So what do I get for being a Christian?

Saying that if by some miracle or knock on the head with heavy blunt object that I was to become a fully blown Christian just what exactly would my reward be. Giving up what I believe to follow the teachings of Jesus and God for the rest of my life is a big thing so what do I get for a lifetimes servitude to God?

G

im not a christian so maybe i should not open my mouth.....
but you should never aproach god with a "what do i get or what can you do for me" attitude ....you should only go to god with a pure heart to take part in his love........maybe im wrong but for me its not what i get from god its what i am priviledged to take part in.....also why would you want to serve someone...god is way above being waited on by someone....nor should you feel like you have to serve god......god gave us freewill for a reason and i dont think he will take it away......i think he only wants our love.........

Originally posted by plague
im not a christian so maybe i should not open my mouth.....
but you should never aproach god with a "what do i get or what can you do for me" attitude ....you should only go to god with a pure heart to take part in his love........maybe im wrong but for me its not what i get from god its what i am priviledged to take part in.....also why would you want to serve someone...god is way above being waited on by someone....nor should you feel like you have to serve god......god gave us freewill for a reason and i dont think he will take it away......i think he only wants our love.........

In the context of this thread it doesn't matter about these things (I'm a non believer), all I want to know is if I became a Christian and did all the christiany things the way a good christian does then whats my reward? Whats/ wheres Heaven? What happens there? Does God sit on his big throne and Lord it over everyone or what? Is there a disco and bingo on Fridays?

G

Originally posted by shihulud
Saying that if by some miracle or knock on the head with heavy blunt object that I was to become a fully blown Christian just what exactly would my reward be. Giving up what I believe to follow the teachings of Jesus and God for the rest of my life is a big thing so what do I get for a lifetimes servitude to God?

G

I will probably forget something and definitely don't know all that God has in store for eternity.

Others have stated that they are not a christian so I will state that I am.

1. Your sins are forgiven and removed from you(this includes past, present and future sins).
2. The Holy Spirit(God) literally takes up residence in you, bringing back to life your dead spirit.
3. You are saved and eternity with God is your future.
4. Eternal death has no hold on you, if you would die before Christ returns your soul will go to be with Him. Death does not need to be feared. You are not on a countdown to death but a countdown to life.
5. If He returns before you die, He will take you to be with Him.

I list this next one because I feel it is one of the glorious gifts God gives. This one is debated but I have studied it enough to have confidence to proclaim it.
6. Accepting Christ before the tribulation(the worst time the inhabitants the earth have ever or will ever experience)means you will escape it.
7. You are justified and considered righteous in God's eyes.
8. You are a new creation.
9. As a new creation you have insight into what God thinks and knows.
10. You can now think differently and gradually are changed into Christlikeness(not that you will be God or a god but you will be like God).
11. In the present you can say no to sin becase God lives in you. At Christ's return you will receive a glorified body not capable of sin, nor sickness, nor death of any kind.
12. You will live FOREVER.
13. You will have ETERNAL LIFE FOREVER.(eternal life is a kind of life).
14. You already experience partial eternal life(it is also a quality of life).
15. You are considered a child of God.
16. You are no longer seperated from God.
17. God will share Himself with you.
18. God will share what He has with you.
19. When troubles come(and they still will) you don't go through them alone.
20. Troubles have a purpose, to refine you and draw you and God closer.
21. You don't have to wonder if you are saved, you have assurance.
22. What you do matters.
23. Everything you do now matters.
24. Life has meaning.
25. You are rewarded now and in eternity for your service.
26. The rewards that you will receive in eternity, will last forever, they are not consumed.
27. You will receive responsibilities here and in eternity.
28. You will never be bored in eternity.
29. You will experience all the things that God will reveal to you throughout all of eternity. Which will take all of eternity.
30. Each "moment" in eternity leads to more not less.
31. You will be able to travel the universe.
32. What if, either now or in the future, there are things/places/ that God has made or will make. You will have a part in them WITH Him.
33. Jesus could appear and disappear in places. You will do that too. Some call this traveling at the speed of thought.
34. You have no idea now who you will be(it can be somewhat imagined now but not fully known) throughout all of eternity, but it will become a longing and a desire for you in the here and now. I already said this but will repeat it here along with this point. You will be a CHILD OF GOD'S.


This comes when Christ is where your faith is placed for salvation.

Since it will take all of eternity for God to reveal Himself to us, this list probably has a trillion more things that could be added to it.

[edit on 29-12-2005 by dbrandt]

dbrandt, WOW!! I didn't know a person recievel all that!! I am going to a local church tomorrow and be a Christain from here on out.

Born again!?! Who knows?

Originally posted by shihulud
Saying that if by some miracle or knock on the head with heavy blunt object that I was to become a fully blown Christian just what exactly would my reward be.

You get free coffee and donuts every Sunday morning at the mere cost of 10% (gross or net, let the spirit decide for you), plus a donation for the coffee and donuts.

You also get the satisfaction of doubting whether what you're being told is true or not, and a guilt trip for "sins" you otherwise wouldn't even consider wrong because you doubt whether or not you are truly forgiven for the sins you would otherwise not care about.

Then when a loved one dies, you can comfort yourself in your doubts as you put on a good show and pretend all is well for fear of being ostracized for your doubt while you are mourning.

As an added bonus, you get to say "mega dittos" if you want to, and lament about the culture war as you condemn those who commit idolatry or modify scripture while erecting a monument of the 10 commandments in the public square that has an abreviated "thou shalt not covet" as the 10th commandment rather than the full text that sanctifies slavery.

