Jesus proves it’s possible to reject religion without rejecting God. In fact, Jesus hates religion. It grieves him and offends him—and not because he’s touchy. Jesus hates religion because it reverses the good news that he proclaimed in his life and in his death: You don’t have to figure God out on your own, and you don’t have to earn God’s acceptance through obedience. (Which is very good news indeed, since history has shown that we are incapable of doing either of these anyway.) Instead of requiring us to climb up to God, Jesus moved into our neighborhood. He lived and died as one of us in order to reconcile us to the God we are created for, who alone is the source of our ultimate joy and satisfaction.
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During this week’s sermon (10/23/2011) we saw that Jesus hates Mystical Religion. [Download]
The Scripture passage for this sermon is Matthew 12:38-42.
Main Idea: The word “mystical” and the word “mysterious” come from the same root (‘myst’). “Mystery” refers to something that is unknown, while the word “mystical” refers to something that is unknowable. The difference is huge. Lots of things that are unknown to us can become known. For example, you may not have known that the processed meat found in foods like hot dogs can increase your risk of colorectal cancer by 21%—the same cancer risk increase as smoking cigarettes. (Now you now, and knowing is half the battle.) But you would never say that such facts are “unknowable.” They were just unknown to you. What mystical religion does is focus on things that are unknowable instead of focusing on the things that God has clearly revealed to us in Jesus and in the Scriptures. The clearest example of mystical religion in our culture today is our strange obsession with trying to figure out “the will of God” in specific situations. It seems that some people are so mystical they pray about what kind of cereal to eat in the morning. Of course, God can give “signs” when he chooses. That is not the point. The point is that even when that happens, how can you correctly know whether something is really a sign from God or not? Only through a deep understanding of God’s character and purposes in the world could you ever hope to discern what is “from God” and what actually is self-delusion, demonic deception, or mere coincidence. Furthermore, in most—perhaps we should say the vastly overwhelming—number of circumstances we find ourselves in, we don’t need a special sign from God to discern what is better for our lives. Only mystical religion says that. The good news of Jesus is not that we must pray super hard to find out what he wants, but that he has already told us. Jesus says, “This is who I am. This is what I’m doing in the world. You were made for me. You were redeemed by me. Go and live like the doubly-God-owned person that you are.”
What does this mean for me? Mystical religion is not just wrong, it’s harmful. It teaches us to look for the will God in our circumstances instead of looking for the will of God in the life and teachings of Jesus. What this means practically is that if we want to know what we should do in a certain situation, we must become the kind of people who know the identity and mission of Jesus by heart. Now, this doesn’t rule out the need for prayer. There will be times when we’re still unsure about two things that seem equally good to us. Even still, in these moments we should take comfort in the fact that if both options enable us to fulfill the mission of Jesus in our lives, then either is OK. God doesn’t have an invisible tight-rope he wants to you walk that he’s not telling you about. According to God, his will is for you to know him and make him known. If every decision you make facilitates that, then you’re in his will. (Of course, you’ll find that knowing the will of God isn’t the hard part, unlike what mystical religion says. It’s actually doing the will of God that is difficult, for apart from grace changing our hearts daily it would be impossible.)
Questions for Reflection
1. Every form of religion we’ve looked at in this series emphasizes what people must do for God instead of what God has done for us in Christ. How is mystical religion guilty the same kind of error?
2. Instead of asking God for a sign showing you “the right thing to do,” how do you think that followers of Jesus should make decisions in their lives?
3. Do you find it freeing or intimidating to realize that God’s will for your life is simply that you become like Jesus and live on mission with him? How might it be both freeing and intimidating at the same time?
4. What are some practical things you might do or say to help a close friend avoid the trap of mystical religion when they are struggling with an important decision in their life?
Related Quote: “Expecting God to reveal some hidden will of direction is an invitation to disappointment and indecision. Trusting in God’s will of decree [God’s sovereignty] is good. Folowing his will of desire [God’s Word] is obedient. Waiting for God’s will of direction is a mess. It is bad for your life, harmful to your sanctification, and allows too many Christians to be passive tinkerers who strangely feel more spirit-ual the less they actually do. God is not a Magic 8-Ball we shake up and peer into whenever we have a decision to make. He is a good God who gives us brains, shows us the way of obedience, and invites us to take risks for Him. . . . We feel like we can know—and need to know—what God wants every step of the way. But such preoccupation with finding God’s will, as well-intentioned as the desire may be, is more folly than freedom.” (Kevin DeYoung, Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God’s Will, or: How to Make a Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Fleeces, Open Doors, Random Bible Verses, Casting Lots, Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky, etc.)
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