What’s Wrong with Religious People?

• Doing right isn’t the same as being right with God. Amaziah obeyed the letter of God’s law, but Scripture adds a telling qualifier — he did it “not with a loyal heart.” Actions without a surrendered heart are just religious formality.
• Reasonable-sounding choices can still lead you away from God. Amaziah’s decision to hire mercenaries seemed shrewd on paper, but Proverbs 16:25 warns that a way that seems right to us can still end in death.
• Correction is hardest to accept once we’re committed to our own plan. It took a direct, forceful warning from a man of God to get Amaziah to change course — and even then, his earlier compromise had already cost others dearly.
• Compromise rarely stays contained. The soldiers Amaziah dismissed turned and attacked Judah’s own towns — a reminder that our choices about sin and alliance affect the people around us, not just ourselves.
• Religious activity cannot substitute for the new birth. Like Nicodemus, a devout and respected man, Amaziah needed more than religious performance — he needed to be born again, and so do we.

Icebreaker

Think of a tradition or routine you keep mostly out of habit rather than real conviction. What is it, and why do you think you still do it?

Introduction

Scripture References: Matthew 7:13-14, 1 Kings 11-12

Brief Summary The message opens with the story of a pastor who agreed to hold a funeral for a woman’s cat once he learned the cat was “a Baptist” — a lighthearted picture of how easily we sort people (and ourselves) into religious categories without asking what’s actually true. With nearly 10,000 religions in the world and about 76% of the global population identifying as religious, something doesn’t line up with Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:13-14 that only a few find the narrow gate that leads to life. From there, the message traces how Solomon — blessed with unmatched wisdom and wealth — still let political marriages and idol-worshiping wives turn his heart from God (1 Kings 11-12), setting up the divided kingdom that eventually produces King Amaziah of Judah, the central case study for the message.

Discussion Questions

• Why do you think such a large share of the world identifies as “religious” while Jesus says only a few find the narrow way?
• What warning signs do you see in Solomon’s story about how even someone deeply blessed by God can still drift?
• What does it mean to “do what is right in the sight of the Lord” without a loyal heart, and how might that show up in a person’s life today?

Application Questions

• Where in your own life might you be doing the right actions without a fully engaged heart?
• What’s one area of “formality” versus real relationship with God you want to examine honestly this week?

1. Religious People often do what they are Supposed to do

Scripture References: 2 Chronicles 25:1-4, Deuteronomy 24:16

Brief Summary Amaziah became king at twenty-five and, on the surface, did what was right — executing the men who murdered his father but sparing their children, in line with the Law’s command that each person bears responsibility for their own sin (Deuteronomy 24:16). Yet 2 Chronicles adds a telling qualifier: he did it “not with a loyal heart.” He also left existing false worship practices undisturbed, effectively reducing his relationship with God to a formality — you have your way, I have mine.

Discussion Questions

• What does it look like to obey the letter of God’s law while your heart is somewhere else?
• Amaziah didn’t abolish false worship — he simply tolerated it alongside true worship. Where do we see that same “live and let live” approach to faith today?
• How is doing the right thing different from having a right heart?

Application Questions

• Is there an area where you’re “technically obedient” but not fully surrendered?
• What would it look like this week to bring your heart, not just your actions, in line with God?

2. Religious People believe they make Conscientious choices

Scripture References: 2 Chronicles 25:5-6, Proverbs 16:25

Brief Summary Amaziah assembled an army of 300,000 — outnumbering his enemy roughly fifteen to one — yet still hired 100,000 mercenaries from the godless Northern Kingdom for a massive sum of silver, convinced he was making a wise, well-reasoned decision. It’s a picture of religious people trusting their own logic to help God along rather than trusting His instruction — exactly the trap Proverbs 16:25 warns against: a way that seems right to a person but ends in death.

Discussion Questions

• Why do you think Amaziah felt he needed outside help when he already had an overwhelming advantage?
• What makes a “reasonable-sounding” compromise easier to justify than an obvious sin?
• How does Proverbs 16:25 challenge the idea that our own judgment is a safe enough guide?

Application Questions

• What’s a decision you’ve justified more with “it makes sense” than with “what does God say”?
• Who in your life can you invite to question your reasoning before you act on it?

3. Religious People are Hard to Convince they are Wrong

Scripture References: 2 Chronicles 25:7-13, Matthew 7:21-24, 2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Brief Summary A man of God warned Amaziah bluntly that the Lord was not with the army he had hired and that going ahead would end in defeat, no matter what had already been paid. Amaziah relented, but the dismissed mercenaries turned and raided Judah’s own towns in anger — a reminder that compromise with sin rarely stays contained to the one who made the choice. Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:21-24 sharpen the point: saying the right things and doing impressive religious activity is no substitute for actually being known by God, while 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 describes the real change a genuine new-creation life in Christ produces instead.

