"THE ADHERENTS OF RELIGION"
The worth or value of any religion is reflected by the conduct of its adherents. The battle between Baal and the God of heaven on Mount Carmel was witnessed by the whole of Israel. On one side stood the prophets of Baal while on the other side stood one lone figure, Elijah, representing the God of heaven, Creator of life and all things. The prophets of Baal had the first chance to get their "god" to light the sacrifice. As the day wore on with silence from their "god", Elijah began to mock them (I Kings 18:27). The prophets of Baal became more and more angry.
Watch now, as God reveals to us, what it was that the prophets of Baal did. They cried and cut themselves with knives as was their custom or manner (I Kings 18:28). The passage here states that their blood "gushed out upon them". How would one evaluate, then, the religion of Baal having seen the conduct of its adherents? Many years later, one Manasseh came to rule in Judah. He did that which was evil. He built again the altars that his father, Hezekiah, had torn down. He also reared up altars to Baal. Once more, let us consider what this worship of a false god did in relation to God's own people.
The Bible states that Manasseh offered his own son to Baal (II Kings 21:6). He, likewise, filled Jerusalem with innocent blood from one end to the other (verse 16). From Mount Carmel to Jerusalem, the worship of Baal did not bless humanity, but rather caused it great suffering. In all the years between the battle on Mount Carmel and the coming to power of Manasseh, was there not enough evidence to see the futility of worshipping a god that demanded the death of children? Baal worship continued to be present, with the exception of Josiah's reforms, until the final demise of the nation of Judah at the hands of Babylon.
Jesus showed the hearts of the Pharisees clearly in Matthew 23. They loved greetings in the market place (Matthew 23:7-11). Their hypocrisy was seen in that not only would they not enter the kingdom of heaven but, likewise, prevented others from being able to enter (verse 13). They who were the keepers of the law should have, based on that law, known who Jesus was. In short order the kingdom of Christ (the church) would be established on the earth beginning in Acts 2. Yet, here is Jesus warning against the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. Their conduct would turn many from ever hearing the news of the gospel of the kingdom of Christ.
When the Jews made their boast of the law and then lived in a manner contrary to that law, Paul declared that the name of God was blasphemed among the Gentiles (Romans 2:24). Those Jews then who were hypocritical served as barriers to men obeying the gospel. Once more, we consider the idea that the adherents to a religion do by their conduct reflect upon that religion. James speaks about "pure religion" (James 1:27). The religion of course was the religion of Jesus the Christ. The tenets of that religion were that we are to be compassionate on those who are weak (widows and orphans) and keep ourselves unspotted from the world.
When the world looks at the adherents of the Christian religion, what do they see? Consider for a moment the events of September 11th, 2001. The word "radical" is used to describe the actions of a "few" who on that day struck terror into the hearts of Americans, everywhere. Since we have come so far from that horrible day, many would have us forget those events, as if to say, it was an aberration. If the events of that day were but an aberration, why then do we hear constantly about individuals blowing themselves up trying to kill innocent people around them? Those of the Islamic faith would not care to be characterized as being part of the killing or thinking leading to the killing. Neither would the followers of Jesus Christ want to be characterized by the hypocrisy practiced by those who "claim" to follow Christ.
A point of summation would be to take the adherents of a religion who are the very best of that religion, and see what their lives are about. Were the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel radicals? If so, Manasseh followed their lead. Today we need individuals to be conformed to the image of God's Son as revealed in Scripture (Romans 12:1,2; II Corinthians 3:18). When you find such an adherent, it is a tremendous voice for following Jesus the Christ, the Son of God. What is your religion?