Perception v. Reality

We cannot work our way into the Kingdom of Heaven, but once we have accepted Christ and become part of His Kingdom, the Holy Spirit will produce fruit through our lives - if we allow Him to. James addressed issues relative to faith and works in chapter 2 of his book:
14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?
17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

We can agree that works cannot save us - we come to God by faith in His Son, Jesus Christ, confessing with our mouths that He is Lord and believing that God raised Him from the dead, according to Romans 10. But, now that we are saved, we are instructed to live an obedient life - that obedience keeps us firmly planted in the will of God, as we produce fruit for His glory. And, that obedience shows the world that Jesus lives in us - our works impact the world for Him.

+++++

We are called and empowered to be excellent representatives of the One who has saved us, allowing the life of Jesus to be displayed through our lives. 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 contains these words:
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,
19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.

The Bible tells us that we are not to be consumed with pleasing people; rather we are to please God.  But, the way we are perceived or regarded, as people of God, is very important - we want to be good ambassadors for the Kingdom.

There's a new Pew Research poll that actually measures how various faith groups are perceived.  The survey deals with the most wealthy nations of the world, according to the World Bank, and the summary relates:

A global median of 23% of adults say the U.S. is more religious than other wealthy nations, according to a Pew Research Center survey of 23 countries conducted this spring. Far more adults in these countries say the U.S. is either about as religious as other wealthy nations (a median of 41% say this) or less religious than other wealthy nations (a median of 26% say this).

In fact, as the summary notes, "In some countries, large shares say the U.S. is less religious than other wealthy nations. Nearly half of adults (48%) say this in Mexico – one of nine surveyed countries in which at least 33% of adults say this."

But in the survey universe, perception does not equal reality; for instance, as Pew states:

Looking at the high-income nations included in the Center’s spring survey, U.S. adults are more likely than many others to say religion is very important in their life. Around four-in-ten Americans (41%) say this – almost twice as many (21%) as the median share for wealthy countries surveyed. 

The top 5 countries with this response are: the U.S. at #1, followed by Greece, Israel, Italy, and Poland. 

The summary also relates:

But the U.S. is more similar to its wealthy peers in its shares of religiously affiliated adults. About 70% of U.S. adults say they belong to some religion – compared with a median of 64% in the other high-income countries included in the spring survey.

So, there are indicators that the U.S. is a religious nation, based on survey data, but people in other countries don't necessarily see it that way.  Overall, about a quarter of those surveyed, on average, see the U.S. as "more religious" than other nations in the group of wealthy nations.  A slightly higher percentage see the U.S. as "less religious."

There is a disconnect here, and I think it can teach us collectively and individually.  Collectively, the United States is not seen as religious as its citizens see themselves.  That perception could be due to any number of factors, but I think it would be helpful to examine the image that we are exporting - after all, we were founded as a bastion of religious freedom; it's woven into our Constitution, but it may not be demonstrated the way it once was.   

We can also consider how we live our lives for the sake of Christ.  We may have been saved and have a personal walk with God; we might be doing the right things, the "religious stuff," if you will.  But, if people cannot see that demonstration of the reality of the new birth, we are not doing as we should.  We can rightly decry legalism and recognize that our salvation does not come by works; but as James says, we show our faith by our works.  So, we should be demonstrating a vibrant, living faith in Christ that causes the perception on the outside to be lined up with the reality on the inside. If we claim to know Christ, then we have to make sure that we are not short-circuiting our witness by living in a way that does not reflect His presence within.