We’ve talked about what outward religion is. This devotional reading looks at the reasons why we choose outward religion
Nuggets
- We have an outward religion when we are impulsive and spontaneous.
- We have an outward religion when we follow the world, and not God.
- We have an outward religion when we choose our circumstances over God.
- We have an outward religion when we see only our actions as being required by God.
Before we leave our discussion on outward and inward religion, I found another sermon to review. It isn’t about the how of outward religion, as we have been discussing.
This sermon is more about the why of it.
Cumming explained really well about the reasoning of backsliding. He wrote, “The great fact which our Lord designs to illustrate is this — that numbers embrace the gospel from reasons that are not conclusive, and when stronger reasons, as they appear to them, arise in their intercourse with social life, they lightly renounce a creed they lightly adopted.”
Resource
Let’s take a look at the first four reasons. We will finish the last four in the next devotion.
Let's Put It into Context
To read devotions in the Habitual Holiness of Heart and Life theme, click the button below.
Here is a running list of nuggets for the theme.
Devotions in the Outward and Inward Religion study
Here is a running list of nuggets for the study.
We are using Boston’s sermon as the foundation for this series.
Resource
Religion from Impulse
“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (II Cor. 9: 7 ESV)
We have an outward religion when we are impulsive and spontaneous.
As humans, we address situations differently. Some of us follow well thought out convictions.
Others follow their impulses. Those might be called the spontaneous people.
While they might tend to be seen as the life of the party, Cumming explained why that is a drawback in our relationship with God. He wrote, “Men who are the creatures of strong and impetuous emotion, subscribe to a creed, if I may use the expression, on the spur of the moment, and because they feel profoundly, they think they are convinced, and that the creed which they adopt is demonstrable and necessarily true. Now, I answer — this will not be sufficient to keep you steadfast.”
Resource
God doesn’t want us to give in to irresistible urges to behave in a certain way. He doesn’t want us to go against our conscious wishes.
God does not want us to act prematurely. He wants us to be diligent. Diligence is a consistent, persistent effort through repentance to obey God’s laws and commandments.
Solomon cautioned us against being impulsive. “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty” (Prov. 21: 5 ESV).
Why would God pick diligence over spontaneousness? I can think of a couple of reasons.
When we diligently seek to do God’s Will, we accomplish it more times than not. That is because our focus is on God. That makes us consistent.
We also are less apt to follow Satan’s temptations. We are more in tune with what God is expecting from us and more inclined to follow His Will.
We persist and endure in the paths to which we are called. “But the one who endures to the end will be saved” (Mt. 24: 13 ESV).
Religion of the Crowd
“We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (I Jn. 5: 19 ESV)
We have an outward religion when we follow the world, and not God.
Cumming took this a different way than I probably would have. He talked about appearing to be a disciple of Christ in public but not following Him in private.
Don’t get me wrong. Probably all of us have been guilty on that at one time or another.
Too many times, though, I think the opposite tends to be true. We follow God in private but the world in public.
It is hard to go against the crowd — especially if we are the only one with different convictions.
Unfortunately, we don’t always need a crowd to have divided allegiances. We can sometimes be an only Sunday disciple. We must be an everyday disciple.
Boston gave us a little more insight on what it means to be in the world but not of it. He wrote, “In respect of their being broken off from that corrupt mass, and become a part of a new lump. They are become members of Christ’s mystical body, of the invisible Church, a distinct though invisible society.”
Resource
I have always figured out the broken from the corrupt world part. I knew we were part of the Church.
It just hit me about the invisible society part. It probably shouldn’t have.
We know we worship an unseen God. We know He is spirit. We know His Holy Spirit lives within us.
Boston told us what it means in the end. He wrote, “Their having a disposition, and cast of heart and soul, opposite to that of the world; so that they are as much separated from the world as enemies are one from another (Genesis 3:15).”
Resource
Our disposition is our temperamental makeup. The heart – or soul – is the immortal seat of our thoughts, intellect, will, and affections that produces our character, from which all things spring, including controlling our spiritual position.
We think it is our actions that separate us from the world. It isn’t.
