How to Receive Many Benefits from God

A reader recently posed a question about preachers taking the idea of the command for holiness out of context and turning it into a works gospel. I told him I would write about that soon, but I have been finding it challenging because there are so many aspects to these issues. I think, though, that I have found a way to write about it that will be positive, encouraging, true and helpful. (And I have a lot more to say about avoiding the idea of "earning" salvation...so if you still think I'm too much in that direction after reading this, stay tuned! I have more to say on that topic and will deal with it more in future posts.) For now,would you like help in receiving benefits from God? If so, read on.

First, what are the benefits of a good relationship with God? I know of thirteen things one receives beginning right at the first moment of salvation, but to keep this post short, I'm only going to list four of them.

1. He provides for us. (see Ps. 78:20 and following)
2. He heals us if we get sick. (Acts 4:10-12)
3. He protects us. (Pro 18:10)
4. He forgives us and cleanses us from unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

(For details on how you can learn about all 13 things and a lot more, you can click here). To be even more general than the items in the list above, God is just (Deu 32:4) and he is good! (Psa 73:1) He wants to give us the desires of our hearts. And yet, he commands us to love him with all our hearts, minds, bodies and souls. If we love him, we are to keep his commandments (John 14:15). We are told that if we do not love him, we will not keep his commandments (John 14:24). Looked at from the other direction, if we don't keep his commandments, not only do we not love him, we don't even know him. (1 John 2:3-4) So, what are we showing the desires of our hearts to be if we are showing him that we don't love him? Jesus said we are either with him or against him. So, if you don't love him, you will want to get away from him, or even fight against him. I don't want to get into condemnation, though. Rather, let's think about a positive example.

Imagine a boy on a baseball team. Can you imagine him telling the coach, "Coach! I love playing baseball, but can you just let me sit on the bench throughout the whole game? In fact, I don't want to play at all. I just want to sit here and watch the whole season." It doesn't make any sense, does it? No, the one who really loves baseball is going to show up early for every practice and be the last one to leave. He'll want to play in every game. He will probably even practice on his own outside of the full team's practices. What does this have to do with Jesus and whether or not we follow him?

Jesus tells us that his commandments are not grievous (1 John 5:3) and his yolk is easy and his burden [that which he asks us to do/carry] light. When he gives us his supernatural power to live rightly before him, our lives are changed. When we see how wonderfully he has changed our lives, we will not be able to help but to talk about him. It will be like the apostles in Acts 4:20, "For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." So, rather than wondering what will happen if we DON'T do what he says, we should be overjoyed to have the opportunity to be ABLE to do what he commands! Then it will be like the boy who plays baseball every chance he gets. It will be obvious to everyone how much you love Jesus. Now, keeping that comparison in mind, which do you think has a better chance of scoring one for the team? The person who is out doing the work of our Lord, or the person who just wants to sit on the sidelines and watch? It is really not a question of whether we have to work. It is a question of whether or not we are even in the game! Are you showing up and asking to be put in? Or is it just there for entertainment...a mere spectator sport?

The last point I'd like to make here, since this is supposed to be a post about receiving benefits from God is just this: In Mat 10:10 (NIV), the verse ends with, "for the worker is worth his keep." If you were a professional baseball player, but you weren't preparing for the games, if you weren't asking to be put in, if you didn't have a good attitude about playing the game, if you really weren't committed to the team's goals, do you think you'd keep receiving the benefits of being one of the workmen on that team for long? Would you really be worth your keep? This is how I look at working for the Lord.

I normally go out street preaching Saturday nights. However, times do come up when I can't make it. For example, sometimes I'm out of town (and I try to bring Bibles with me to give away wherever I am). Sometimes, my wife is out of town and I don't have any childcare. So, I can't go out street preaching. I don't feel like I'm condemned for not managing to find a sitter to be at my house from 10:30 PM till 2:30 AM. That would be a pretty hard sitter to find. However, when I can make it out there, the whole rest of my week goes better for me. God provides me with a peace that is beyond understanding. When I don't go, I have trouble sleeping. I don't get along with people as well. So, does God provide for me? Absolutely. Do I get a pay check signed by him (or a church)? No. But his provision is every bit as real as if it had a church's name on it. I work for him, regardless of who signs my checks and I hope you do, too.

Please let me know what you think. I always value comments.