Heartfelt
Religion
After
spending some time walking and talking with Jesus on the road to
Emmaeus, two of his disciples discussed the experience; Luke 24:32
And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us,
while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the
scriptures? These disciples had been saved for some time,
They had sat under the teaching of Jesus and had witnessed his
miracles but something was wrong
Before
Jesus had joined them in their Sunday stroll, they had been walking
along and commiserating with themselves in abject despondency. Their
following of Christ hadn't turned out the way they had hoped.
Instead of seeing him drive out the hated Romans and establishing a
kingdom in which they had hoped to share, they had seen him cruelly
crucified. Sure, they had been told that He had risen from the
grave, but that seemed to them to be just idle prattle from some of
the emotional women. They looked at their own dashed hopes and were
dejected.
Their
condition was a perfect analogy of what many experience today. The
happy, joyous, zeal of the new convert soon fades away as the reality
of an unfriendly world closes in. They had been talking about
Jesus but that hadn't brought about any contentment. How often do
Christian spend hours discussing their church, church problems, their
fellow church members, the preacher. The talk usually follows the
same general pattern as it did on the road to Emmaeus; They weren't
discussing the hope and promises of the Lord but rather their
disappointment that things hadn't turned out as they had expected!
Sure
they knew the angels had proclaimed Him to be alive, that some of
the disciples claimed to have seen him and that Jesus had promised
to rise from the dead but they were still sad, Why? For the same
reason that many today are not happy even though they might be
preoccupied with church and religion.
Their
hearts did not burn within them until they quit talking ABOUT Christ
and began to walk WITH Him and letting Him speak to them! This is the
secret of real, heartfelt religion. It is a personal, everyday
relationship with Christ. Studying the Bible is essential to but not
sufficient alone to bring about this happiness. What IS crucial is
seeing Christ in the Word and in fellowshipping Him in our daily
walk.
Lest
someone get the idea that I am saying it doesn't matter WHAT you
believe and that heart felt religion is based on emotion alone, let
me hasten to say,"It DOES INDEED matter what you believe!"
Happiness in Christian service comes from His presence with us. He
can only be present and walk with us in Truth. He will accept, bless
and walk only with those of our labors that are done according to
Truth. It is for this reason that we place so much emphasis on the
study of the Scripture. Just remember that Bible study and
discussion is not to be an end in itself but only the means to an
end. The end result should be our walking and fellowshipping with
Christ and only then will our hearts be made to burn within us!
Gal
2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but
Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I
live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself
for me. These were the words of the apostle Paul as he set forth
his life plan. Remember, we are discussing heartfelt religion. Where
Christ is, his presence WILL be felt and manifested. As it was with
the apostle, so it will be with us; When Christ is alive in us, his
presence will be made known.
Is
it important that we feel Christ in our hearts? Jesus said, "for
out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.". Our
thoughts and our conversations are filled with that which saturates
our hearts. For this reason we need to allow Christ and His promises
and hopes gorge our hearts.
Too
often we are satisfied with being partial Christian. By this
I mean that we might dedicate our minds to learning about God. Other
times we attempt to find satisfaction in doing things FOR God while
others seem to seek satisfaction in merely working up an emotional
fervor.
The
full and complete Christian is the one in whom the Word of Christ
dwells. Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all
wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
In
obedience then, to this Word he presents his body a living
sacrifice. Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies
of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
He
doesn't become a 'do-gooder' whose every action seems to
scream,"Hey, everybody, look at me. I'm a dedicated Christian!"
He IS one in whom Christ is seen daily in the things he does and in
those things he refuses to do.
As a result of this daily walk with Christ according to the
instructions of the Word, his heart in lifted up in joy that can only
come from Christ.
1
John 3:21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we
confidence toward God.
Heartfelt
religion is not a phenomenon to be relegated to the past era of
'brush arbor revivals', nor is it to be understood by clinically
investigating its cause and effect. It is a real, present day
experience available to those who truly know Christ as their savior
and are willing to walk with him in their daily life.
The
entire outlook and attitude of the two disciples was altered after
this encounter with Christ. No longer was their conversation of
broken dreams and failures but rather they talked of the joy of
communing with the Lord.
Luke
tells us that the name of one of these men was Cleophas. John
records the fact that it was the wife of this man who was present at
both the crucifixion and the burial. She was one of those who
discovered the empty tomb. No longer does he have to depend upon his
wife's account for he has personally been with Jesus! He has
experienced it for himself!
REVIVE
ME
Lift
me, Lord and make me rise
and
live above my fears.
Make
me know the joys of Christ
though
seen through veil of tears.
Make
my spirit soar aloft
by
humbling me, and then,
help
me shun all evil,
but
love all souls in sin.
Deliver
in temptation
and
make me know the rest
that's
only found IN service;
Help
me give my best.
Then
Lord, If I should falter
humble
me, and then
show
me Christ through veil of tears
Revive
me once again!