Performance Based Religion // The 5 Most Important Truths God Wants You To Know, Part 2

The world’s system is a performance-based system. Perform, and you get rewarded. Perform and you win. Perform and you succeed. Most religions are like that too. What about Jesus? Is He into performance-based religion too?

It's great to be with you again today and I'm joined by my very special guest on the program this week, Brett Barclay and Brett I believe that today we're going to talk about performance based religion, is that right?

Brett: We are, yeah.

Berni: Okay, so let me ask you this: Is Christianity a performance-based religion? A very simple answer: one word, yes or no?

Brett: Yes, it is.

Berni: Ooh there's a few people who are going to want to burn you at the stake mate. (Both laugh) Now Jesus said a lot of things about following Him that are more than just moderately inconvenient. Taking up your cross, denying yourself, dying to self, was He right? Is it difficult to follow Jesus?

Brett: I would say it is not only difficult or hard or challenging, it is actually impossible and until a Christian comes to the place where they realise that it is impossible to serve God in their own strength I would say that they cannot bring forth anything that's of eternal value.

Berni: So if it's hard to follow Jesus, what's the point? I mean why bother? Here we have it, a performance based religion according to you but I'm glad you're in a nice safe radio studio. Performance based religion – you do this and you'll get rewarded – just like all the others. Is that what you're saying?

Brett: No, I'm not actually saying that. I think it's very important in the Christian life to lay good foundations. Imagine if you were building a building and you didn't take the time to lay the right foundations, that would inevitably lead to a damaged or a weak building. One of the foundations of the Christian life is the righteousness of God. Let me just read a Scripture to you, fantastic Scripture, it's in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse 21, it says:

For he made him (That's God made Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

So we can see there that God made Jesus to take our penalty of sin in order that we might take His righteousness. Now what that means is that you and I Berni and every believing Christian that are born again of the Spirit of God actually stands before God as the very righteousness of God. It's like this. In Philippians 4 it talks about that the peace of God shall guard your heart and mind through Christ Jesus when we pray, and we pray with thanksgiving.

Now what does that mean? It means this, that the very peace of God, the self-same peace that God enjoys, we enjoy. If I was to take off my watch and give you my watch and that would be Brett's watch and I give it to Berni, you would have my watch, it wouldn't be an inferior watch to my watch, it's actually my watch and I've given it to you. You and I have the very same righteousness that Christ has. His performance, His perfect life is now on my record. That's what I'm talking about when we talk about a solid foundation. It's His performance that is my foundation.

Berni: See in every other religion known to man – mankind, let me be politically correct – it's about the person’s performance, it's your performance and my performance.

Brett: Yeah.

Berni: Those religions teach that somehow you work your way into someone’s favour by doing good.

Brett: Yes.

Berni: And what you're saying is completely 180 degrees the opposite way round. You're saying the way we work our way into God’s favour is through what Jesus did.

Brett: That's exactly right, perfectly summed up, yes.

Berni: And it's interesting because a lot of people listening to us today chatting have never accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and saviour. Over half of the people, I know statistically, who are listening to us speak right at the moment around the world haven't accepted Jesus. So when you talk about the righteousness of God becoming ours, the peace of God becoming ours, when you start to put it in those terms, that I get to have the same peace that God has. That's a pretty attractive commodity.

Brett: I would say very attractive indeed, absolutely because I know even within Australia here, I've spoken to a medical Doctor recently and that many illnesses and sicknesses are anxiety and depressive related illnesses. So peace … you know Jesus said:

My peace I give to you, my peace I leave with you.

And so the peace, of true peace of mind and heart is a very rare commodity. I would in fact say that it is extinct outside a personal relationship with God through Christ Jesus.

Berni: But let me bring you back to what you said at the outset. The problem with following Jesus, you talk about peace but then you say the problem with following Jesus is that it's hard, in fact it's so hard we can't do it in our own strength. Do you see how someone who's tuning into you and me having this little chat goes, 'hang on a minute, this guy’s loopy. On the one hand he's saying I can have the same peace that God has, on the other hand he's saying following Jesus is so hard I can't possibly do it.

Brett: Yeah, yeah and I did say that so what we're talking about here is understanding that following Jesus is essential. You know the word disciple, if you look at the word disciple it originally means learner and then it came to mean follower and so we become a disciple of Christ which is a follower of Christ so I walk in His footsteps. However the key point and the key phrase here is in my own strength. Let me read another Scripture to you if I may. This is a great Scripture; this is probably one of the premiere Scriptures from Paul the Apostle on what it means to be a Christian. Let me read this to you, Galatians chapter 2, verse 20 says:

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God.

Berni: Okay so it's no longer I that live but Christ who lives in me so does that mean I lose my identity? Does that mean I lose my uniqueness? Does that mean that a Christian is just like an, I don't know, an unquestioning zombie that follows after Jesus?

Brett: Not at all, you maintain your wonderful personality; you maintain your uniqueness that you received from God, your gifts, your talents even your thinking. When you become a Christian your thinking doesn't change automatically, that needs to be refreshed and renewed by the Word of God but what it does mean is that the centre of your being. Imagine if you were a car and the engine of your life, the thing that actually drives it forward and makes it possible, that engine, your life has been radically transformed. We talked about a sin nature a while ago, what I'm talking about now is a righteous nature. So what Paul's saying here in Galatians 2:20 is that Christ actually comes in and lives on the inside of you.

Berni: Okay great theory, what has that meant in your life specifically for Brett Barclay?

Brett: Yeah a lot, a great deal. Here's some basic things. It means that I no longer have a desire for sin; I have a desire for God so that my life is about wanting to serve God, walk with Him, enjoy the beautiful nature of His fellowship of relationship with Him. It's also meant a great deal to me in terms of purpose. I was a young man who had a lot of illness growing up and really had a very cut off vision for my future so I couldn't see a future for myself but when Christ came into my life He gave me a purpose and a reason for living and you know that's why I'm here today. I wouldn't dream of doing this stuff, be on a radio program talking about Christ, I mean I was the guy who used to walk to the other side of the road when Christians used to hand out tracks.

Berni: Hey mate, my kind of guy, absolutely. Hey listen tomorrow we're going to chat about something interesting, we're talking about confidence before God, that's a really interesting thing.

Brett: Amen and I am so excited to talk to you about confidence before God because that's the result of being the righteousness of God.

Berni: Brett thanks for joining me today.

Brett: Thanks Berni.