Dear Church,
Few phrases are more common in our culture today than the claim, “I am spiritual, but not religious.” It is often spoken as a rejection of hypocrisy, abuse, or empty ritual. Sometimes it comes from genuine hurt. Other times it reflects a desire for autonomy without accountability. Whatever the reason, it is a statement that deserves careful and biblical consideration.
Scripture never presents spirituality as something detached from commitment, obedience, or belonging. From the beginning, God has always called a people to walk with Him together. Faith was never designed to be an individual experience divorced from covenant, community, and responsibility.
Jesus did not come merely to make people feel spiritually fulfilled. He came to establish a kingdom. He called disciples to follow Him, to deny themselves, and to take up their cross. Those who responded were not just spiritually minded individuals. They were added to His body. They gathered, worshiped, served, and submitted to His teaching together.
The New Testament knows nothing of a faith that exists apart from the church. Those who believed the gospel were baptized and were “added to the church” (Acts 2:41,47). They devoted themselves to teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer. Spirituality occurs when we are together, not when we isolate ourselves.
To say, “I am spiritual but not religious” often means, “I want a connection to God without structure, authority, or obligation.” Scripture teaches that true spirituality is shaped by submission. We cannot claim to be led by the Spirit while rejecting the very institutions and commands the Spirit establishes!
Religion, when stripped of hypocrisy and empty tradition, is not the enemy of spirituality. James wrote, “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (James 1:27). True religion is not lifeless ritual. It is obedient faith lived out in love.
Spirituality that refuses accountability becomes self-defined. Faith that rejects commitment becomes selective. And belief that avoids obedience eventually reshapes God into our own image. That is not the faith delivered once for all to the saints (Jude 3).
At the same time, we must listen carefully to why people say these things. Some have been wounded by legalism. Some have been crushed by hypocrisy. Some have seen religion used as a weapon instead of a witness. We must respond with truth and love.
So let us model something better. Let us show the world that following Christ is deeply spiritual and joyfully committed. That faithfulness is not bondage, but freedom. That the church, though imperfect, is still God’s chosen instrument for shaping His people and reaching the lost.