Quick Take on "I'm spiritual, not religious."

I heard that statement again last night. After someone asked me if I was a Christian, they made it plain they were not, however they were "spiritual."

That statement has bothered me as long as I've heard it. What does it mean? It's too vague and ambiguous to have much of any meaning at all.

Botton line, the people who say it:

1. Want the benefits of religion without any of the responsibilities.

2. Want to be able to pick and choose what they like and leave the rest behind - like a giant religious buffet.

That's my take, anyway.

Quick Takes

"I don't need all that theology stuff. I just want to love Jesus. Isn't that enough?"

Honestly, I don't know how many times I've heard someone say that. It always seems to produce the same reaction in me - a mixture of anger and sadness. Anger because although it's good to love Jesus, there is so much more to be learned and lived as a Christian. God has revealed far more to us than simply, "Here's Jesus. Love Him!" Sadness because people who think this way don't know what they're missing. Theology is multi-layered and multi-faceted - it takes us "further up and further in" to quote C.S. Lewis.

The way to point out the flaw in this line of thinking is to ask the next logical question - "Who is Jesus?" The millisecond they begin to answer the question ("Well, He's the Son of God, our Lord and Savior...") they're dealing with theology. Simply defined, theology is "the study of God." When we study theology, we're seeking to learn more about the God who has revealed Himself to us - His person and His work. If we're to know anything about God, salvation, the nature of man, the church, last things, or what God demands from us, we have to know theology. In fact, when we make any statement on any of these subjects, we're proclaiming our theology whatever it may be (whether it's good or bad).

We can't know or love Jesus without knowing some theology. As we learn more theology, we'll know Him even better. Someone who wants to just love Jesus and forget about theology is saying, in effect, "I want to love Jesus, but I don't want to know anything about Him." We wouldn't say that about a husband, wife, or a friend, so why would we ever say it about our Lord and Saviour?

"I just want to love Jesus. Isn't that enough?" With anger and sadness, the answer is "No, it isn't."