“Both prophet and priest are godless;
even in my temple I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord. Jeremiah 23:11
How does a Spirit filled believer deal with religion?
This is a very difficult and complex question. The Holy Spirit has spent forty years of my life teaching me about the difference between God and religion. The basic premise is God wants to set people free and religion wants to exercise control. Also, the cornerstone of a relationship with God is faith not works or good deeds.
You may not believe me but Satan has been very effective infiltrating the Body of Christ for the purpose of weakening scripture and whitewashing important spiritual precepts so they fit into the culture of religion.
Satan wants to disarm the power of Christ and he does this by trying to draw you into the web of religion. Religion creates a comfort zone. Jesus is a non conformist who hates religion. He came to confront sin and stir up your life with His teachings.
The church is a filling station (with a revolving door) where you go to worship God and be nourished with the truths of God. The sole objective of a pastor or teacher is to draw people into a personal and vibrant relationship with the Living Christ.
One of the primary purposes of the church is to equip and send out believers as an ambassador of Christ to touch those living in darkness. It is not God’s purpose for you to insulate yourself in religion.
Religion does not want to teach believers about the purpose and function of the Holy Spirit because the Spirit will expose the fraud and deceit in religion.
Your teacher about the things of God is the Holy Spirit. He will lead you into all truth and expose teachings which are not of God.
You are saved by faith and never justified with God through your works. Religion tends to lay a guilt trip on believers to do works in order to please God. This is a lie of Satan.
Some of the red flags to look out for in religion:
Pastors who live on a pedestal and project the image they are more holy or righteous than their flock.
Pastors who are constantly asking for money or spreading the message “the more money you give to God the more He will give back to you.” This is a lie.
Making the priority to build bigger or more churches.
Pastors who want believers to follow them or create the myth you must be closely involved in the activities of their church.
The good news is the stern judgment of God is over the leaders in the Body of Christ. They will have to repent and change their ways or they will be brought down and their churches will crumble.
Praise God! The New Testament church is coming!
Hal Hollister Ministry 