In the last three devotionals, I shared about Jesus addressing some important issues with a Pharisee when He was invited to this man’s house for dinner. Jesus told him about the condition of the Pharisee’s heart while the Pharisee was concerned if Jesus had washed before dinner. Jesus rebuked him and his companions for their accuracy in giving of their tithes and mints but neglecting love and justice. Jesus also exposed the Pharisee’s love for the important seats and being greeted in the marketplace.
The issues that Jesus addressed can easily apply to our lives and our attitudes in living our Christian life. So how do we keep some safeguards from becoming religious!?
1. The Lord’s view of us should be the most important view in our spiritual walk
The fear of man brings a snare, But whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe. Proverbs 29:25
The opinion of man whether it is a good opinion or a bad opinion will set a snare for us and will hold us in bondage to competition, striving, and proving ourselves. It is important to recognize that what is happening in our internal world is far more important than our external perfection before people. We need to have regular alone time where we listen to the Lord and allow Him to speak to us concerning those things that He cares about apart from all the other voices around us. It takes courage to be corrected by the Lord!
If people happen to like us or admire us, thank the Lord and then move on. We cannot let it to get into our heads or hearts. We also cannot allow it to become our identity. If people have an issue with us, instead of jumping to defend ourselves, we should take it to our prayer room (not our friends) and ask Him to show us if there is any truth in what was spoken. It would be like a person who is sick but does not want to admit that they have a health condition. If we don’t take care of the health issue, we are the ones suffering the consequences. If we are afraid of man’s negative opinion of us, we will not admit our mistakes and will even justify them. We might even find scriptures to defend our position, while all along knowing that we have a pattern that needs to be broken.
2. Our Priority in ministry should be God’s priority in ministry
He loves righteousness and justice; The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. Psalm 33:5
God cares about reaching people and representing Him well on the earth! Therefore, be willing to let go of anything that inhibits your love and justice towards others. Just because we do the work of the ministry, it does not mean that we are in a right relationship with God or others.We need to care more about love and justice than the zeal of ministry. If we keep his priorities in our lives, sometimes it will lead us to walk away from certain situations and let others have it their way. If we are not willing to experience loss sometimes, we are more concerned about self-preservation than letting the Lord have His way in a given situation. The good news is that when we operate in love and justice, the Lord allows us to see His goodness and His hand in our lives because we have put Him and His desires first.
3. Examine your life for False Security
For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
I love the above scripture for many reasons. As it relates to the subject of having a religious spirit, it is a good reminder that our significance is in the Lord’s hands not in our earthly laurels. We cannot think too highly of ourselves. Mordecai challenged the Queen, and his message to Esther was very bold and direct. He reminded her that even though she was the Queen, her life was in jeopardy as well. This probably awakened Esther from the slumber and the security of being a Queen!
Our value is not connected to our titles, positions, the most important seats, or people’s greetings. All those things can be false religious security. Esther was the Queen, but her significance was not connected to her royalty. Her royalty status would not have spared her life from being perished. Being a queen did not have an intrinsic value in and of itself, but God was going to use her royalty to fulfill His purpose. If we get enamored by false security, we will get derailed from fulfilling God’s purpose in our lives.
Praise God for the Holy Spirit who is the perfect physician. He illuminates the condition of our hearts, so we can address the religious spirit and get back on the road to recovery!
