OnFireFit

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Added 2023-05-08 11:00:01 +0000 UTC

Good morning!

One of my biggest frustrations with faith is the things that have caused people to walk away from God.

When I think of how Jesus got so angry in the temple when people were abusing religion it reminds me that this is a recurring theme through many years. Religion, among a vast array of other things, has been used to control and create power hierarchies. The very thing that is supposed to be pointing people toward God is often the thing causing people to turn away from God.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. Jesus came to break off all the stuff that religion was doing to cause division, control, power struggles and pain. He made the way so that people could have a direct connection to God. The church should always foster the personal connection to God and avoid putting all the focus on the preacher or following a set of rules. The more that people are focused on God, His Spirit working in them and the position we have because of what Jesus did for us by standing in our place, the more that they will act in love, drawing other people into a connection to God.

Jesus regularly confronted religious people and religious actions that threatened a relationship with God. We still see it today in the way people act towards those they feel are sinning differently than they are. If we could really take to heart what Jesus came to do, then we would approach people differently than we currently do.

And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. John 17:3