Religion by nature has a negative connotation. It signifies a system of religious practices and traditions that certain groups of people follow. Religion, in short, is justification by works. It says that if I go to church every Sunday and receive communion, confess my sins, and pray a certain way I will be saved. However, failing to do everything right quite likely will result in condemnation, judgment and certainly guilt.
Guilt is a powerful motivator. I believe that the collective guilt of the middle ages lined and paid for the ornate cathedrals of Europe. Sadly, in judgment many religious leaders of that time repeatedly condemned many to death for not conforming to their religion.
I believe that religion is used in the absence of faith. Justification is by faith in Christ Jesus. Without Jesus Christ we are unable to save ourselves. That’s right - no amount of religion or righteous works can save us (Romans 3:10). Christ was the only person able to attain perfection. By His perfection, and by our faith in His perfection and ability to justify us, we are saved (Romans 3:28).
Without faith, people believe that they must work to achieve their salvation. Every day is a struggle to surpass in works the day before. Every day is a struggle to simply draw near to the standard of perfection set by Christ. People that believe in justification by works are often guilt driven and judgmental. They are guilt ridden for not achieving perfection and judgmental in dealing with others who are unable to achieve perfection.
Paul talks about this in Romans 3:20 NIV. He says:
Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.
The letter of the law brings condemnation. The law is our standard. By it we are condemned. Christ was the only human able to satisfy the law and attain perfection. Therefore, by Christ — our righteousness, we are saved.
You may ask what faith is. According to the Bible faith is, "being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see," (Hebrews 11:1 NIV). To be faithful, one must act in faith, trusting in a hope of salvation promised by God offered through belief in Christ not by works. Self-righteousness is righteousness according to and attained by oneself. God considers this type of manmade righteousness worthless. Isaiah, the prophet, likened our manmade righteousness to filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).
It is no wonder that many people are turned off by religion. It’s not from God. Religion, in the sense of manmade tradition, is foolishness that has no value in God’s sight. Jesus rebuked the religious leaders in Mark saying, "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!" (Mark 7:9 NIV).
Paul summarizes it finely in Colossians 2:16-17 (NIV):
16Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
With all that said, I would like to note that works do play a part in the Christian walk. However, works are a result of salvation not the cause.
