Behind all the details in the Bible lies the absolute truth: LOVE IS THE TRUE RELIGION. (James 1:27) [Conversely, self-serving is false religion.—Colossians 3:5] That means God is not a factor in the true worship. (Habakkuk 2:4) His attitude is that if you are good, it is good for you; and if you do bad, it is bad for you. God is not praised or reproached by man’s action. [We know a humble person does not feel honored or insulted by others—he carries on with his duty unaffected by others’ comments. So is with God] It is our experience that the more loving a person is the more successful he is as he will have also the cooperation from others. This means being spiritual is for one’s own good, it has to be one’s own need!
We know attitude (not action) matters. That is why beating a miscreant and beating by a miscreant are viewed differently. God knows this principle better. (Jeremiah 9:25; Romans 2:25, 26) He also knows there are good people in all religions. “Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.” (1 John 4:7, 8; Luke 13:29; Colossian 3:11) God gathers them only in the end. (Mathew 24:31) This makes proselytizations unnecessary—they do not make the world better. On the contrary, proselytization inherently carries the seed of discord (we-are-right & you-are-wrong attitude).
Ironically, religions unwittingly turn people away from God as they teach them to seek favors from their respective Gods (Contrast Mathew 5:3; 16:24), hence are more about materialism. Even when Jesus announced his imminent death, his disciples became only callous, seeking to ensure favors from him. (Mathew 20:17-21) They had witnessed countless miracles (calming of the turbulent sea, resurrections, transfiguration…. ) yet they abandoned their Master—OUT OF FEAR—when he was arrested. (Some may object saying those disciples became courageous after Jesus’s death! If one cannot show integrity to his master when he is alive, when he is in trouble, when he is in need of moral support, what is the use of showing the same after his death?) Throughout the history, BILLIONS OF SOLDIERS (many of whom were atheists) have behaved better than these disciples—they were ready to risk their lives when their countries were in trouble! Even criminals and gangsters show more integrity to their master, when he is in trouble!
Look at an ATHEIST woman, Diana Nyad, 64, who became the first person confirmed to have swum from Cuba to Florida last year—it was done without the aid of a shark-cage in heavily-shark-infested waters for a distance of 180 km. (http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2013/09/02/diana-nyad-cuba-florida-swim/2754645/) Recently on an Oprah Winfrey television show, she said, I can stand at the beach’s edge with the most devout Christian, Jew, Buddhist, go on down the line, and weep with the beauty of this universe and be moved by all of humanity all the billions of people who have lived before us, who have loved and hurt and suffered. To me, my definition of God is HUMANITY, and is the love of humanity! And as we return to that, we just have to remain in awe. Einstein too had some pretty definite ideas of what he believed his universe was about. It was also about awe and he didn’t think there was any contradiction there. He said he believed in a God who revealed himself in the harmony of all that exists; not in the way religions present God.
We all know how to live righteously—that is why we term certain acts human and certain acts inhuman or brutal! We only have to behave ourselves, act according to our own nature!
Nature and purpose of sun is to provide light and heat.
Purpose of fruit-bearing trees is to manifest altruism.
Similarly, purpose of human life is to be humane, which means to live a life of tenderness and compassion, especially for the suffering or distressed—something Jesus declared as qualifying one to inherit eternal life. (Luke 10:25-37) Whether one is an atheist or a theist matters not. One can be an atheist, yet be spiritual. (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2013/10/14/oprah-winfreys-awkward-conversation-with-marathon-swimmer-diana-nyad-an-atheist-whos-in-awe/), and one can be a theist, yet be a parasite!
That is why Jesus declares:
“The kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.” (Mathew 21:43)
Your deeds (not religion) matter!