Skin deep religion

[Ghada]

I would say skin deep religion, or just surface religion is what doesn't go to the heart. The heart and soul are not in it.

That would certainly include religion of redemption and salvation that has nothing to do with how we live. The soul is neither justified nor condemned by the words and deeds we do, and so our works cannot be from the heart to be judged by.

It's called saving faith alone, that is always 'deep down' in the heart, but is always separated and apart from how we live. Since the works we do neither justify nor condemn us, then our souls are always kept apart from what we say and do. Nothing is from the heart, so that the soul is never held responsible for doing good nor evil.

Such redemption religion therefore does not come from the heart, nor ever goes to the soul. The heart and soul are never in it. All words and works are just superficial 'expressions' of the mind only: Skin deep surface religion. They are not really 'who we are'. It's the surface religion of all Pharisees, doing only those things to be seen of man, but never revealing the hidden man of the heart.

And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.

Skin deep religion, where our lives are separated from our souls, of course has no depth to it at all. It's all surface only by superficial faith only. All the religious talk resulting from that separation, is only a doctrinal cover for doing good when the going is good, and doing evil when things go bad.

 

[Ghada]

And so, we see a whole religion to separate the depths of the soul from how we live, so that all our works are counted as surface stuff only: Skin deep Pharisees.

It's the necessary result of distancing ourselves from how we live. The surface humility of saying we are not justified by our good deeds, is just a cloke for refusing to be condemned by our unrighteous deeds.

If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin.

Under the guise of being 'humble' about good deeds, where we are not justified by them, we further cover ourselves with religion to not be condemned by them either.

Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

And so, whether doing good or evil, it never can be from the heart, because it is never allowed to judge the heart and have anything to do with the soul.

The problem of course is obvious: whatever religion and doctrine we may try to cover ourselves with, in the end God will just judge us our hearts and souls by our works and deeds at the end, whether good unto everlasting life, or unrighteous unto shame and contempt.

But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:

I.e. all the surface talk we may want to tell ourselves and hear from others, ends in the grave.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Souls separated from how we live, to believe we are saved and justified by faith alone, is certainly one of those fab fables of religious sinners, that may sound and feel good, but it's only skin deep.

And so, we might as well just obey the gospel good news of the Jesus Christ, and repent of all our lusting from the heart and sinning with the flesh, receive His new pure and holy heart and please the Father as the Son. That is the only way to the Father, who can then judge our works as all good through His Son, and resurrect us forever in the likeness of Jesus Christ.

And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

 

[Ghada]

Skin deep religion rejects three main things revealed from the Bible. It denies the truth Jesus Christ brings to reform repentant sinners into saints.

The first is the spiritual truth of all men created in the image of God, that the animals are not: All our words and deeds are directly from the heart and not from the mind only.

But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:

Trying to separate our words and deeds from our hearts, when we speak or do evil, is the carnal surface mind of the natural man. The natural man denies there is spirit and soul to be judged for what we say and do. Natural surface religion denies what we say and do judges our heart and soul. The practical affect is of course the same.

Such surface religion is just so many words 'of faith' without any practical difference from the unbelief of natural man.

By rejecting the judgement of our souls by our works, the practical spiritual result is to make ourselves as the brute beasts, that have no accountability for what we do. Afterall, it's all just surface stuff that does not go to the heart, because it does not come from the heart to judge us thereby.

The second is Jesus' practical truth of this life: What we do shows exactly who and what we are.

Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.

Surface religion people, of course, do not believe that our deeds define and judge us, and make known our hearts and souls. They keep the 'deep down' roots separate from the surface branches and fruit. Which once again, makes the tree without depth nor root to abide the winter seasons and evil times.

The third is Jesus' truth of final judgment of this life: We our hearts and souls are judged by our works.

For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man is sowing, that shall he also reap. For he that is sowing to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that is sowing to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

Our works do judge us as men and women, because apart from the beasts of the field, we are created in the image of God with heart and souls. And all we say and do at any time judge us within: Our lives are who and what we are.

Since our hearts and souls are in fact judged by what we do, we do best to own them before God, whether to be justified or condemned. Trying to distance ourselves from our works, whether by denial, philosophy, or religion, as only being skin deep, only lasts until the grave.

I rejected philosophy long ago, that tried separate the 'inner philosopher' from the outer person, and I'm certainly not in a religion just to tell myself my heart is good, when doing evil. If my life is not saved and my works are not justified, then neither is my heart good nor my soul. Not only according to Jesus' words in sight of God, but also with myself.

The only way to make the ground all good to produce the all good tree, is to first have depth enough to be honest at heart, and not just playing surface games with doctrine and religion:

But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

 

[Hodgie]

Read Matt 9:13 “For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.””
This says that Jesus wanted sinners to have a change of mind. So, once they sinned, and then they changed to living in a Holy manner.

