It’s popular today to say: “I’m spiritual, not religious”. Someone who’s “spiritual, not religious” will occasionally pray, meditate, or experiment with the divine, but they don’t want to be told definitively how to approach God. This approach to “faith” sees it like an ice-cream flavour, and views organised religion like an officious shop assistant, disapproving of your personal choice.
But what does the Bible say about organised religion?
Firstly, the Bible by no means approves of all organised religion. For example, Israel worshipped a golden calf and God was furious with them. In fact, the Bible strongly criticizes all organised religion that is centred on a man-made deity, because it actually dehumanises us. Even religion that is organised around the true God can be condemned, if it’s not marked by love. In the book of Amos, God says to his people: “I hate, I despise your feasts…. Take away from me the noise of your songs”. It would be interesting to consider how often that might be God’s verdict after church services in London on a Sunday. So, there’s plenty of organised religion God himself tells us to steer clear of.
But, secondly, the Bible teaches that all true religion is organised. Deep, spiritual re-organisation is exactly what we need. God doesn’t leave us to pick how to worship him. At the centre of God’s plan is the sending of his Son, Jesus Christ, who called himself: “the Way”, not “a Way”. In fact, Jesus puts it more forcefully: “No one comes to the Father except through me”. God wants us to approach him through Jesus.
What’s more, Jesus has organised his followers into a church, which he calls his Bride and his Body. Imagine going to your friend’s wedding, meeting his Bride for the first time, and telling him, “she’s dog ugly!”. Or, how would someone react if you gave them a kiss, while simultaneously stamping on their feet? The point is: it’s impossible to follow Jesus without his church.
Can organised religion be destructive? Definitely. But so is following our own imaginations about God. What we need is not to follow our own feelings, but to find the Truth with a capital “T”. His name is Jesus, and he came to give us peace with God, and to organise us into his church; it’s precisely in the squash and squeeze of Jesus’ organised church that we find ourselves. Why not come along on Sunday to find out more about Jesus, his organised religion, and what being “spiritual” really means?