every day, studying the Bible according to some schedule, going to church Sunday after Sunday because that’s what has always been done. They are doing the right things, but are they doing them for the right reasons? Are their actions leading them from glory to glory in Him?

In the book of Isaiah, God sent a Word of prophecy to His people Israel. Because of sin, the ten northern tribes of Israel were taken into captivity by the Assyrians. God was done with them! They never come back as a nation, but, instead, were assimilated into the culture of that foreign country. Only Judah and Benjamin remained, and God was determined to save them because of His promise to David that there would always be someone from his bloodline on the throne. He had a plan in place to send Jesus as a fulfillment of that promise. Yet, it seemed that His chosen people were doing everything possible to not be saved.

They continued in their idolatry. They blatantly disobeyed the Word of God sent to them through His prophets. When they were warned that they would also be attacked by the Assyrians, they were so arrogant that they turned to Egypt as an ally against them.  (It seems that they believed “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”.)  They didn’t turn to God, in spite of God’s continual pleading with them. Instead, they turned to the same people who had enslaved them for more than 400 years, the same people that they had prayed for deliverance from. This was Proverbs 26:11 in action: “As a dog returns to his own vomit, so a fool repeats his folly”. Their actions reflected their total rejection of God.

People today may not understand Israel’s attitude and actions, but are they any different? Has anything changed today? They have the entire Bible available to you. They have the Holy Spirit living in them. They have Jesus continually interceding for them. They have the preached Word going forth from pulpits all across our cities and towns. Still, they reject God. They think they are right with God because they read the Bible, they go to church, they sing in the choir, they stand at the door, they do…. They maintain their religious duty. But consider why they do what they do. Think about how they do it. 

What is that secret sin that is keeping them bound? From what has God delivered them that they go back to, time and time again? Drugs? Alcohol? Fornication? Envy? Strife? Lying? Backbiting? Gossip? What is that one sin over which they repeatedly stumble?  He has brought everyone out of something, yet, too many keep going back to that same something. There is still some challenge in their lives for which they need God’s strength to get over.

God loved Israel. In spite of their rejection of Him, He loved them. He continued sending messages to them through His prophets. He told them what to do. His question to them was, “why don’t you do it?” He invited them to come to Him to discuss the matter. Make no mistake about it. God loves today’s people too. He has adopted them as His children, and He is asking them the same question. “I’ve told you what to do, why aren’t you doing it?”

God is not looking for religious actions. He wants everyone to be in relationship with Him. He wants worship which is real and evident through obedience to Him, through love and reverence for Him, and from the love His children have for one another. He wants to be first in their lives. The invitation has been extended. He wants everyone to give Him all of themselves flowing out of their love and adoration for Him. God wants their hearts.

Prayer:

Father, thank You for adopting us and making us a part of Your Kingdom. We are so grateful for Your love toward us. And still, we fail to honor You in everything. We want to give You our best. Help us to make You first in all areas – first in our finances, first in our time, first in the use of our gifts and talents. You deserve our worship. You deserve our praise. Adoration and glory belong to You always. Help us to purpose in our hearts to give You our very best – at all times – not out of duty, but in loving obedience. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Reflection:

God is looking for real worshipers. He wants an expression of gratitude to Him for all that He has done. He wants to be honored for who He is. In response to His love and grace and mercy, He wants love and devotion to Him. God is not interested in religious actions; He wants real relationships. “The whole person, with all his senses, with both mind and body, needs to be involved in genuine worship.” (Jerry Kerns)