Is Our Religion Right?

There are very important questions floating around that need answers.  Many people are asking if our educational methods are right and whether we can depend on them to train up our children to be well-educated in history, reading, math and science to be good citizens of our country.   Some people are questioning our economic system and asking if we should dissolve the free enterprise and capitalism system and adopt the system of government ownership and Communism.  But, there is a question that is above all other questions that has eternal consequences:  It my religion right?  I believe the Word of God teaches that Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of all my sins.  Is this faith dependable?  Will it take me to heaven?  May the Holy Spirit guide our thoughts from Matthew 11 to comfort us as we answer this question:

Is My Religion Right?

Because it is of Divine Origin

If you were going to give an answer to someone who asked you where your religion came from they might think it came from a bunch of really ancient people.  You could talk about all the people who have their names associated with the Old and New Testament books of the Bible.  You could trace the religious philosophies from people 2,000 years ago, run through the debates of the Middle Ages right up to today.  Like all religions, our also can be traced through the history of people.  However, all other religions have things they believed years ago but have now been discarded and updated to fit into today’s way of thinking.  Is our religion, based on the Gospel of Jesus Christ, one of these human religions systems of the past that should be discarded in our more enlightened age?

I see you getting squirmy in your seats and I’m hoping you don’t charge at me for even saying such things.  The answer is found in Jesus’ words. “²⁷ “All things have been committed to me by my Father.”  Jesus spoke these words about our religion.  Our religion comes from God the Father to us through Jesus Christ.  Jesus taught that we are all under the curse of sin and in need of repentance.  Jesus taught that our sins were atoned for through his death on the cross to redeem us.  Jesus taught us to trust in him and then from thankful hearts to obey God’s commands.  All we believe comes from Jesus, was taught by his well-trained disciples and passed down to us through God’s people.  Listen to Jesus’ words again: “²⁷ “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”  Therefore, our religion is not based stories, but our religion is based on facts that have divine origin!  Our religion is from the mind of God, not from the mind of people.  Our religion is not human philosophy, but a divine revelation to all people.

Now you’re thinking, “Prove it!”  Prove our religion comes from God—that is our Lord Jesus Christ.  Well, the Gospel could never be created in the minds of people because it goes against the thinking of people.  Every man-made religion demands something from people before they can get right with God.  Or, the idea of the Gospel is just plain foolishness.  You can’t even imagine this because the Holy Spirit has created faith in your heart to believe the Right Religion with Divine Origin.  St Paul has a commentary on this in 1 Corinthians 2:14 “¹⁴ The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.”  Every main point of our true religion is rejected by people’s natural way of thinking.  Every other religion teaches that children are born without sin.  That you have to earn your eternal life.  That you can’t be saved by faith alone.  That a good life earns you heaven instead of your good life giving evidence of your faith in Christ.  There is no religion except our Religion of Divine Origin where you hear God say, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him” (Luke 9:35).  In our Right Religion there is nothing left to do, for Christ Jesus did it all!

There is another point about our religion being right because it has Divine Origin.  Do you realize how many famous things were invented by mistake!?!  Chocolate Chip Cookies (replaced baker’s chocolate with sweet chocolate that didn’t melt!).  Potato Chips (Chef Crum was told by a customer to cut his fried potato thinner—“OK, I’ll show him!  I’ll cut them super thin and fry them until they’re rock hard!).  No one made a mistake and stumbled across the story of Jesus Christ.  He was witnessed by his disciples, his existence is verified by the early historians, and the religion of Jesus Christ hasn’t changed for 2,000 years!  Our Religion Is Right Because It Has Divine Origin!  Our religion comes from God and

Our Religion Is Adequate for All People

While history has revealed and Scripture has taught us about Jesus Christ to be the Redeemer of the world, can I be sure that this religion is meant for me?  We can hear that the religion of Jesus Christ saves souls, but does it save my soul?   Think of it like this.  We can read about a wonderful new medicine that will give energy to many people.  But, if I’m a man lying in the hospital suffering from terminal cancer, I know that medicine is not for me.  Some messages of hope are not for everyone.  Is my religion right for me?

Yes, our Right Religion based on Jesus Christ is for everybody.   A person can say that the gospel is not for him, but it doesn’t make it so.  What makes the Right Religion for everyone are the words of Jesus. “²⁵ At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. ²⁶ Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.”  In the verses just before this Jesus was talking about how he had come to be the Redeemer of all people, or repentance and faith, and of Judgment Day, and of heaven and hell.  Did you hear what Jesus said?  While there are many who are considered wise and learned people of the things of this world, the Right Religion is meant for everyone—even for little children.  A person may be very poor, but the Gospel of Jesus makes him eternally rich.  A person may not be very smart, but the Gospel of Jesus makes him “wise unto salvation!”  A person may be drowning in guilt over sin, but the Gospel of Jesus declares him forgiven and through faith in Jesus, an heir of eternal life in heaven!  Yes, the Right Religion is Adequate for All People. This means the Right Religion is right for you.  There is no sin so great that it is not forgiven by Jesus.  The Right Religion is for you.  Finally, it is the Right Religion

Because It Gives Great Comfort

Can you think of another religion that gives comfort to their followers more than the Right Religion?  There are lots of religions based on fear and obligation, but ours is a religion of comfort.  Listen to Jesus, “²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” 

There is a phrase that you’ve probably hear in your life that goes something like this, “God won’t give you more than you can bear.”  People who say that have good intensions, but it’s not a Bible passage.  Actually, the truth is that God does allow burdens in our life too heavy to bear for a reason.  You just heard it.  The Lord Jesus is our strength and he invites us to bring our burdens and cares to him through prayer and receive rest from his promises.   When death comes into our home and takes away a loved one and our hearts are stricken with the burden of heavy grief, our Right Religion comforts us that Jesus Christ takes believers to their heavenly home.  When our sins weigh heavy on us and tries to rob our hope, our Right Religion comforts us that Jesus Christ is compassionate and merciful and loved to forgive repentant sinners and assure us the punishment of our sins has been washed away in the blood of Jesus Christ.  Our Right Religion holds our crucified Savior before our eyes and gives us comfort no other religion could ever begin to give.

And so we have answered the question whether our Religion is Right.  Of all the questions you have in your life, this is the most important question to have answered.  Our Religion Is Right because it has Divine Origin, because it is For All People, and because it gives us eternal comfort.  Since you have been convinced by the Holy Spirit that Jesus Christ is your Savior, let’s show our thankfulness by being eager to hear more about Jesus, who was born for us.  About Jesus who lived the perfect life for us.  About Jesus who died for us all.  About Jesus who will take us to heaven.  Let us pray for strength to remain faithful to the Radically Right Religion of Jesus Christ, for his yoke is easy and his burden is light.  Amen.