Religious emails

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom (Colossians 3:16).

From time to time, someone forwards me a feel-good religious email. Sometimes it’s poetry about God’s love; other times it’s a prayer that I’m asked to pass along to others.

I’m glad there are people who care enough to send such things my way. Nevertheless, most of these emails get deleted instead of being forwarded to others on my mailing list. Why? Because most of them go for the heartstrings instead of focusing on Jesus.

The next time you get a religious, feel-good email, read it carefully. Is Jesus mentioned by name? This is important, because He is the only one who can take away our sins and bring us close to God. Without Jesus, religion is nothing more than a bunch of words chosen to make you feel good about yourself and your situation.

As you read the email, where is the focus? Are most of the words aimed at how you feel, or how God feels about you? Does the message urge you to change your life, or does it point you to Christ for personal transformation? We are weak and flawed because of sin; the only way to rise above our failings is to depend on the power of God’s mighty Spirit.

Most of these chain emails assure us of God’s love, but few of them warn us of His righteous judgment. We don’t like to be reminded of our failures. We don’t relish the thought of giving up favorite sins in order to follow Christ. Chain emails give a false impression if they imply that God’s love need not change your behavior.

Many religious emails promise that something good will happen to you if you forward them to others. But if you are guided by the love of God, you aren’t interested in getting a reward for doing something kind. Jesus died for us, expecting nothing in return. He went to the cross because He loves us; He suffered the penalty for our sins for no other reason than to spare us from hell.

The emails I receive are usually long on sentiment but short on real content. Once in a while, I’ll make changes to something I’ve received and then pass it along. But when your get an email like this, read it carefully and evaluate its worth before you send it on to others.