The Flu and Faith: Are You Immunized?

It is that time of the year...time to get a flu shot. Now I have never had one but I know a lot of people who get one this time of year. My grandfather on my dad's side in Arkansas was one of those who would get a flu shot every November. He was a farmer and couldn't afford to be slowed down by the flu. So religiously he got his flu shot.

Back in my grandpa's day, his doctor would inject him with a live germ (today they use a dead germ which is ironic when you consider the book of James words on "dead faith produces dead works"). Usually my grandpa would feel a little sick for a day or so, but the trade off was worth it because the injection would immunize him for the rest of the year. Did you know a little religion does the same thing? A little religion can keep a person from a real, life-giving, fruitful relationship with God the Father through His Son, Jesus Christ.

The Pharisees were a great example of a people with just enough religion to make them dangerous and deadly.. They were seen by most in Israel as the religious leaders of their day. But Jesus called them "...whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside." [GNB, Matt. 23:27] The Pharisees had enough religion on the inside that kept them from recognizing, knowing, and loving God himself as He (Jesus) walked among them.

Thats what the religious bug does. When we receive it, Satan deceives me into thinking "I'm okay...I got just enough to get to heaven...I go to church...I am a good person...thats all I need." But thats not what Jesus said. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37, "...Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." In other words, I can't afford to be satisfied with a little religion, but all of Jesus!

What about you? Have you got just enough of religion to keep you immunized from a life-giving relationship with Jesus Christ?