I believe in God but I'm not religious

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

People say this line so much its starting to make me wonder if being religious is a bad thing? Or do people say this because they want to cover themselves incase the person isn't a believer? To me you can't say anything more lukewarm than this line and I hate to see people say this because it really gives a mixed message and its confusing to know what you actually believe.

 

[faroukfarouk]

It's good to get back to the Scriptures, at any rate, and go from there...

 

[ubicaritas]

It means they don't belong to a church and don't want to belong to one. But they usually do believe in prayer, when they feel it is needed, and may even have vaguely Christian beliefs.

Religion can have some negatives, especially for some people who encounter yet more layers of politics. For some people that's what they associate with religion. And they are maybe individualists that don't get alot out of belonging or joining groups. Still others associate religion with moralism and maybe they live a lifestyle that doesn't easily fit into a religion's ideal mold, so they feel they don't really belong in a church.

 

[Quid est Veritas?]

Seems more Laodicean luke-warmness to me. Not thinking God important enough to seriously take up religion nor oppose it (hot and cold), for the latter at least listens to the arguments (and on occasion get converted), but the luke-warm just nod and go on their merry way.

 

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

It means they don't belong to a church and don't want to belong to one. But they usually do believe in prayer, when they feel it is needed, and may even have vaguely Christian beliefs.

Religion can have some negatives, especially for some people who encounter yet more layers of politics. For some people that's what they associate with religion. And they are maybe individualists that don't get alot out of belonging or joining groups. Still others associate religion with moralism and maybe they live a lifestyle that doesn't easily fit into a religion's ideal mold, so they feel they don't really belong in a church.

I don't belong to a church but I consider myself religious in the sense that I pray daily, talk to God daily, practice biblical teachings daily. I don't belong to a church but I am always thinking about God and living as best as I can to the model Christ set before us. If not belonging to a church makes me not religious then I guess I believe but I'm not religious. If believing in God and practicing christianity makes me religious then I am religious. To me I always viewed it when people said I believe but i'm not religious as basically saying I believe in God but I'm not a practicing christian.

 

[JIMINZ]

People say this line so much its starting to make me wonder if being religious is a bad thing? Or do people say this because they want to cover themselves incase the person isn't a believer? To me you can't say anything more lukewarm than this line and I hate to see people say this because it really gives a mixed message and its confusing to know what you actually believe.

.
What they usually mean when they say it is, I believe if I am a good person, and I don't hurt anyone, then I will make it to heaven, as long as I keep the 10 Commandments I'm cool.

 

[name_is_irrelevant]

People say this line so much its starting to make me wonder if being religious is a bad thing?

Unfortunately, people have the infuriating habit of using words in their own, non-standard ways. Eg., a Christian might describe themselves as not being "religious", because their idea of what that word means is something different than the dictionary says. (Meanwhile an atheist hears that and thinks "you're not religious, but you believe in God and the bible? OK then....")

 

[ubicaritas]

At one time in my life, in college and several years after, I was like that somewhat, "I believe in God on a good day, but I'm not religious". I was almost an apatheist. I figured God probably existed but my religious upbringing wasn't particularly useful or relevant to spiritual questions. I associated Jesus with religion, and I just saw the Christian account of him dying for his fan club as being suspect, and the idea he died as a sacrifice incomprehensible, the kind of thing I struggled with as a teenager, an angry picture of God I no longer accepted as true as an adult.

I ended up searching for spirituality in Buddhism and Hinduism. That was an interesting part of my life because it taught me that spirituality could be about more than just me, that religion need not just be a socially acceptable con game to make you a nice, respectable person with the carrot and stick, schizophrenic religion I grew up with as a teenager, drinking from the wells of American evangelicalism and folk religion.

 

[ubicaritas]

.
What they usually mean when they say it is, I believe if I am a good person, and I don't hurt anyone, then I will make it to heaven, as long as I keep the 10 Commandments I'm cool.

"Moral therapeutic deism." This is the default religion of nearly all Americans, its what is behind our civil religion as well.

Actually many Christians have a belief that is very similar they just have Jesus as a little clause in there as well.

 

[Dan the deacon]

The only good religion spoken of in the Bible is pure religion. The rest is bad. Saying you are not religious is saying you are not superstitious . Religion is not Christian.

