THE NO CLINGING TO RUBBISH RELIGION OF JESUS AND YOU

When we enter into the fullness of Christ it is because we have seen the paucity of ourselves as us and been awakened to the possibility of a full life in life as our better selves in Jesus. This is our advance from glory to glory. Not into something nebulous or religious but into our true selves in Christ.

REPENTING OF RELIGION
This means we are called to leave behind the contractual relationship we thought we had going between ourselves and God – a knowledge of good and evil/law-based bargain in which we do stuff in order to get God to do His stuff for us. This inevitably palls because it is selfish as well as life-denying. We get to enjoy life to the full as well as become our real selves when we accept what Jesus has on offer. His life as our life.

We can spend our lives smothered in our mother’s ideas because these ideas were limited and misguided. Those who never grow out of their mother’s ideas pass them on to their children thus fostering a culture of dullness and un-life.

Let’s be clear. Our real self, will always be smothered in law and religion. Laws are the edicts of the knowledge of good and evil. Religion is the culture of it. It’s separation from God parading itself as life. Real life is as simple as agreeing with Christ that He has included you in His Life.

MINISTRY OF HOLES
Following Jesus is not sin management or crisis management – although sin and crises may lead us to Jesus. Our life with Him may start with our needing Him to get us out of a hole, but that’s not where it will end. It continues with Jesus opening us to more of Himself and more of life. Life is fullness of joy, but it is also Jesus, which means that life is God – union with God meaning a oneness with the trinity.

ME
Henri Nouwen observes, “ When Jesus says, “Follow me,” something very different is happening. We enter into a different way of following because it is a call away from “me” and toward God. It is a call to let God enter into the center of our being. It is a willingness to let go of “me,” of “I,” and to gradually say, “You, Lord, are the One.” (1) This liberates us from the drag of maintaining legacy religion.

“It is not a way of searching for the self, but a way of emptying, of leaving the self to create space for a whole new way of being that is of God. ”

PUMPING BLADDERS
Repenting may involve leaving behind our long-held ideas and replacing them with Christs’ ideas about Himself and us. True, we can remain in religion convincing ourselves that pumping up a long held view is honouring Him. But if we do, we will be among those who have an answer for everything – people who neither see nor hear even when confronted with the light and truth of un-diluted life.
 
(1) Excerpt From: Henri J. M. Nouwen. “Following Jesus.” Apple Books.