Now a certain man was there who had a infirmity thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and He knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"
John 5: 5 - 6 NKJV
I recently watched a snippet of the series the chosen which very well illustrated the power which religion has over people. Now, many people out there can speak to the truth of this line of thinking as a lot of things have been done in the name of religion. Wars have been started. Atrocities have been committed. Lives have been ruined. All in the name of one religion or another. Who hasn't woken up on a Sunday morning relishing the idea of a relaxing day off only to feel that tug at their conscience that they "need" to be in church? It's what we've been taught time and again, Sunday is for church. We've even gone so far as to bastardize the scriptures in support of our narrative. Hebrews 10:25 tells us not to forsake our gathering together. This verse is often used to bully others into church. Yet this was not the original intent of the passage. The author of Hebrews was speaking to the fear of the people of the time to gather due to the persecution the believers in Jesus were experiencing. Therefore, many followers of Jesus were reluctant to gather in groups for fear of being persecuted further. Hebrews 10:25 is in no way related to our own gathering or lack thereof in church. Now, I will say that gathering with those in the faith is a good thing. I usually get together with a few friends each week myself. Yet, I have not stepped inside a church in over ten years. For me, following religion was not as important as following Jesus. The pomp and circumstance of the regular Sunday morning dog and pony show got old after awhile. Think of the things which religion has tried to tell us over the years. We are sinners. God hates sinners. We can never be close to God. Many was the time I would walk into church on a Sunday morning in a good mood yet by the time church was over that good mood had vanished into one of condemnation and guilt. No matter what the circumstance in my life, if something bad was happening, God was angry with me.
"You do not need this pool, you only need Me"
~The Chosen, Episode 4~
Think of the frail man by that healing pool. For years he has been lying there waiting for a chance to be healed. It was told that angels would stir the water in the pool and that whoever stepped into the water first would be healed of whatever infirmity they had. But, this man had nobody to help him into the water when it moved. He had seen many others step over him to be healed by the waters of the pool. Yet he remained where he was. Because he had been told that the waters offered healing. How many of us have remained in churches for years in the hope that something would change? I know I have. We feel in our hearts that the pastors teaching is not Christ centered, but each Sunday we still come because we're told that is what we're supposed to do. We follow the lead of a man in the pulpit instead of Christ who is in us {Galatians 2:20}. It is no surprise that Jesus was no fan of religion either. His woes to the Pharisees testify to His dislike of these religious leaders. It is Jesus who referred to the religious leaders of His day as "whitewashed tombs." Beautiful and welcoming on the outside but filled with uncleanliness within {Matthew 25: 27}. One of the reasons why I stopped going to church was because I did not agree with the showmanship of most church services. I stayed away from church because the truth of Jesus is seldom spoken to within the walls of our houses of worship. The truth of Christ in us. The man waiting by the pool certainly knew about religion. One thing he had never experienced was the healing touch of Jesus.
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanliness."
Matthew 25: 27 NKJV
~Scott~
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