Discussion Questions

• What finally got through to Amaziah, and what does that suggest about how stubborn we can be toward correction?
• Who ended up paying the price for Amaziah’s earlier compromise, and what does that teach us about the ripple effects of our choices?
• According to Matthew 7:21-24, what’s missing from a life full of the right religious words but not the relationship?

Application Questions

• Is there correction you’ve been resisting that you need to receive this week?
• How does 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 describe the change you should expect to see if you’re truly “in Christ” — and do you see it in your life?

4. Religious People cannot See or Enter Heaven

Scripture References: 2 Chronicles 25:14-16, John 3:1-7, 1 John 5:11-13, John 14:6

Brief Summary After defeating the Edomites, Amaziah did the unthinkable — he set up their defeated gods as his own and worshiped them, provoking God’s anger and one final prophetic warning he refused to heed. His story becomes a picture of Nicodemus in John 3: a devout, respected religious leader who still needed to hear that no one can see or enter the kingdom of God without being born again. Real assurance of salvation isn’t found in religious performance but in having the Son (1 John 5:11-13) and coming to the Father through Jesus alone (John 14:6).

Discussion Questions

• What’s striking about a king who had already seen God’s warnings choosing to worship the very gods that couldn’t save the people he’d just defeated?
• Why do you think Jesus told a religious insider like Nicodemus that he needed to be “born again”?
• What’s the real difference between religious activity and the new birth Jesus describes?

Application Questions

• Can you point to evidence in your own life that you’ve been born again, not just religiously active?
• What would it look like to move from “doing my religious duty” to daily depending on Christ alone?

Day 1: The Narrow Gate

• Scripture Reference: Matthew 7:13-14
• Key Focus: True faith is rare — it isn’t automatic just because you consider yourself religious.
• Reflection: Jesus’ words are sobering: the road that leads to destruction is wide and crowded, while the road that leads to life is narrow and has few travelers. With thousands of religions and billions of people claiming some form of faith, it’s tempting to assume the odds of being right are in our favor. Jesus says otherwise. Being religious and being on the narrow way are not automatically the same thing.
• Application Question: Are you resting in the fact that you’re “religious,” or have you actually found the narrow way Jesus describes?
• Prayer Prompt: Ask God to show you honestly whether your faith is wide and crowded or narrow and real.

Day 2: Right Actions, Divided Heart

• Scripture Reference: 2 Chronicles 25:1-4
• Key Focus: Obedience without a fully surrendered heart is empty.
• Reflection: Amaziah followed the Law when he dealt with his father’s murderers, sparing their children exactly as Deuteronomy commanded. It was the right call. But Scripture doesn’t let the moment pass without noting his heart wasn’t loyal. It’s possible to check every religious box and still hold something back from God. Right actions are good, but they were never meant to replace a right heart.
• Application Question: Where might you be technically obedient while quietly withholding your heart from God?
• Prayer Prompt: Ask God to search your heart, not just your habits, and to show you anywhere you’ve settled for formality.

Day 3: Trusting Our Own Wisdom

• Scripture Reference: 2 Chronicles 25:5-6; Proverbs 16:25
• Key Focus: What feels wise to us can still lead us away from God.
• Reflection: Amaziah had every reason to feel confident — a massive army and a clear numerical advantage. Instead of trusting that, he hired outside help from a source he had no business trusting, convinced it was the smart move. Proverbs 16:25 names the danger plainly: a way that seems right to us can still end in death. Our own sense of “this makes sense” is not the same as God’s wisdom.
• Application Question: What decision are you currently justifying more by logic than by asking what God says?
• Prayer Prompt: Ask God for the humility to test your own reasoning against His Word before you act.

Day 4: When Correction Comes

• Scripture Reference: 2 Chronicles 25:7-13; Matthew 7:21-24
• Key Focus: Real faith listens to correction and actually changes course.
• Reflection: It took a direct, uncomfortable warning from a man of God to get Amaziah to reverse his decision — and even then, the fallout from his earlier choice hurt people who had nothing to do with it. Jesus warns in Matthew 7 that plenty of people will point to impressive religious activity and still hear “I never knew you.” Correction is a gift. The question is whether we’re humble enough to receive it before the cost grows.
• Application Question: Is there a warning or correction in your life right now that you’ve been slow to receive?
• Prayer Prompt: Ask God for a soft, responsive heart the next time He corrects you — through His Word, a sermon, or a person who loves you.

Day 5: Born Again, Not Just Religious

• Scripture Reference: John 3:1-7; John 14:6
• Key Focus: Assurance comes from new birth in Christ, not religious performance.
• Reflection: Nicodemus was about as religious as it got — a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews, a serious student of Scripture. Jesus still told him plainly that he needed to be born again to see the kingdom of God. Religious credentials, however impressive, were never the point. Jesus alone is the way to the Father, and new birth by His Spirit is what actually changes a life.
• Application Question: If someone asked you today, could you point to real evidence that you’ve been born again — not just that you’re active in church?
• Prayer Prompt: Thank God for the gift of new life in Christ, and ask Him to make that new birth increasingly evident in how you live.