THE CHAIN CALLED 'RELIGION'

No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" (John 1:18). 

One of the most terrible captivity God must deliver mankind from is the bondage of religion. The worst chain in my opinion is to be chained to religion. When someone is bound to a set of religious beliefs which cannot save him, such a person truly needs to be set free. Religion may be defined as any belief system put together by man in his attempt to worship God. Ultimately, religion happens when man sets apart God's laid out pattern of coming to Him and sets up his own process to worship God according to man's precepts. Such may make religionists out of men but will never raise true worshippers of the one and only true God. 

To be honest and fair to man, religion was never invented in order to go against the Supreme Being. It is just that in the territory of religion, man's opinion counts more than God's opinion and man's wisdom is celebrated above the wisdom of God. Whenever there is a conflict of interest, man's interest has to prevail. Indeed, in the world of religion, it is often said that it is what a person wants that his God will want for him. Religion therefore teaches that God exists for man's purpose and not the other way round. But thanks be to God for sending us His own Son, Jesus Christ to show us the way to worship God. 

What most people don't know is that Jesus did not come here below to set up a religion. That is why He was never acceptable to the religious people of His days. The religious leaders of His days were ever against Him because His teachings upset prevailing religious dogmas. Rather, Jesus came to show us the Father and to demonstrate to us how to relate with Him. In other words, Jesus came to bring us into a personal, loving relationship with God. Thus, He gave power to as many as received Him to become children of God with a capacity to relate with God in the context of a family. 

Beloved, may I announce to you that God who created you wants to be more than a creator to you. He wants to be your Father and take care of you as such. Religion will not teach you that, and if perchance a particular religion teaches you so, it will not facilitate your access into experiencing the fatherhood of God. But a definite relationship with Jesus Christ as your Lord and personal Saviour will change your life by changing the way you relate to God. Jesus Christ, being the Son of God will help you (by His Spirit which is given to those who receive Him into their heart) to become adopted as children of God. That is the reason why He was born: to bring men out of mere religion into a genuine relationship with God. That is what He did for Nicodemus and that is the purpose He continues to achieve for as many as come to Him, even until this day.