Add a Pinch of Jesus
The church, especially in America, is often taken with the idea of adding Christ to one’s life. You have the life you’re living. It’s basically comfortable but there are some things that make you sad, anxious, or angry. Maybe you have some addictions you’d like to kick. People may suggest you sprinkle a little Jesus on top to clean up some of those issues.
Perhaps they will even admit that there will be suffering and persecution from those opposed to Jesus and that we have been warned of that. However, there is another kind of suffering in Christianity that isn’t spoken of as often.
A lot of people give this “Jesus thing” a try only to discover their life has gotten even harder! Before, they had a life of service to their sin. Sin was a cruel master. However, practicing Christianity is just one more set of obligations that seem to weigh them down rather than give them freedom.
Is Christianity Oppressive?
If a person is focused on themselves, the commands of Christ will seem very burdensome. Just look at this verse:
Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.
1 Peter 4:1-2
There are sufferings which are common to everyone and this verse isn’t suggesting that every pain is evidence you’re on a path to defeating sin, but there is pain and suffering in putting sin to death in our lives. To deny sinful desires upsets the flesh greatly! It will rage when you don’t chase after your lusts. It will scream when you swallow your pride and behave kindly to someone who has been rude to you.
Why would anyone sign up for it when their goal is simply to find a better way to satisfy their human passions? If comfort is the goal, this sounds like a terrible deal, and it is! Verse 2 is the key. This suffering to cease sinning is a great benefit (essential, in fact) for those seeking to do the will of God rather than simply serving their own passions.
Is It Worth It?
Absolutely. A life lived for God is the only life of any lasting value. We hear a great deal about all the different ways to find purpose or meaning in life. At the end of our time here we will stand before the judge of the universe. What we placed meaning in won’t matter one bit in that moment.
For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
1 Corinthians 3:11-15
Those who aren’t even building on the foundation will have nothing preserved from the fire. However, every believer will suffer lose for every moment we spent living for ourselves rather than God. While every one who truly trusts in God fails to be perfect and will still be saved, we would be better served having spent that time doing works in Christ! To do that, however, we need to deny the flesh. It’s not easy but nothing else is worth anything really.
