Are You Religious? :: By Angel Torres

You’ve probably been asked the titular question at some point. Perhaps it came during a nervous first date over a cup of coffee, or during a season of loss and sorrow. Regardless of when or where the question was asked, odds are you have been faced with the million-dollar query. Interestingly, it has been reported that “According to an average of all 2023 Gallup polling, about three in four Americans said they identify with a specific religious faith.”¹

Many people affirm that they are religious; however, a growing percentage of Americans are identifying as “non-religious.” The author of that report noted that “… much of the change in the U.S. has been a shift away from Christian religions to no religion at all.”²

Considering this information, I believe it’s very important that we clearly define the terms we’re throwing around. Specifically, how do reputable dictionaries define the word religion? I’ll list a few examples below for your reference:

“an interest, cause, belief, or activity that is intensely or passionately held to.”³
“any specific system of belief and worship, often involving a code of ethics and a philosophy.”⁴
“a particular system of faith and worship.”⁵
“a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects.”⁶

To be clear, there are multiple definitions for religion. Even so, we can see that religious beliefs are not confined to church buildings or even the Bible, for that matter. If we’re being honest with ourselves, everyone subscribes to a particular set of beliefs and practices! Even those who would classify themselves as “not religious” still believe in something (whether it’s themselves, other people, the material world, etc.) at the end of the day. Sadly, many people have been misled into believing that only certain individuals (e.g., Christians) are religious whilst the rest of the populace remains free from the biases that come with religious beliefs.

As a Christian, I admit that I am biased. I believe the Bible to be the infallible, authoritative Word of God, and it is the foundation for my thinking. I think Ken Ham summarized things in a very memorable fashion: “It is not a matter of whether one is biased or not. It is really a question of which bias is the best bias with which to be biased.”⁷

Now, let’s look at an example near the end of our Bibles:

“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog, and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea” (Revelation 20:7-8).

Despite having visibly seen the Lord Jesus rule the world with truth and grace (Psalm 72:7-8), multitudes of people will join forces with Satan after he is released from the bottomless pit (Revelation 20:1-3). The Millennial Kingdom is going to be a time unlike anything we’ve seen (e.g., longer lifespans and peaceful relations with animals), and yet people will still rebel against God at the first opportunity. Thus, the problem at the end of the day is the condition of man’s heart. We are sinners just like our father Adam:

“For as by one man’s disobedience [Adam] many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one [the Lord Jesus] shall many be made righteous” (Romans 5:19).

Ultimately, we’re all naturally biased against God! We all have a sin nature that inclines us away from righteousness and toward wickedness (Jeremiah 17:9). May these passages from Scripture remind us that we ought to be measuring man’s fallible opinions against God’s infallible Word instead of measuring God’s infallible Word against man’s fallible opinions! Notwithstanding, I want to leave you with a word of encouragement:

“For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him” (Romans 5:7-9).

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