“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have evelating life.: (John 3:16 NKJV)
“For His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.” (Romans 8:16 NLT)
“…you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition.”(Mark 7:13 NLT)
“Welcome back! Where were we? Oh yes…
…My journey into the abundant life Jesus promised started during the summer of 1969 on a Sunday morning at the Norvell Community Baptist Church in Jackson County, Michigan when I accepted Jesus’ invitation to join His family. That morning the Holy Spirit brought John 3:16 to life within me. I have no idea what songs we sang that morning, or what the Pastor preached, but I remember clearly the voice of the Spirit calling out within my heart. There in my seat, completely separate from anything going on around me, I made Jesus the Lord of my life. With timing that could only be orchestrated by the Holy Spirit, at the end of the sermon Reverend McKenzie invited anyone who wanted to be baptized to come see him after Church. I jumped at the opportunity and was baptized two weeks later in Sweezey Lake.
Prior to this, all I knew was “religion”. While I was taught that I needed Jesus to “save” me, my young mind mainly picked up on the need to go to Church and not do “bad” things (sin). When I thought of God I pictured an angry Father sitting on His throne in Heaven just waiting for opportunities to stomp on people who step out of line (I just tried to stay off His radar and not tick Him off). I thought of Jesus as God’s loving Son who is in Heaven trying to calm down His Father and begging Him not to punish everyone that upsets Him. I wasn’t taught much about the Holy Spirit, so while I had heard that He lives inside us when we get “saved” (which made no sense to me), I really didn’t know anything about Him (plus, He was called a “ghost” which kind of scared me).
At the risk of getting ahead of myself, while I didn’t realize it back then, what I experienced that Sunday was the difference between “religion” and “relationship”. One of the core values that I tried to raise my kids with is that “rules without relationship brings rebellion”. I also believe that “religion without relationship results in rejection”. I have experienced both of these, and have seen their negative impact all around me. Hindsight is 20 – 20. Had I understood these truths growing up my life would have been very different (maybe I will go into this deeper in the future).
I need to ask you a something, “Have you settled for religion, or maybe rejected it altogether?” Or, “Do you have a living relationship with the One who gave His life for you?” God is not an angry Father. He is a good, loving Father that wants only the best for you. “Religion” has painted a completely inaccurate picture of the Father. He loves His children and longs to bless us beyond what we can think or imagine. Religion kills the spirit, but Jesus brings us alive on the inside like nothing, or no one else can. I would love the honor of introducing you to my best friend, Lord, Savior, and King Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow we will pick up where we left off, and keep moving forward in our journey into long, strong life worth living with nothing missing or broken.