Religion and Mans Traditions vs Grace and Faith | Romans 3
Religion & Tradition vs Grace & Faith
Father God, thank you for this time that we can spend reading and studying your word. Thank you for clearly showing us in your word the differences between man's Religion and faith. Thank you also for your Holy Spirit in us that helps us to understand your word. In Jesus's name we pray, Amen.
Understanding that the purpose of the law is to show us that we are sinners, we ought to also understand the differences between Religion and mans traditions, and Grace and Faith.
Religion includes trying to earn your way to heaven, or trying to maintain your salvation, or trying to earn additional blessings or mercies from God (or all of the above together!). It is purely a work of the flesh and has a "form of godliness". It appears to be godly, but isn't. This includes the religious traditions of men. What kind of religious traditions? Here's a few examples:
• Sabbath keeping (requiring attending church on Saturday or Sunday or any other specific day and making it a law). Keeping other holy days, holidays, or special oberservances as a religious requirement for salvation, or to maintain salvation or for "extra blessings", or to be "more spiritual", or even to "get closer to God". Paul tells us that these are weak and beggarly elements, and are a form of bondage (Gal 4:9-11). "9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? 10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain."
• Paying tithes (requiring it and making it a law; believing you will get special blessings from God if you tithe) instead of just giving as you purpose in your heart to give.
• Water baptism- not a requirement today for salvation and not even an "inner manifestation of an outward grace" - its actually a work of the flesh in today's dispensation which is why Paul stopped water baptizing and said that Christ sent him NOT to baptize but to preach the gospel. Water baptism was required for Israel's program and Paul baptized for a time during the transitional period as written about in the book of Acts. But water baptism ceased along with the sign gifts and was never a requirement for us for our salvation in our dispensation, not even during the transitional period.
• Church membership is another religious tradition not required today. Believers are members of Christ's body. You are not required to join a particular denomination or local assembly. You are not "backslidden" if you don't join or regularly attend a specific church. God wants believers to fellowship with one another, but joining a particular church isn't a requirement. You can fellowship with other believers in a variety of ways. You can also, of course, worship and study God's word on your own, as well as with another believer or in a group of believers.
More religious works can include
• Fasting. Not required today. We are complete in Christ. We have peace with God.
• Novenas, rosary prayers, etc. These are actually idolatry (worshipping a false Mary, the "Queen of Heaven" that goes all the way back to ancient Babylonian times; worshipping the Catholic churches corrupt ideas about who saints actually are, or worshipping and praying to angels). We don't need these prayers because as believers we have peace with God, we are sons of God and joint-heirs with Christ, and God actually lives in us! The Lord Jesus Christ is our mediator (1 Tim 2:5). We are not to pray vain, repetitive prayers, but rather to pray about spiritual matters based upon God's word built up in our inner man. We are to ONLY pray to God. We pray to God the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Tradition can also include unbiblical teachings that a particular religion holds to such as
• Believing that Jesus's mother Mary was also born sinless and was assumed up to heaven; this is not biblical.
• Believing that God wrote anything more outside of the completed word of God - the book of Mormon is an example, and even charismatics that believe that God gives us "special prophetic messages" today are another example. The Jesus Calling books and anything similar to that are also unbiblical.
There are many other church traditions that are not biblical. These are all fleshly, carnal things, the wisdom and teachings of men and have nothing to do with sound grace doctrine or what God is doing today in this dispensation of grace.
Col 2:23
Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body: not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.
Religion is all about "do". But grace is all about "done"! Christ's finished work on the cross was and is sufficient for us! He accomplished all that we could not! When people are religious, they are actually satisfying their FLESH, but believers are to walk in the Spirit.
Grace and Faith is completely different from religion and traditions of men. We have an opportunity as believers now to live by the faith of the Son of God! This means that we live by His faith, not by our fleshly efforts.
Galatians 2:20
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”
[Most modern versions change this verse to say that we are to live "by faith IN the Son of God." But that changes the entire meaning of this verse. We have faith IN Christ of course, we believe in Him and what He did for us, but our Christian walk specifically requires that we, as believers, live by "the faith OF the Son of God", which is allowing Christ and His word (rightly divided) to live in and through us. He accomplished everything required for us to be saved and we just need to believe it. The modern versions are trying to put you back into works of the flesh by making it about what YOU do instead of about what Christ did and us allowing Christ to live in and through us as believers.]
Our Christian walk includes putting off the desires of our flesh to want to live religiously and to follow after the traditions and teachings of men.
Ephesians 4:22
“That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;”
The flesh is in competition with the Spirit of God that is in your spirit as a believer. The flesh wants to boast in itself!
Galatians 5:17-18
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
As you continue to study Romans, and all of the Pauline epistles, you will learn more about your identity in Christ and how to live unto God instead of following after the flesh which includes following religion and man's traditions.
Homework: Read Romans chapter 3 again and find the key verse in this chapter.
Video