 

[Richard T]

Hopefully those that do not attend a church, do have good fellowship and teaching. It is very tough to go it alone, plus everyone has much to give and receive from other Christians. https://www.gotquestions.org/Christian-fellowship.html

 

[Dan the deacon]

Hopefully those that do not attend a church, do have good fellowship and teaching. It is very tough to go it alone, plus everyone has much to give and receive from other Christians. https://www.gotquestions.org/Christian-fellowship.html

Amen

 

[WorshipArtViolin]

I think the problem lies with the religious part mostly... The pharisees themselves were religious but did they fully believe? To me being religious is more of an action thing and not a belief thing.
I feel like just because you say you're not religious it doesn't always mean your heart isn't right with God.
After Jesus died and rose again, we got a direct line to God and as much as people feel being religious is important, it's what's in the heart that matters and we all know that only God knows where our faith lies

 

[Hearingheart]

People say this line so much its starting to make me wonder if being religious is a bad thing? Or do people say this because they want to cover themselves incase the person isn't a believer? To me you can't say anything more lukewarm than this line and I hate to see people say this because it really gives a mixed message and its confusing to know what you actually believe.

Many times answering the questions about religion or Christianity has to do with definitions and connotations. I'm just not into bumper sticker sayings. Perhaps people want to distance themselves from what they perceive to be a negative.

At this point in my life, I can't give a short answer.

I believe that we are created and there is one God. We, as humans, have turned away and became separated from God and this causes an emptiness inside us because we were created to commune with him so He made a way for us to be healed and come back to Him through giving us Jesus Christ. It's through Jesus' death and resurrection that we are restored and made whole.

I don't attend a weekly organized meeting at this point and I tend to say I'm spiritual instead of religious, I don't identify as a Christian by name even though I am a follower of Christ, I just say I'm a follower of the way or the path of Jesus.

Somewhere to someone I'm a heretic, backslider, lukewarm.....whatever label is convenient.

 

[faroukfarouk]

I think the problem lies with the religious part mostly... The pharisees themselves were religious but did they fully believe? To me being religious is more of an action thing and not a belief thing.
I feel like just because you say you're not religious it doesn't always mean your heart isn't right with God.
After Jesus died and rose again, we got a direct line to God and as much as people feel being religious is important, it's what's in the heart that matters and we all know that only God knows where our faith lies

Faith is indeed the key - as Hebrews 11 says over and over; and as John 3.16 says...

 

[faroukfarouk]

Many times answering the questions about religion or Christianity has to do with definitions and connotations. I'm just not into bumper sticker sayings. Perhaps people want to distance themselves from what they perceive to be a negative.

At this point in my life, I can't give a short answer.

I believe that we are created and there is one God. We, as humans, have turned away and became separated from God and this causes an emptiness inside us because we were created to commune with him so He made a way for us to be healed and come back to Him through giving us Jesus Christ. It's through Jesus' death and resurrection that we are restored and made whole.

I don't attend a weekly organized meeting at this point and I tend to say I'm spiritual instead of religious, I don't identify as a Christian by name even though I am a follower of Christ, I just say I'm a follower of the way or the path of Jesus.

Somewhere to someone I'm a heretic, backslider, lukewarm.....whatever label is convenient.

Yes, the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus are indeed fundamental to the faith. Good to make Scripture the reference authority also.

 

[Hearingheart]

Yes, the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus are indeed fundamental to the faith. Good to make Scripture the reference authority also.

Perhaps eventually scripture would enter into the conversation. I'm not one to quote scripture in day to day conversation with people I don't know and especially not off the bat during meeting someone.

 

[Bobber]

I think the line I'm not religious but spiritual well it's just a cute way people think they have of making an inroad into talking to people about God. I think it can be counter productive though because it takes considerable time to explain to an outsider exactly what you mean.

 

[Bobber]

I don't belong to a church but I consider myself religious in the sense that I pray daily, talk to God daily, practice biblical teachings daily. I don't belong to a church but I am always thinking about God and living as best as I can to the model Christ set before us. If not belonging to a church makes me not religious then I guess I believe but I'm not religious. If believing in God and practicing christianity makes me religious then I am religious. To me I always viewed it when people said I believe but i'm not religious as basically saying I believe in God but I'm not a practicing christian.

Well there's not belonging to a church and there's also not fellowshipping with the saints at all. Can be two different things. I'm not saying one needs to become some member on a roll of a church but being in association with other believers is so important. We're not called to just be enjoying our lives with ourselves set aside from being a strength to other Christian believers. We called to be that for others, to encourage others with the encouragement we ourselves have received from God.

From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.Ephesians 4: 16

 

[Hearingheart]

Well there's not belonging to a church and there's also not fellowshipping with the saints at all. Can be two different things. I'm not saying one needs to become some member on a roll of a church but being in association with other believers is so important. We're not called to just be enjoying our lives with ourselves set aside from being a strength to other Christian believers. We called to be that for others, to encourage others with the encouragement we ourselves have received from God.

From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.Ephesians 4: 16

Truth! It's really important to fellowship with those of like mind.