Jesus bigger than religion

[vince2paul]

youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY

An old video but last week, someone actually gave it Indonesian subtitleand now this is huge among Indonesians on Facebook.

I’m not sure whether to put it on Apologetic or Popular Media, but since this is Apologetic Forum, I hope I’m on the right sub.

So, can someone help me to answer some of his points?

• Jesus came to abolish religion
• If religion is so great, why it has started to many wars
• God in the old Testament actually calls the religious people whores.
• Religion is a man-made invention,
• He quoted Roman 4:5

Somehow, I’ll get question and I have to be able to answer it.
Anyone?

 

[dmar198]

youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY

An old video but last week, someone actually gave it Indonesian subtitleand now this is huge among Indonesians on Facebook.

I’m not sure whether to put it on Apologetic or Popular Media, but since this is Apologetic Forum, I hope I’m on the right sub.

So, can someone help me to answer some of his points?

• Jesus came to abolish religion
• If religion is so great, why it has started to many wars
• God in the old Testament actually calls the religious people whores.
• Religion is a man-made invention,
• He quoted Roman 4:5

Somehow, I’ll get question and I have to be able to answer it.
Anyone?

Part of the answer lies in James 1:27 – “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

 

[ctb95]

Jesus never condemned religion. He condemned self-centered, hypocritical religious leaders. In fact Jesus said that he came “not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it.”

Religion doesn’t cause wars, but infallible humans do. Besides, the vast majority of history’s wars were about power politics, not religion.

Christ founded a physical Church, with St. Peter as it’s first leader, so how is religion (at least Christianity) a man made invention?

---

On a similar note, I’ve heard a lot of people say “I’m not religious, I’m a follower of Christ!” What they don’t realize is that to follow Christ is the epitome of being religious! Whether they term themselves as “Christ-followers” or “religious” is simply semantics, I’m my point of view.

 

[ctb95]

Also in Matthew 23:2-3, Jesus instructs his followers to listen to the Pharisees and teachers and to obey what they say, since they have taken the seat of Moses (and thus have authority).

 

[Reuben_J]

youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY

An old video but last week, someone actually gave it Indonesian subtitleand now this is huge among Indonesians on Facebook.

I’m not sure whether to put it on Apologetic or Popular Media, but since this is Apologetic Forum, I hope I’m on the right sub.

So, can someone help me to answer some of his points?

• Jesus came to abolish religion
• If religion is so great, why it has started to many wars
• God in the old Testament actually calls the religious people whores.
• Religion is a man-made invention,
• He quoted Roman 4:5

Somehow, I’ll get question and I have to be able to answer it.
Anyone?

Well, there are so many things that are wrong with the young man in the video; wrong premises and wrong assumptions.

Perhaps he should define religion first. According to Merriam Webster Dictionary it is a system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith. Thus Christianity is a religion.

Now, how could belief in Jesus not a religion? It only is not, according to this definition, if there is no system of that belief, perhaps like anyone can just believe anything about Jesus.

So maybe your detractor can answer that question first and that he/she has to be sure what is meant by religion.

Christianity as a religion stands to reason simply because we want to keep the truth, the only truth and not just about anything that people can attribute to Jesus and his teaching. These teaching and truth, which are the Deposit of Faith, are guarded by the Church, the bulwark of pillar and truth.

 

[Doormouse]

why do they have to put it over in a rapping way? rap puts words together that don’t even make sense. if it rhymes its ok,because that is all they do. not going on the assault here, but he sounds just like the lyre bird in Australia. just making a noise of what he hears…
it was more about him,rather than why he loves Jesus. to me he was putting himself on par with Jesus. my opinion only.

 

[IgnatianPhilo]

I don’t take the claims of anyone who clearly has a theological stake to grind, against religion, very seriously. They seem to think only if we don’t use this word religion we’ll be all right.

 

[ericc]

So, can someone help me to answer some of his points?

• Jesus came to abolish religion

No he didn’t. He still went to the Temple, he observed the Jewish Holy days. The New Covenant replaced the Old, old ways of worshiping is replaced by the new. Religion is defined as the worship of a God or gods and the associated ceremonies and observances that goes with it. Jesus tells us to worship God. Mat 4:10/Luke 4:8. He did not come to abolish the law and the prophets, but to fulfill them Mat 5:17. Since Jesus tell us to worship God, which is defined as religion, then he can’t possibly love Jesus and not do the things he tells you to do. Jesus says if you love me, keep my commandments. Keeping his commandments is religion. He contradicts himself and yet remain clueless.

• If religion is so great, why it has started to many wars

You have to understand that wars are often started not for the glory of God, but for private personal motives. That is human nature. I need to overcome my enemies. I need to distract/detract my enemies from current pressing issues. Any reason is good enough. Using God’s name is a clever tactic as it neuters the opposition. Opponents don’t want to be branded as anti-God. Race and religion and ego are often used to start wars. Economic gains are almost never mentioned in public but which is mostly what wars are often about. War is not a cheap exercise. Many people lives and resources need to be expended. Hardly a win-win situation if it didn’t come with economic gains or where survival is at stake.

• God in the old Testament actually calls the religious people whores.

Some people he may have branded as such but with good reason. In the New Testament he often brand them as hypocrites, blind, full of iniquity, full of extortion and rapacity etc. What is the issue for God calling certain people in that manner if they are of that manner?

• Religion is a man-made invention,
• He quoted Roman 4:5

He doesn’t know his Bible. Question to him is did Moses invented all those rules and regulations or did God told Moses those are the rules and regulations. Did Jesus give us a new commandment? If we followed what God told us, that is religion. A man-made religion is one that is not God commanded. One verse is not going to prove anything. He must have thought that was all he need to do to prove a point. Why quote Romans? If religion is man-made, the Bible, Romans included, would be man made as well. You can’t use an item with no basis as the basis of your refutation. So why quote it? I think he is rather confused.

 

[DebChris]

I did not watch the video. I am very familiar with the argument “Jesus did not come to start a religion. He wants a relationship.” This argument shows a misunderstanding of the word religion which comes from the Latin re: again plus ligare: to bind.
Religion is the living link between God and the living soul. Our relationship to God is restored by the saving power of the Cross. We are bound to Christ by the Blood of the Cross.
It also neglects 1 Timothy 3:16. *Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion:
He was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the the world, taken up in glory. *

 

[vince2paul]

why do they have to put it over in a rapping way? rap puts words together that don’t even make sense. if it rhymes its ok,because that is all they do. not going on the assault here, but he sounds just like the lyre bird in Australia. just making a noise of what he hears…
it was more about him,rather than why he loves Jesus. to me he was putting himself on par with Jesus. my opinion only.

Yes, it was very distracting but to some people convincing because of the rhymes.

Thanks for all replies. It’s time for me to start writing a proper argument.