Religion's Crime Against God

Here is a comment sent in by “Anonymous”: how is it possible to love God, if you do not have this so-called love in you, what is it, where does it come from, how do you get it, or how much does it cost, i accepted Christ 12 years ago, and according to you, i have wasted my time, 12 years of my life trying to please God, and a lot of money in church, this tells me that God does not accept everyone, only the ones he wants. if love is a gift from God, then the Bible is a lie he gives it to certain ones only, this would mean it is immpossible for me to go to heaven, because i do not have this so called love.

“Anonymous,” your excellent, candid and down-to-earth questions are worthy of being published in the main section of this blog for the sake of others that may have the same questions.

First of all, it sounds like you are a member of organized religion. That is one strike against you. Exposing what is kept silent by religion is what this blog is all about. Enough of that. The whole Christian faith is based on a mutual love between God, Jesus Christ and His disciples (us). Even though human love is powerful—e.g. love between husband and wife or parents and their children—Godly love makes that love look wimpy; however, it is nice to know that someone loves you and that you love in return.

Godly love is similar, except that God is the one who dictates how to love and who to love since He created us; therefore, He is the one who knows what is best for us. Much of my adult life, I have been looking for human love to satisfy a deep inward need to be loved. And no matter how genuine that love of another was, be it parents, siblings, mate, etc., sooner or later, one way or another, it always fell short. Human love or Godly love cannot be fabricated. You see, human beings are love beings, in that love is the only attitude that truly satisfies. To put it another way, love makes us feel needed, wanted and important.

All those words and I didn’t even start to answer your first question. Love for God/Christ is to obey His commands. John 14:21. “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.” John 14:24. “He who does not love me will not obey my teaching.” John 15:10. “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love.” Obedience to Jesus Christ and love for Him are inseparable. That is the main atrocity organized religion is guilty of. “Obedience” is a dirty word to them, and is avoided as much as possible. In fact, even though obedience (good works) can never save anyone, it is the crucial evidence that a person’s faith is genuine. John 15:8. “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, SHOWING yourself to be my disciples.”

There are dozens upon dozens of hard-edged verses that are avoided by religion per se. I have written on those verses several times; the latest is in post # 170: “Crimes in Christ’s Name Exposed.” If a person doesn’t have a desire to start to obey those commands, there is no way in hell he can have love for God or God have love for him. Many of those verses sound ridiculous and impossible to implement. And yet there is a reason for every single one of them. They are not in the New Testament just to make things hard for His disciples.

I am answering your questions in a roundabout way. When you said you don’t have this love in you, I say, “good for you for being honest with God and with yourself.” You asked what it is. It is a response to God’s call, displayed by obedience. It is evidence that His disciples believe God and desire to obey Him. You asked where it comes from. It comes from God, in response to your belief. You asked how you get it. It comes from belief in what Christ said. You asked, how much it costs. Not a red cent, only your complete life devoted to promoting the cause of Christ.

You said that God does not accept everyone, only the ones He wants. That is a lie. God accepts everyone who believes in what His Son did for humanity. But it doesn’t end there. As previously mentioned, evidence of that belief is obedience to His commands. No obedience, no love or Salvation. You said, He accepts only certain ones. Wrong. It is more than possible for you to go to heaven if you go along with His plan. But if you stay on the course you are now on, most likely you may end up in . . . .

The best advice I can give you is to read the New Testament. Read it and reread it, and never stop reading it. Highlight certain verses that you want to be reminded of. Keep reading it or get a set of the New Testament C Ds and listen to them every day until it becomes an intricate part of your life. As you get acquainted with what God desires, start to change your life according to what Christ commands. And before you know it, guess what? Your love for God will gradually manifest in your life, and God’s love for you will become real. But before all this can come about, you must have a desperate need for all that God has for you. Another suggestion: It might seem difficult, but it will do you much good if you separate yourself from the church you have been attending for 12 years. By all means, stop giving your hard-earned money to people who unknowingly are sending many to hell.

Here is the answer to your main question: How do you get to love God? Here are two human analogies: You are in a burning building screaming at the top of your lungs; flames are shooting out of every window. You are as good as dead. One brave fireman/lady throws a soaking wet blanket over his/her body and darts inside in an attempt to save you. As he/she comes out of the burning building with you safely wrapped inside the blanket, people start shouting with joy. In the process, the fire person was severely burned. The burns were so bad that he/she died on the scene.

Miraculously, he/she is revived. How would you feel about that person who was your savior? You would love that person and feel indebted to him/her for the rest of your life. Now I ask: Where did that love come from? Answer: from the gratitude and appreciation for being saved by this person.

That is exactly what Jesus Christ (God) did for you. By His death on the cross, He saved you from the pains of eternal hell. Where is your gratitude? Is the occurrence a reality to you? If you truly believed it actually happened, you would automatically love Him for the rest of your life. The question is, what type of belief do you have concerning Christ saving you? I would say that you don’t, at this time, have the belief needed to make that event a reality.

Here is another analogy: Most young children love their parents. Why is that? Their parents love them and therefore care for their every need. Where did that love for parents come from? You guessed it. Children know it would be almost impossible to live without the loving care of their parents.

God is called The Father of all who believe and obey in what He commands. Why would anyone not love the one who is their heavenly Father? Good question, because their heavenly Father is not a reality to whomever. Belief/faith is the quality that makes The Father a reality. He becomes our Father if we obey Him, and God counts obedience coupled with belief as LOVE for Him. John 14:23-24. “Jesus replied, ‘If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.’”

So the definitive answer to “how do you get it?” is that your belief needs serious work, and it will come when you make every effort to keep your mind and soul on the things of God. And one of the best ways to do that is to become intimately acquainted with the New Testament.

If you decide to go along with those aforementioned words, and you have more questions—I am certain you will—throw them at me. I need a good challenge once in a while, like the ones you just gave me today. May God bless you with all you allow Him to give you. jc Check the comment section below. “Anonymous” presented further and more complete details, and I gave my response.

# posted by JC @ 12:05 PM