According to some, religion isn’t merely about following rules, but it is also about becoming a good person. One is good by the deeds s/he does. But if religion is simply about acquiring goodness on account of your merits, do you really need religion? There are plenty of good people, comparatively speaking, who are agnostics, atheists, or religiously unaffiliated. They help the poor, donate to charities, and volunteer their time. Their resumes are filled with accolades that the best of us admire.

There seems to be a growing popularity among professing Christians about the negative state of “religion.” For various reasons, many admit that they don’t need religion because, “It’s not about religion; it’s about a relationship.” To some extent I agree, but it’s not in the manner that is normally implied.

The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines “religion” as “a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices.” Put another way, religion amounts to a set of rules that one must follow in order to participate in a certain group. Christianity, of course, breaks this mold because it is not what we do in order to be a part of a certain group, but what Christ has done to make us a part of this group—the household of God (Ephesians 2:19). All that we do, our “attitudes, beliefs, and practices,” is in response to his grace and mercy displayed to us.

Though this is all good and true, I still don’t think you need religion; that is if religion is no more than what I am accustomed to hearing. According to some, religion isn’t merely about following rules, but it is also about becoming a good person. One is good by the deeds s/he does. But if religion is simply about acquiring goodness on account of your merits, do you really need religion? There are plenty of good people, comparatively speaking, who are agnostics, atheists, or religiously unaffiliated. They help the poor, donate to charities, and volunteer their time. Their resumes are filled with accolades that the best of us admire.

Do they need religion to acquire such esteem and be admired by people? No! Do they need religion to make them good people, comparatively speaking? No! But I guess it depends on how you define “good.”

Turning back the cyber pages of the Merriam-Webster dictionary, it defines “good” as being “of favorable character or tendency.” If you flip through the pages of the Bible, you will find a different definition. Quoting from Psalm 14, the apostle Paul said, “There is none who does good” (Romans 3:12). How can that be? There are plenty of people who do good things! In fact, Paul did many good things. He followed the commandments of God, knew his Bible, and received a proper education (Acts 22:3; Philippians 3:6). What’s there not to like about him?

Paul offers an answer. In his epistle to the Philippians, he said, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ” (Philippians 3:6). Paul’s, or perhaps I should say “Saul’s,” achievements took him to the heights of stardom in the world’s eyes, but in the eyes of God it was not good enough. What Paul, or Saul, needed was a perfect goodness, a goodness that was free from spot or blemish. That was impossible to achieve since Paul was already a sinner (Romans 7:7).

Instead, what Paul required, as do we all, is the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is Christ’s righteousness alone that grants us a proper standing before the holy and righteous God. This is the beauty of Christianity. “For while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Our religion, the religion of Christianity, is not first and foremost about us following a set of rules to gain something from God or improve our goodness, but about a holy, righteous, and loving God sending his Son to live the life that we cannot, die the death that we deserve, rise from the grave, and later ascend to heaven on our behalf. If religion encompasses Christ crucified, risen, and exalted, and our obedience in light of Christ’s work, I’m all about it. But if religion is merely about a set of rules and improving one’s goodness, I don’t need it. In fact, you don’t either.

Leon Brown is a minister in the Presbyterian Church in America and currently serves as Assistant Pastor at New City Fellowship in Fredericksburg, VA. He holds MDiv and MA degrees from WTS California and is presently pursuing doctoral studies in OT and the Ancient Near East.