Why I Hate Religion: 10 Reasons to Break Free from the Bondage of Religious Tradition by Creflo Dollar Page B
Authors: Creflo Dollar
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only
suggest
that you go in a certain direction. It is up to you whether or not you’ll follow his leads.
If you meditate on worldly ideals and behavior, your actions will line up with those ideas. If you meditate on the Word of God, your life will be a reflection of that Word, and you will bring glory to the Father.
The root of your behavior may be something you experienced in childhood, or even a value system that was imparted to you by your parents, friends, or church. If it doesn’t line up with the Word, it needs to be removed.
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The Word is stronger than any seed that may have been planted in you from childhood or anywhere else. Once you’ve located the roots to why you do what you do, allow the sword of the Spirit to cut them out so that you can begin to grow fruit that is pleasing to God.
Live Righteously
One of the fundamental keys to completely avoiding “the devil made me do it” syndrome is an understanding of who you are as the righteousness of God. Believers shouldn’t be looking for a way to sin, but rather a way out of it. When you understand your righteousness, the tendency to follow the devil’s plan for you is less likely. You don’t have to yield to his attempts to lure you out of the will of God.
Believers shouldn’t be looking for a way to sin, but rather a way out of it.
When you were unsaved, you were under Satan’s jurisdiction; you really had no choice but to sin because your spirit was connected to him. But since you’ve come out of darkness into the marvelous light of Jesus Christ, you’ve been set free from that mess. Romans 6:18 says of believers, “Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” One of Satan’s biggest deceptions is to try to convince you that you’re still subject to his authority, even though you’ve been born again. He wants you to think that when you miss the mark, God doesn’t love you anymore. The most effective way to influence you to believe this lie is by keeping your mind bound in sin-consciousness.
Actually, religion is good at helping people hold on to their old sin tags. It preaches sin more than it does righteousness and focuses on beating people over their heads with a bunch of rules on what
not
to do instead of teaching them what
to
do. I believe that by focusing on the “do’s” of the Bible, you’ll gradually move away from all the “don’ts.” You’ll want to do right becauseGod says it’s right and you love Him too much not to obey His commandments.
Righteousness has nothing to do with how well you perform in church, how many outreach ministries you are part of, or whether or not you operate in the gifts of the Spirit. Rather, it is all about what Jesus did for you on the cross. He died so that you could be
made
righteous. This miracle happened instantaneously when you confessed Him as Lord and Savior. There’s nothing you can or can’t do to earn or lose this gift. God sees you through a new set of lenses—Jesus lenses. He doesn’t view your sin the way you do.
Righteousness grants you access to every promise and provision God has made in His Word. From healing and deliverance, to household salvation and debt cancellation, it’s all yours if you lay hold of it by faith.
Let’s say you miss the mark or sin by doing something that goes against the Word of God. As the righteousness of God, your responsibility is to take that thing before God and exchange it for His cleansing and forgiveness. Know your rights! Don’t wallow around in self-pity and get into guilt and condemnation about it. The devil would love for you to do that. No, just get up, brush yourself off, and keep moving in the things of God.
Now, I’m not suggesting that you use
suggest
that you go in a certain direction. It is up to you whether or not you’ll follow his leads.
If you meditate on worldly ideals and behavior, your actions will line up with those ideas. If you meditate on the Word of God, your life will be a reflection of that Word, and you will bring glory to the Father.
The root of your behavior may be something you experienced in childhood, or even a value system that was imparted to you by your parents, friends, or church. If it doesn’t line up with the Word, it needs to be removed.
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The Word is stronger than any seed that may have been planted in you from childhood or anywhere else. Once you’ve located the roots to why you do what you do, allow the sword of the Spirit to cut them out so that you can begin to grow fruit that is pleasing to God.
Live Righteously
One of the fundamental keys to completely avoiding “the devil made me do it” syndrome is an understanding of who you are as the righteousness of God. Believers shouldn’t be looking for a way to sin, but rather a way out of it. When you understand your righteousness, the tendency to follow the devil’s plan for you is less likely. You don’t have to yield to his attempts to lure you out of the will of God.
Believers shouldn’t be looking for a way to sin, but rather a way out of it.
When you were unsaved, you were under Satan’s jurisdiction; you really had no choice but to sin because your spirit was connected to him. But since you’ve come out of darkness into the marvelous light of Jesus Christ, you’ve been set free from that mess. Romans 6:18 says of believers, “Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” One of Satan’s biggest deceptions is to try to convince you that you’re still subject to his authority, even though you’ve been born again. He wants you to think that when you miss the mark, God doesn’t love you anymore. The most effective way to influence you to believe this lie is by keeping your mind bound in sin-consciousness.
Actually, religion is good at helping people hold on to their old sin tags. It preaches sin more than it does righteousness and focuses on beating people over their heads with a bunch of rules on what
not
to do instead of teaching them what
to
do. I believe that by focusing on the “do’s” of the Bible, you’ll gradually move away from all the “don’ts.” You’ll want to do right becauseGod says it’s right and you love Him too much not to obey His commandments.
Righteousness has nothing to do with how well you perform in church, how many outreach ministries you are part of, or whether or not you operate in the gifts of the Spirit. Rather, it is all about what Jesus did for you on the cross. He died so that you could be
made
righteous. This miracle happened instantaneously when you confessed Him as Lord and Savior. There’s nothing you can or can’t do to earn or lose this gift. God sees you through a new set of lenses—Jesus lenses. He doesn’t view your sin the way you do.
Righteousness grants you access to every promise and provision God has made in His Word. From healing and deliverance, to household salvation and debt cancellation, it’s all yours if you lay hold of it by faith.
Let’s say you miss the mark or sin by doing something that goes against the Word of God. As the righteousness of God, your responsibility is to take that thing before God and exchange it for His cleansing and forgiveness. Know your rights! Don’t wallow around in self-pity and get into guilt and condemnation about it. The devil would love for you to do that. No, just get up, brush yourself off, and keep moving in the things of God.
Now, I’m not suggesting that you use
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