Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. (Isaiah 1:16–17, NIV 1984).
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (James 1:27, NIV 1984).
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” (Matthew 23:23, NIV 1984).
My Musings – Not a fan of “organized” religion? If it is organized properly, there should not be a problem. There are many that are “disorganized,” and have “neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness.” But as we practice these things, we must do so “without neglecting the former.” In some cases, one of the “former” things that are being neglected is the Gospel. Neglected by omission, contamination or dilution. We must continue to be salt and light, speaking “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth” in love.
My Advice – Real organized religion (“pure and faultless“) includes “stop doing wrong, learn to do right,” and keeping “oneself from being polluted by the world,” while practicing “justice, mercy and faithfulness” towards the “oppressed, orphans and widows.” By the same token, all this is pointless without the Gospel, while the Gospel is disingenuous without them.
The Brew Is A Musing 