Those who believe but continue in sin are in big trouble.
1 Cor 6:9-10 says “Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.”

Luke 6:46 says, “Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” And it then continues to verse 49. It says to act on Jesus' words. It shows what it is like for someone to act and for those that don’t. Those who act will have a solid foundation. While those who do not act will be washed away with their weak foundation.

Romans 8:12-14 also says, "So then, brothers and sisters, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh, for if you are living in accord with the flesh, you are going to die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons and daughters of God." So, believe and repent. Do not live according to the flesh. Simply believing will not save you. Even the demons believe.

Also read Romans 2:5. It says "But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who “will render to each one according to his deeds”: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honour, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; but glory, honour, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

Notice how those who are saved seek to do good.

Stopping sin is a result of real belief, and remorse and contrition. God desires a broken and contrite heart.

If I were to hit you and then say sorry, you would accept my apology. Then if I was to hit you the following day and then say sorry, you would begin to wonder if I was truly sorry. Then the day after this, I did the same thing, you would realise that I was not truly sorry. My words may say one thing, but my actions show another. What you act out is what you truly believe. If you are truly broken and contrite, then will be a change in you. That is why the bible says that we are given a new heart and new mind. One that obeys Him. "I will give you a new heart and a new mind. I will take away your stubborn heart of stone and give you an obedient heart." Eze 36:26
Belief by itself will not save us. Even the demons believe.

"You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone." James 2:24
Those who truly believe will act differently. They are not leaving their sin to earn their way to heaven. We cannot earn our way there. We are saved by grace through faith. But because we believe, we will then leave our sin. If we believe then we will want to honour God.

 

[Ghada]

Read Matt 9:13 “For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.””
This says that Jesus wanted sinners to have a change of mind. So, once they sinned, and then they changed to living in a Holy manner.

True, but the change is from the heart:

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

The argument is about Christians that say repentance is only from the mind. And it's only a change about how to view sin as against God, rather than as a pleasurable friend.

Unlike yourself, they don't preach repenting of doing the sinning from the heart, and now living holy.

Those who believe but continue in sin are in big trouble.
1 Cor 6:9-10 says “Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.”

This is the great divide of Christianity from the beginning. Those like you who are honest enough to know that if we are doing the same things as others, then we ought be judged the same as others.

Self-justifying Christianity has such a bad reputation among honest responsible people in the world, when they insult our intelligence by saying they are no condemned the same as others, when doing the same things.

It's why the cross is mocked by many self-responsible adults and children. However, hypocrisy of others is no excuse for not repenting for Jesus' sake. He did no sinning Himself, and He certainly doesn't 'play favorites' and excuse His own.

Stopping sin is a result of real belief, and remorse and contrition. God desires a broken and contrite heart.

Exactly.

For godly sorrow worketh repentance unto salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

If I were to hit you and then say sorry, you would accept my apology. Then if I was to hit you the following day and then say sorry, you would begin to wonder if I was truly sorry. Then the day after this, I did the same thing, you would realise that I was not truly sorry. My words may say one thing, but my actions show another. What you act out is what you truly believe.

Correct. Jesus is not an ongoing abused Husband to His own body. He will certainly allow the prodigal to repent and be reconciled into His home. But He certainly doesn't put up with it in His own home.

If you are truly broken and contrite, then will be a change in you. That is why the bible says that we are given a new heart and new mind. One that obeys Him. "I will give you a new heart and a new mind. I will take away your stubborn heart of stone and give you an obedient heart." Eze 36:26

Exactly. This is the whole point and gospel of the commandment to repent of all our sins and trespasses. Only then will God give us the promised whole new heart and life of Christ, so that all things are now of God and nothing of the devil:

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

The gospel of partial repentance keeps the old heart of lust, with religious new leaf of just sinning less than before. They never receive a perfect heart toward God, nor a blameless life with Christ Jesus.

That is exactly why their hearts remain unbelieving toward doing His righteousness at all times, and their unrepented hearts preach it is impossible to do so. Which it is for them that do not repent of all their transgressions, as God commands us all to do.

Belief by itself will not save us. Even the demons believe.

True again. It always amazes me that the unrepented Christians, will openly preach a salvation by their own faith alone, when God plainly rebukes it as being DOA.

"You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone." James 2:24

And it's also a wonder to see how many linguist and doctrinal hoops they will jump through, just to say a man is not justified by works, but by faith alone.

I believe this is what John was experiencing, when he saw for himself all the marvelous tricks and lies some professing believers would go through, just to not take God at His word.

And when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.

It's like John thinking, "And they say they got all this rot from me and my brethren the apostles??!!"