Man-Made Religion or God

Most people sense that there is Someone or Something greater than us. We see this in scriptures such as Job 12:9-10:

Who among all these does not know
That the hand of the Lord has done this,
In whose hand is the life of every living thing,
And the breath of all mankind?

Or Romans 1:18-19: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.” (Emphasis added)

That is why most people in the world worship some form of God or gods. Buddha denied he was divine, and introduced a religion devoid of gods, yet within a few generations after his death most Buddhists had deified him and he is now worshipped by the majority of Buddhists. Atheism has always been a minority viewpoint.

So why doesn’t everyone worship the one, true God? Part of the answer is found in Genesis chapter three. The serpent tempted Eve to disobey God by promising her, “You will become like God.” (Genesis 3:5)

The attraction of man-made religion and false gods is that they offer people control. A man-made religion says: “You can be like God. You can be in charge. You can make your own rules.”

Man-made religion promises that if you do A, B, and C, then God (or the gods) will—indeed, must—give you what you desire. The power of God is at your command. That is the primary attraction of today’s faith healers and prosperity preachers. They promise that if you have enough faith and/or give enough money to their ministry, God will—indeed, must—give you the healing or the wealth you crave.

But the one, true God has never really worked that way. Throughout the Bible, the message God was trying to teach is that we must trust Him. Yes, He makes many promises, but He always remains in control in deciding how and when He will fulfill those promises. That is why some people receive healing when they pray, and others don’t—at least not in this life. We are like children asking our parent for a cookie. Sometimes the answer is Yes, and sometimes the answer is No, but the Parent is always in control, making the decision based on what the Parent knows is truly in our best interest.