As I study others and especially those that profess to be Christians, I see a large amount of what I would refer to as “religion”. What is religion? I found various definitions of the word and I will sum it up in this manner.
Religion: a system of faith and worship, obedience to divine commandments, the love of a supreme being, referring to Godliness, devotion, holiness, obligated to vows. A collection or system of beliefs about cultures, the world, humanity, existence, the universe, the origen of life, health, spirituality, violence, science, nature, life and death. It includes: symbols, stories, writings, ways of live, prayers, ceremonies, initiations, punishments, gods, worship, trances, sacrifices, celebrations, diets, funerals, weddings, meditation, music, art, dances, traditions, mythology and superstitions.
I find so many people that appear to only have religion. They have their beliefs, traditions, religious practices and such. They attend church, they pray, some read the Bible, and they have various ceremonies that they participate in. Ultimately what I see, is that they have their life and God is just a small part of it as He effects some of their actions.
John 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
It refers here to knowing God, knowing Jesus Christ; not knowing about them, but to actually know them personally. We don’t only have a God to worship as in other religions, but a God that we can have a personal and intimate relationship with. A relationship in which we find communication; us talking to Him and Him talking to us. It is a relationship of love in which we strive for closeness to Him and to walk with Him. This is quite different than just having religion.
The personal relationship begins with and is only possible through our salvation as it says: “this is life eternal, that they might know thee”. However, it is possible to be saved and yet not have a close relationship with the Lord. You must take the steps to improve that relationship just as one would in a marriage. If a husband and wife desire a good marriage, they need to talk often, listen to the other, and spend time together.
A person can have both religion and a personal relationship with the Lord. But a person can also be very religious and yet not know Him. What do you have? Religion? Or, a personal and intimate relationship with your Lord and Savior?