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I feel it is the extreme [i]religions[/i] that is the problem. Religion is man-made philosophies. That's why they don't work. Even the great evangelist, Billy Graham, attests to Christians being called upon by the Lord, to spread the good news of the saving grace of Jesus, so all will know where their salvation comes from.
In religions, you have man creating his own God. That's idolatry.
In religion, you have man trying to [i]earn[/i] his salvation by "good works".
While Jesus tells us it is only by [i]grace[/i] through faith, that we're saved.
No other religions have a living God, that hears prayers and answers.
In addition, none of the other gods died on the cross for our sins. Jesus did.
In religions, there is rhetoric or rituals that have to be closely adhered to.
Other religions are about man trying to reach up to God. Christianity is about God reaching down to man.
When you practice "religion", your relationship with God is degraded to a mathematical formula. Do this, then do this, don’t do that, then presto. . . you are right in the eyes of God. This is totally missing the point. God doesn't want robots. That's why he gave us free will. He wants so much more for you. He wants to have a real, personal relationship with you. He wants to show his love to you.
It is true that the devil “believes” in God. That is, he believes God exists. But this is a far cry from the kind of faith we are called to have. To truly believe in God means to trust Him. In other words, we not only believe He exists, but we actually make that commitment to love and turn away from our sins, and trust Him to save us through Jesus Christ.
In religions, you have man creating his own God. That's idolatry.
In religion, you have man trying to [i]earn[/i] his salvation by "good works".
While Jesus tells us it is only by [i]grace[/i] through faith, that we're saved.
No other religions have a living God, that hears prayers and answers.
In addition, none of the other gods died on the cross for our sins. Jesus did.
In religions, there is rhetoric or rituals that have to be closely adhered to.
Other religions are about man trying to reach up to God. Christianity is about God reaching down to man.
When you practice "religion", your relationship with God is degraded to a mathematical formula. Do this, then do this, don’t do that, then presto. . . you are right in the eyes of God. This is totally missing the point. God doesn't want robots. That's why he gave us free will. He wants so much more for you. He wants to have a real, personal relationship with you. He wants to show his love to you.
It is true that the devil “believes” in God. That is, he believes God exists. But this is a far cry from the kind of faith we are called to have. To truly believe in God means to trust Him. In other words, we not only believe He exists, but we actually make that commitment to love and turn away from our sins, and trust Him to save us through Jesus Christ.