It is getting our relationship with God to the heart level that separates us. Believing in Jesus is the start.
God does the rest.
Think about this in terms of those who really do not have the inward religion. They think they have an interest in God.
But they are in the world.
There can be no question that we are from God when we get our relationship to the heart level. “Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God” (Jn. 8: 47 ESV).
Our part is to accept and feel like we are a part of God’s invisible society — that we are a child of God’s.
Glossary
We will continue to have outward religion if we do not feel like we belong.
Religion of Mere Circumstances
“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (I Cor. 10: 13 ESV)
We have an outward religion when we choose our circumstances over God.
We usually interpret this verse to say every Tom, Sally, and Elaine — and everyone else — all endure the same temptations. Everyone encounters a temptation that someone else has already experienced. All temptations are versions of an already-played theme.
That is supposed to comfort us during trying times. If they endured, we could also endure.
Let’s put this verse under a different lens.
We are all tempted. Some see the temptations as mere circumstances. If they are everyday occurrences that happen to everyone, no big deal, right?
Wrong. A temptation by any other name is still a temptation.
It is still Satan trying to get us to disobey God.
We can’t take our focus off God because we think we are experiencing some small run-of-the-mill thing any more than when we are experiencing large trials.
Moinet said something interesting. He wrote, “God will so adjust our surroundings that we shall always be able to do what is right.”
Resource
This goes along with the “… God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape …” (I Cor. 10: 13 ESV) part.
It comes down to whether or not we choose to obey God. The choice is always ours.
Cumming took those circumstances to mean family belief. There is a somewhat confusing verse in God’s Word. “And they said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household’” (Ac. 16: 31 ESV)
This was said to the Philippian jailor. It makes it sound like if he believes in Jesus, his entire household will be saved.
That isn’t so. The members of the jailor’s household will only be saved when they believe in Jesus.
They will be offered the opportunity for salvation. It is their choice whether or not to believe in Jesus.
We don’t get a pass to salvation because our parents believed. Salvation is an individual relationship with God.
Can we just accept their religion as our own without really believing? I can see some might do that.
They grew up in church, so they always assumed they were good to go. Maybe, maybe not.
Each of us has to have a conversion experience. We must consciously choose to turn from our sins and follow Jesus.
Religion of an Outside Life
“They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!” (II Tim. 3: 5 NLT)
We have an outward religion when we see only our actions as being required by God.
This has been the topic of this study. Do we have only an outward appearance of loving God or have we had an inward transformation?
Let’s go back and look at some points we’ve made in this study. I’m not going to beat a dead horse.
- Salvation starts with grace, but it doesn’t end there. What we do with it is sanctification. Sanctification is a gradual growing process.
- It isn’t just the outward actions that earn us salvation. It is the inward transformation.
- Bottom line is belief is not enough. Belief in our Savior and Redeemer has to permeate our being and impact out thoughts and actions.
- Service is included in the list of things that God requires. But so is to walk with God.
- We are to witness and bring others to Christ. We are to serve others. Our #1 priority is getting our relationship right with God.
- Godliness has nothing to do with us really. It is about us being obedient to the gospel.
- Our relationship with God has an inward and outward aspect. We can’t have one and not the other.
- The inward aspects dictate the outward aspect, not the other way around.
- We have to show the fruit of our relationship with God through outward manifestation.
- Worldview people see our outside religion, but they must see our inward religion shining through us.
- Not the eternal grace, but the external performance of religion, marks a true Christian.
- If we try to follow outward religion, we remain in an unregenerated state.
How Do We Apply This?
- Diligently seek after God.
- Keep our dispositions and hearts focused on God.
- Focus on God in all circumstances — large or small.
- Ensure we have an individual relationship with God.
- Recognize God is stronger than our temptations.
- Resist temptation.
Resource
Father God. We believe for ourselves that Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer. We want to focus on You during the big temptations and the small. Help us to resist temptation and keep our dispositions and hearts focused on you. Amen.
What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
If you don’t understand something and would like further clarification, please contact me.
If you have not signed up for the email providing the link to the devotions and the newsletter, do so below.
If God has used this devotion to speak with you, consider sharing it on social media.