The religion of our Lord, a religion that we have made our own, must be a powerful religion. It must be a religion that has the power to change people. The world needs changing. I am not talking about social change. Although society needs improvement in a variety of ways, I am talking about something far more important than that. The world needs a spiritual facelift. Things that are immoral have become widely acceptable. Most people in the world have no problem with things such as pre-marital sex, drunkenness, homosexuality, and things of that nature. Immodest apparel has become the rule instead of the exception. Even something as dangerous and devastating as pornography is viewed as an acceptable pastime, which is why it is a multi-billion dollar a year industry. In fact, a very telling sign of the world’s overall acceptance of things that are immoral in the eyes of God is that many sinful behaviors result in big business (both legal and illegal) from an economic standpoint.

Our religion should have the power to change the world. I am not referring to a world-wide rejection of some immoral activity. Sin has dominated the world since that fateful day that it was introduced by Adam and Eve. David was testifying about the dominance of sin in the world when he said, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5). No, David was not saying that he was born a sinner. He was saying that he was born in a world dominated by sin. That is the world into which we were all born. What I am saying to you is that our religion should have the ability to change the hearts of people, and thereby, have a changing affect on the world.

The gospel of Christ, the message that introduces our religion to the masses, has the power to change. Listen to what Paul wrote to those who were converted at Thessalonica.

1 Thessalonians 1:5 (ESV)
⁵ Because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

The power of which Paul wrote involved, at least in part, the ability of the gospel to change their lives. Miraculous power may have been involved in Paul’s reference in this text, but it seems as if that would have been covered by his mention of the Holy Spirit. One thing we know for sure is that the gospel changed the hearts of those at Thessalonica. They turned to God from idols (1 Thessalonians 1:9). That transformation was a noticeable change of which those around them had to take note. Their friends and family members saw that they became different people. They had a religion with the power to change them. The saints at Corinth are another example of those who had a powerful religion. They had a religion that turned them from sexual immorality, adultery, drunkenness, etc., to a totally new life in Christ (1 Corinthians 6:9-11). That is the power of the gospel.

Now, the question is do we have the kind of religion that has the power to change lives? Yes, we obeyed the same gospel that the Thessalonians and Corinthians did. However, I must point out that our religion is only the same religion if we are living by it. We must demonstrate the power of our religion by our lives. So, what kind of religion do you have? What kind of religion do the people around you see? I hope it is the kind that has the power to change lives, demonstrated first by your own life.

As you wind down for the night, think on these things.