RELIGION OR RELATIONSHIP?

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RELIGION OR RELATIONSHIP?

            I have often heard Christians state, “It’s not religion; it’s a relationship.” I believe this, however, only states half the truth, for surely, there is a religious aspect to our faith, although many professing Christians do not enjoy acknowledging that part of Christianity. I have personally heard people make this statement with the idea in mind of abandoning the church, which perpetuates the false assumption that one can love Christ but neglect the church. My question then is this: how is it possible to love the groom but hate the bride? It is obviously not possible. As frustrating as Christians can be in our imperfection, the church is, nonetheless, the bride of Christ whom he died for and bought with his own blood. If Christ loves the church, shouldn’t we also love her? Regarding the topic of religion and relationship, if we neglect the religious aspects of our faith, we essentially rid ourselves of the methods by which God chooses to form us. Based upon biblical substance, I submit that we must acknowledge both our relationship with Christ as well as our religious practice to truly honor our faith. In that way then, I have three imperative thoughts regarding religion and relationship.

God Chooses to Form Us through Relationship with Christ

            First, we are saved by grace through faith in Christ (Eph 2:8-9), which places us in a relationship with the Son. If the reward for salvation in Christ is an eternity with Christ in heaven, the penalty for not trusting him as Lord and Savior is the eternal judgment and wrath of God. In Matthew 7:23, Jesus said that he will say to some on the day of judgment, “Depart from me; I never knew you.” For an omniscient God, it is apparent that he does not mean he knows not who these people are but rather than he did not have a relationship with them. Upon our call of salvation, we place our hope and faith in Jesus Christ, and a formation begins that continues until the day of completion (Phil 1:6) when we are with our Lord. The (both) good and bad circumstances in our lives are part of that formation, which occurs in the context of a relationship with Christ. Without a relationship with Christ, all religious duties are futile, for he must be the substance of our actions. We are formed through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Relationship with Christ Is Developed through Religion

            Additionally, our relationship with Christ is developed through religion. This is the aspect people do not like to often consider. Religion and relationship are not separate but are, in fact, closely linked. You may have worthless religion without relationship, but you cannot have pure and undefiled religion without a relationship with Christ (Jas 1:26-27), i.e. as much as many believers despise admitting it, there certainly is a religious aspect to our faith. The religious practices we participate in on a continuous basis are used by God to develop our relationship with Christ. We could easily list many of those religious practices such as Scripture reading, prayer, and weekly worship. We must ask ourselves, however, if our hearts are prepared to allow God to use these religious practices to develop our relationship with Christ. Without a relationship with Christ, religion is worthless, according to James, but in a relationship with Christ and with the proper purpose, religion is a good element to our faith. The Lord uses religion to develop us and to develop our relationship with Christ if it is employed properly and with a humble and sincere heart.

Religion Must Be Pure, Not Defiled

            At this point, it should be evident that there are two types of religion: pure religion and worthless or defiled religion. What is the difference though? To answer, pure religion is linked explicitly to a relationship with Christ, i.e. pure religion is a derivative of relationship; relationship is not a derivative of pure religion. Furthermore, if we feebly attempt to attain a relationship with Christ through religion, we participate in defiled religion. Without our relationship with Christ as the foundation for all our actions, our religious acts and deeds are worthless. For religion to be pure and undefiled, one’s heart, soul, mind, and strength must be in right standing with God, which entails a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

WHAT IS GAINED BY CELEBRATING ADVENT?

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WHAT IS GAINED BY CELEBRATING ADVENT?

            As a worship leader, I find myself planning around a variation of annual events and calendars, e.g. the Christian year and calendar, the school year, American and patriotic holidays, and denominational events such as mission emphases. Keeping in mind these events and times often make worship planning a challenge. If one calendar is to supersede another, surely the church year should be the one employed. I am often shocked at how much we allow cultural conventions to creep into our worship practices. Recently, a prominent pastor’s church advertised a well-known cable news political commentator’s appearance during their weekly worship gathering. While this example is extreme, it is more common than we might realize that cultural norms are realized as equal to proclaiming the full counsel of God.

