The Religious Spirit
Todd Bentley
Most people that are set free from a religious spirit, or religious ways, are not actually walking free like Jesus. Instead, they simply switch from religion to rebellion. The heart begins to be in rebellion toward religious people and religious churches rather than the religious spirit. The religious spirit always tries to get people to camp in one place. It will hold on to that which is familiar and comfortable rather than moving on from glory to glory. Remember Peter, under the inspiration of satan, tried to rebuke Jesus because He was going to the cross to suffer and pay for the sin of mankind. But Jesus turned and rebuked satan in Peter because it was actually Peter operating with a religious spirit. His mindset was that of man rather than that of Christ.
Free From the Religious Spirit & Without Rebellion
In the same way that Jesus talked about the Pharisees shutting off the kingdom of God, we have shut off religious people from coming into the move that God is now doing. Our attitude is one of rebellion and spiritual pride saying, “We’ve got a corner on the market of what God is doing and if you would just get it together, Buddy, maybe you could have one too.” Jesus came to set men free from that by which they are bound. He didn’t come to bind them up more. The truth is, many of us do not care to reach them.
People think that because they go to a church that is religious, then that makes them religious. We tend to think that if something or someone, especially a leader, is religious, then everyone in the church is religious. I believe that we can walk in freedom in any place that we are in. Jesus was in the same places that the Pharisees and Sadducees were. He was able to go into their churches and be around the people without, himself, becoming bound by the spirit of religion.
The religious spirit breeds fear and intimidation. To those who are not religious, religion breeds rebellion. Our automatic tendency when someone says, “you have to…” is to say, “I don’t have to do anything, man. Forget that!” We are just as wrong as they, because of our attitude. We are responsible to react with character and integrity to a person bound by the religious spirit. When it looked like Jesus was dealing harsh with man who was religious, He was really dealing with the spirit behind religion. Ephesians 6 says that we wrestle not against flesh and blood. That is why Jesus, when placed on the cross by religious people, asked the Father to forgive them. He said they didn’t know what they were doing.
We need to realize that we do not wrestle with men, churches or ministries. We need to reach those that have not yet come into the river. We are not better than them. We are just free. We should never use our freedom to cause unnecessary offences. I love to dance before the Lord in worship. But if I go into a church and the pastor asks for people to not dance, I will not. If I do, then it is not freedom but rebellion.