Christians ask, “Where do you go to church?” I prefer, “How do you follow the living Jesus?”

Too many churches and Christians act like they have an absentee Jesus. (Sometimes they even seem to use the Bible as a note from Jesus’ Father, to justify their belief that Jesus is an absentee from their everyday life.) However, if Christians would exchange their absentee Jesus for the here-and-now Jesus, spiritual awakening would flood them.

Religion makes Jesus an absentee Savior. To the early Christ-followers, He was their present Lord and Master. Religious institutions seem to need an absentee Jesus. The living, present Jesus would present too much of a threat to their programs.

A dead-and-gone, absentee Jesus would need religious organizations to carry on for Him, but the risen, present Jesus doesn’t. I don’t think that the living, present-day Jesus likes for His personal leadership to be replaced by religious hierarchies. Listen to & obey Him.

The living Jesus, alone, is the Head of the body of Christ, even if other claims of headship try to usurp His authority! When Christians continually hear and obey the voice of the risen Jesus, they come into supernatural love and agreement. (I’ve experienced that many times!)

The living, here-and-now Jesus will compassionately interact with you, if you will stop keeping Him away. Focus on religious institutions and leaders can keep you from a direct relationship with the risen Jesus. I don’t believe Jesus intended for His followers to be an institutionalized religion, but rather to all hear and obey His voice.

When we all live like Heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be. Let’s do it now and not wait until we die!