Being a Christian honestly comes with some great benefits. We receive peace, joy, and comfort in every situation from our God. The Bible says that He is even working all things for our good. God has given us prayer and through our prayers, we can see Him move in any situation. Surpassing all this, Christians are all granted eternal life in Heaven where pain and sadness will be no more.
Galatians 5:22 (ESV)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Colossians 3:15 (ESV)
15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
Romans 8:28 (ESV)
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
1 John 5:14–15 (ESV)
14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
1 John 5:13 (ESV)
13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.
Revelation 21:4 (ESV)
4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
I can think of nothing else that offers such great benefits. Those listed and the many other things that come with being a Christian are a great reason to be thankful. They are a reason to offer praise and worship to the one who offers them freely to us. But the benefits are in no way a reason to believe in God.
Whether you realize it or not this is a major issue in the church today. Many are placing their faith in the wrong things. Instead of believing in God because of who He is, many chose to believe based on what they think they He has to offer them. Chasing after the benefits and not God Himself. In many ways, this is our own fault as the church. As we often spend more time talking about the great things God offers His people and not nearly enough time talking about who God is.
Scripture often refers to God as the Heavenly father and those who place their faith in Him are His children. In many ways, our relationship with Him can be viewed in the same ways as the relationship between a good parent and a child. In that relationship, the child does not love their parent because of what they have to offer. They love them simply because of who they are. Our relationship should be no different with God.
Ephesians 4:6 (ESV)
6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
John 1:12 (ESV)
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
When you truly know God you know that you would love and come to Him even if there were no benefits for you in the relationship. Even if God had nothing to offer you would still want to serve Him because of who He is. Creator of the heavens and the earth. The one who formed us in the womb and has numbered every hair on our heads. The one who loves and cares for every person to ever exist.
Colossians 1:16 (ESV)
16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
John 12:7 (ESV)
7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial.
1 John 3:1 (ESV)
1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Because of the deep love He has for us, He took on flesh and entered our world as Christ Jesus. He came to suffer persecution, be ridiculed, beaten, and ultimately die so we could live life more abundantly. Becoming the sacrifice needed to forever cleanse us of our sins and make it so we could one day enter the gates of Heaven. Making a way so that all people could be saved.
John 3:16 (ESV)
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
John 10:10 (ESV)
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
1 John 3:5 (ESV)
5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.
That is who God is. Our father, creator, and the one who loves every single person deeply. Those are the real reasons to come to Him faith. Everything else is just a gift of love He pours out on those who trust in Him. They are great blessings but not the reason to believe. We must come to God with pure hearts. Not looking for what we will receive but only because of who God is and the things He has already done for each of us.
When your reason for faith is the benefits that are given to God’s people you make everything about yourself. Heaven is a great reward for a righteous life. But to look only at it shows that we are only worried about ourselves. The faith of a Christian should never be based on what they hope to gain. Faith will never produce anything and won’t last but a season. Our faith should be based on knowing who God is. That faith will produce a good harvest and will last a lifetime. God alone is the reason to have faith.
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