We hear a lot about religion, or being religious. People say about others, “They go to church all the time, they are really religious.” But what is religious?
What I believe is that religion is following a strict set of rules in order to obtain something from God, or from an organization. Following those rules and believing that if you do them well enough, or good enough, then you will attain entrance or well-being or whatever you are looking to receive.
There is a big difference in being religious and living out of relationship!
We do not obtain relationship with God through attending church, performing any religious act, or doing any behavior to make us good enough! Of course we might get accolades from others for performance related activities, but it certainly does not bring us any closer to God.
Instead of religion let’s look at relationship.
It is because of relationship with Him, and the love that He has poured into our hearts that we choose to go to church to be with our brothers and sisters that we love, because we want to see them and spend time with them. We choose to be obedient to God because of His great love being in our hearts, and because of our heart relationship with Him. Not to get anything from Him, but just to give to Him freely out of love.
It is an upside-down Kingdom! We receive to get, instead of perform to receive!
Sadly many Christians and others, still try to perform to receive, instead of just receiving His love and fullness. Sometimes it is hard to just receive because we believe we need to do something to receive. We live from a place of lack, instead of a place of fullness and love, so it makes it difficult to just receive!
The last thing the enemy wants for anyone to know is that JESUS CHRIST can really live inside of them!
If we live from the place and reality that He is really inside of us, like He said, then all effort will cease, we live from fullness. Relationship with Him is all, and His fullness in us leaves no lack. If we relate to Him from the fullness of Him living inside of us, in this moment, then we live in abundance and love no matter what the circumstances!
Performance is a futile effort to receive something that is only attained by receiving!
The son of a king does nothing at all to be born the son of a king. He is just born! He puts no effort into it at all! That is who we are!
Love, grace, forgiveness, mercy, peace and relationship are ours by doing nothing but receiving.
There is nothing we can do but receive and be who we are, sons of the King! When we live from the place of being sons of the King, right now in this moment, then all effort ceases! Jesus died so we could be sons.
He tore down the dividing wall with His death and abolished death by His blood.
He did it all!
We just need to receive what He did. No striving. It is the upside-down Kingdom!