 Is Christianity a relationship or religion? It's both. Sometimes we get in the habit of just saying things because it sounds good, it feels good, maybe even makes sense. One of the things that we hear often is that Christianity is a relationship, but not a religion. Well, is that true? Well, we need to figure out what a religion is. The Bible actually tells us that we ought to have a religion. James was at this way in James chapter 1 verse 26. He says, if anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this, to visit orphans and widows in their afflictions and to keep oneself unstained from the world. So we're told to have a religion. As a matter of fact, we want to have a pure, undefiled religion. The problem is religion has gotten a dirty word, but it would help to see what religion is. Now, before we go there, obviously we know that we are to have a relationship with Christ. It is about a relationship with him and us. Jesus stated that the people that don't go to heaven in Matthew 7, though they do all these different things, which is religious, their issue is they don't know him or he had no them. And so it is important first of all that we have a relationship with our Savior. However, we also ought to have this religion. Well, the question then begs is what does the word religion mean? So let's go back to the word, to the passage and let's see what the word religion is. The word religion in the Greek is the word threskeia. Threskeia simply means an expression of that faith or that worship. How we show our worship, what we do, it's the things that we do, which is why we say sometimes we do things religiously. We are just doing this, doing this, doing this. Now, we don't want to just do it mindlessly. We want to do it for a particular reason. As a matter of fact, sometimes, as a matter of fact, many times we don't feel like doing things that we know we ought to do. Sometimes we might get in the habit of doing things religiously, and the question is, does God have any sort of preference? Well, God obviously knows that sometimes we are going to do things for him or that we should do just because we love him. We feel a desire we want to, but then there are sometimes we do it not because we want to, because I got to, because I have to, and God honors that as well because you are doing what you're supposed to do because it's pleasing to him, even though at that moment it may not be pleasing to you. Let's be honest, if that happens sometimes, sometimes I just don't feel like going to church, sometimes I just don't feel like sharing the gospel, sometimes I just don't feel like showing love and appreciation towards my fellow man. That's how it is sometimes, but I do it anyway. As a matter of fact, it's part of us disciplining ourselves. Paul even put it this way, that we do it sometimes also to benefit ourselves. He says every athlete in 1 Corinthians 9-25, he says every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly. I do not box as one beating the air, but I discipline. There's the issue. I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified. And so I want to make sure that when there are times I don't feel like I have to be disciplined enough. I need to have enough self-control to where I just have to just have myself do it. And I do it obviously out of a love for him. It's his love that compels us, as Paul tells us also. It's his love that compels us to share the gospel. And I mean, I feel like it. And so yes, our faith that we had that we hold to this Christianity, that we're part of this us being Christians, it's not just a relationship, but it's also religion. The both go hand in hand. You know my relationship with him by my expression, which is my religion. And you know what my religion is. After doing so, then I can even tell you about my relationship with him. They work hand in hand. Amen.