Why do Christians say Christianity is not a religion, it's a relationship with God?

Question

Don't other religions involve relations with God?

Answer 1

Most other religions are trying to find a way to God or heaven or eternal live.
The fundamental beliefs are you can get there by works or meditation or by repeating lives until you are perfected.
Where all other religions are trying to get to Christianity starts.

When you become a Christian God is there with you from the moment you say yes building a relationship with you, You are transferred from here to heaven spiritually and are given eternal life the first time, you are perfected in Gods Son.
He did what we can't, live a perfect life now when you receive Him God sees you through His Son.
Religion is mans way to get to God. We say Christianity is Gods way to reveal Himself to you.
That is why is is so hard to receive Christianity because it is a free gift from God to anyone who is willing to believe it. We don't have to earn it or go through some ritual to get it nor can you buy it.
He makes it possible to have a relationship with him. He did everything. Hope that helps a little.
Messenger

Answer 2

Religion:people’s beliefs and opinions concerning the existence, nature, and worship of a deity or deities, and divine involvement in the universe and human life.

Relationship:the connection between two or more people or groups and their involvement with each other, especially as regards how they behave and feel toward each other and communicate or cooperate

Anyone can believe in God.....Satan believes in God but you have to take the extra step to let him into your life......causing a relationship. Religion is a belief and relationship is an action and something you have to put effort in to, to make work. I don't think that Christians are the only ones who are found saying that phrase. There are a million different religions out there and no matter what one you believe the only way you are going to get to Heaven is if you have a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Answer 3

You can have a relation with God if you are perfect!
I have a relation with Christ, because he will make me pure in the law, so I can stand before God.
If I did not have that friendship, it would be a religion. Every Sunday show up for church like clockwork.
Read a verse any verse once a day, who cares what it says. Say the Lords prayer before bed. And use code words a lot like bless you, amen, the Lord knows, just so others know I'm a Christian, oh yea give 10% to the church or more just so I'm better then you.
What I have is better, and maybe for the casual observer they may not see much difference, but what I do I do because I want to. Not to save my soul, nor to impress anyone, nor to increase here on earth or in heaven. To me I have not changed, the world has!

Answer 4

I have faith and belief in God (Jesus Christ)! I understand what they call the religious practice of Christianity - but I don't practice Christianity! People that practice Christianity are no different from any other faith! Especially if they identify with the practice of religion and not the relationship with God (Jesus Christ)! Religion is a set of practices - a relationship with a thing, community, or church! It has nothing to do with faith and belief in God (Jesus Christ) - that is a personal relationship! People look to others to answer questions they should ask for themselves and seek their own answers! Look up religion - learn the difference between belief in something and faith in something - then learn what a relationship is! You'll find you own answers when you take time to learn what they are! Or one day - you'll being saying the same things they are saying now!

Answer 5

Religion is basically a belief in a God or Gods, coupled with a list of rules that must be followed to earn your way into heaven or the afterlife. Islam, for example, has very specific rules such as "don't eat pork."

Christianity is the antithesis of religion. It starts with the basic assertion that nobody can succeed at following the rules. It is based on the concept that by making friends with the Son of God, your failure will be forgiven. Your way into heaven is free.

Answer 6

Well, we practice what we know. It's easy to confuse religious practices with religion itself. No need to over-think things that way. Hindu, Muslim, Christian...whatever. The relationship we have with God does not depend on our practice of religion. God is better than that. God wants his children home while we fight over scraps.
We can do better, we will do better as we embrace our purposeful place as a child.

Answer 7

Any religion can involve a relationship w/God if they're saved! Being christian means being born again. It is a relationship w/God!

Answer 8

Other religions seperate you from God. They make you into a meaningless slave who has to grovel for a chance a decent afterlife.

Christianity is different. Its a loving God that wants us to understand and become one of his childern instead of just a tool or pawn in creation that sacrafices animals or perform so many prayers a day at specific times just to guarentee a place in heaven.

By far its the easiest and the hardest. Easiest to understand when you accept him into your heart, and hardest when you havent and your looking in.

Some say its blind faith, but isnt all religion in some form or another?

I personally would want God to consider me his son, rather than a pawn or just a creation.

Answer 9

Because it is a Relationship. Followers of Christ have a relationship with him unlike Muslims, Buddhist, Jews, Catholics, Agnostics, Mormons they don't have relationships they have religions.

I saw the best shirt the other day. It said:

"My relationship forbids me to have a religion"

I thought it was awesome

Answer 10

Religions teach us what we can do for God, or what we can do to come to God. Christianity is about what God has done for us, The Bible teaches that we cannot earn our way to God. " But your iniquities have separated
you from your God;
your sins have hidden his face from you,
so that he will not hear. (Isaiah 59:2).
The Bible teaches that God came to us in the from of His Son, Jesus Christ. And Christ bridged the gap between God and man. "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1st Timothy 2:5) "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God" (1st Peter 3:18).
Religion is all about rituals. and all about rules. Being a Christian is about relationship. The Bible says, "Yet to all who received him (Christ), to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12). Think about that! When you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you literally become a child of God; and God becomes your Father. No religion makes that claim.