            I was not raised in a tradition that utilized the church year except that we celebrated Christmas and Easter, and I would even venture to guess that we did not do so in the historical manner. It is not wrong, in and of itself, to avoid the liturgical Christian calendar; nonetheless, abiding by the church calendar ensures that we tell the full counsel of God. While God is not bound by space and time, he chooses to use time and space to communicate to us while we are bound by them. In the church year, there are two primary cycles: 1) the cycle of light (beginning with Lent) and 2) the cycle of life (beginning with Advent). Without digging into details of the various aspects of the church calendar, I would like to focus solely on Advent, which begins on either the fourth Sunday prior to Christmas or the Sunday closest to November 30. American society usually desires to move straight from Thanksgiving (and American holiday, not an overarching Christian celebration) to Christmas. I enjoy Christmas and the pageantry and festivities that come along with it, although we usually celebrate it improperly by giving Christmas a day (December 25) when in the church calendar, it is twelve days and continues through January 5. As a worship leader, however, my frustration though lies in the avoidance of Advent. By avoiding this wonderful celebration, there is much that we miss. I would like to discuss then what we gain by celebrating Advent. It is likely not what most people think it is; it is different from Christmas and contains a different focus. A former professor of mine wrote an article which suggested moving the celebration of Advent to November so that church congregations would not be upset with the lack of Christmas elements almost immediately following Thanksgiving. It is a feasible and good suggestion that warrants the benefits of celebrating Advent. What are those benefits? To answer this question, I would like to discuss what we gain by celebrating Advent.

Advent Represents Expectation

            Advent is an English version of the Latin word which means “coming.”[1] The Latin adventus, furthermore, is “the translation of the Greek word, parousia, commonly used to refer to the Second Coming of Christ.”[2] The key here is expectation. Advent is a season of expectation. As God’s people, we should live our lives in expectation. The most apparent expectation is that of Christ’s return. Additionally, we are to also expect God to move in powerful ways and change our lives as well as the lives of those around us. Advent is focused more on Christ’s return than it is his birth, although there are certainly elements of remembering his birth after Israel had waited long for the coming Messiah. Advent represents expectation. If we forego Advent, we miss out on a vital aspect of our faith. We are an expectant people. Christ will one day soon return. How foolish of us to neglect such a truth.

Advent Represents Patience

            Tied to the concept of expectation and waiting, Advent also represents patience. As we wait on Christ’s Second Coming, we are called to exercise the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22), part of which is patience, i.e. all believers possess patience, but we must exercise it. Waiting and expectation requires patience. God often calls us to serve him but to also wait on his timing, something far easier said than done. While we may want to leap immediately to the celebration of Christ’s birth as soon as December arrives, there are other aspects of the gospel story we must acknowledge; this requires patience. Advent then represents the patience the bride of Christ is to continuously exhibit.

Advent Represents New Beginnings

            When Christ came into the world as God in human flesh, a new covenant was soon to begin. Advent begins the Christian calendar and represents new beginnings, not only in relation to the birth of Christ but also in relation to his continued work in our lives now as we await his return. We are made new creations in Christ Jesus (2 Cor 5:17). Christ’s incarnation for the purpose of dying as the atoning sacrifice for the sin of humankind is certainly a vital aspect of our faith, but so also is the expectation of new beginnings. Without expectation, our response to atonement might seem insufficient. Advent represents new beginnings and specifically new beginnings in Christ. His mercies are new every morning (Lam 3:22-23). We then are continuously being made new in the new covenant and expect it so be so. By bypassing Advent, we might miss this vital aspect of our faith. Advent represents new beginnings.

Advent Represents the Commonality of God’s People throughout History Waiting on the Savior

            God’s people throughout history are part of one family, a chosen and holy nation. Even in the church age, we are connected with Israel of old who waited long on the coming Messiah; we are connected because we too wait for him in the context of his return. Advent connects us to the faithful who have gone before us as well as those brothers and sisters around the world who share our faith today. Israel waited; Israel expected; we wait; we expect. Advent then represents this commonality, which is vital among many commonalities of God’s people throughout history. We await the coming of our Savior just as God’s people did hundreds of centuries ago. As God’s people globally celebrate Advent, a unity of expectation is achieved.

We Miss Marvelous Blessings by Forgoing Advent

            Even in my free Baptist church setting, I am intentional about employing liturgical elements. We are not strictly bound by a lectionary, but I will often employ it along with other elements to intentionally proclaim the full story of God. Therefore, we do not bypass Advent. While we might not approach Advent by strictly utilizing the church calendar, Advent is present in our worship services. I enjoy utilizing liturgy in a free church setting. It can be done well if the worship leader is creative in his or her approach. By foregoing Advent, we miss marvelous blessings and an incredible proclamation of the gospel story. Even if Advent is not exercised during the month of December[3] but is moved or is even adapted so that themes of waiting and expectation are present, local churches have done a grand favor by intentionally telling the full counsel of God. We are a people in waiting; we are a people in expectation; we await the Advent of our Lord and tell his story till he returns.

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[1] “Advent,” Wikipedia, accessed October 24, 2017, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advent.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Often, practical issues (cantatas, lessons and carols, etc.) arise that do not allow us to fully abide by a lectionary.