Plus, a lot of churches have basketball courts and heated baptismal fonts.

Originally posted by dbrandt

I will probably forget something and definitely don't know all that God has in store for eternity.

www.fathersloveletter.com...

I don't believe there is a list of "gets" when it comes to being a christian, though I'm not a very good christian in the religious sense of the word so maybe my take on it is a lil out of the mainstream of christian logic.

Personally, I consider attempting to follow Christ as a life style choice. WWJD is a real concept in my life. It is the basis for my morality and the love for myself and humanity. It is also the reason for my political leanings and even my current occupation. If you believe there is a path out there that you should be walking on...as a christian you know that Christ is the guide to finding that path, and on that path there are blessings beyond your belief. My aunt always says "Jesus is a way maker."

Bash and make fun of Christians all you want, but there is joy in Christ. I've found more happiness following Christ than I could ever imagine, and I believe it is that way for most Christians. I feel it is a personal thing, though. It isn't the same for everyone.

so, what do you get? Guidance and love....much more than you expect.

dbrandt.....
where do you get your information from???
ive never heard of half of that stuff being promised....please tell me what documents you base these beliefs from....

it is all there in the bible if you care to look at it with an open heart

So I would get all that and more for eternity? Hmmmmm. Would you not get bored? I mean 100 years on Earth is boring enough.

So where is Heaven and what does it look like?

Would a person with a disability like paralysis of the legs or blind and deaf be made whole?
What would I look like? If say my wife dies at 35 and I die 50 years later would I be an old man and she be 35 in heaven or would we appear in our prime say 24-25? What if we had a child that died in infancy would the child be a child or what they would be like at 25? Also what would happen if my wife was married before or I was would we all end up together?


G

ok i have read the bible with an open mind.......i see no mention of....
1)having insight onto what god thinks and knows
2)that you will think differently more like christ
3)you will never be bored
4)actually everything past #28....
and most of the things on your list we all recieve with out being christian....
and recieve those things everyday....when you love god you will feel the love he has already given you from day 1......

well...the first thing is that you're going the wrong way...The Principle of TRUE Christianity is not what will God do for you, but what can YOU DO FOR GOD.

Big difference

Become Mormon and you will get more then you have ever asked for. All your questions about faith,god,christ will be answered. You will feel the love and warmth of Christ and the holy spirit. Plus, you will become a better person in general.

Originally posted by BaastetNoir

well...the first thing is that you're going the wrong way...The Principle of TRUE Christianity is not what will God do for you, but what can YOU DO FOR GOD.

Big difference

And why is that?

Originally posted by Poison
Become Mormon and you will get more then you have ever asked for. All your questions about faith,god,christ will be answered. You will feel the love and warmth of Christ and the holy spirit. Plus, you will become a better person in general.

Yeah right watch me, christianity is bad enough.


G

[edit on 30-12-2005 by shihulud]

Originally posted by plague
dbrandt.....
where do you get your information from???
ive never heard of half of that stuff being promised....please tell me what documents you base these beliefs from....

The protestant Bible. The Bible isn't a book you can read one time and know everything in it that God has to tell us. It needs to be read daily in portions.

Originally posted by shihulud
So I would get all that and more for eternity? Hmmmmm. Would you not get bored? I mean 100 years on Earth is boring enough.

So where is Heaven and what does it look like?

Would a person with a disability like paralysis of the legs or blind and deaf be made whole?
What would I look like? If say my wife dies at 35 and I die 50 years later would I be an old man and she be 35 in heaven or would we appear in our prime say 24-25? What if we had a child that died in infancy would the child be a child or what they would be like at 25? Also what would happen if my wife was married before or I was would we all end up together?


G

Someone else asked about the bored thing. I was reading a book by Pastor Tony Evans. The "not being bored thing" is my paraphrasing of a point he made in the book.

Those who have accepted Christ will have eternal, everlasting life with God. In his book he asked the question of the reader's, "Do you know one of the reasons we are going to live with God forever?" Then he answered the question by saying, "It's going to take forever for God to reveal everything about Himself to us." So that means we will never know everything there is to know about God. But that's not a bad thing, it's a good thing. Why? Because, and I hate to use the word "day", since time will be no more, but we can relate to that word now, so each "day" in eternity we will be learning something new about God and we will be working for God in some capacity in the universe. Our responsibilities and and what we learn about God we will apply to what we will be doing throughout eternity. So God will be constantly revealing Himself to us and we will be constantly learning something new and doing something new. So I don't believe there will be the chance for boredom to take place.

And just think, we think of the universe in terms of what we know. Planets, suns, solar systems, galaxies going on and on and on and on. And yes, there is that. Take for instance, our earth it is the exact distance it needs to be from the sun and has everything needed to sustain life. Mars isn't like that and venus and so on. God tells us that when eternity begins there will be no need of the sun or moon. Why?, because God will outshine the sun. So, creation will be a little different. God will be all that is needed for life. So, I beleive life will be possible to exist on every planet there is, because God will "shine" throughout the universe and supply all that's needed everywhere for life to flourish. So who knows what God will have us doing on these planets that He has made. Maybe one person will have responsibilities over 20 planets, or 20 solar systems, or 20 galaxies.

Go farther, I heard someone say that in eternity, God will be creating again.(this person used Bible verses to back up why he said this, but I can't remember which ones).

But, look at Ephesians 2:4
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

2:5
Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved

2:6
And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

2:7
That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.


There are going to be "ages" in eternity. So right now we are kind of trapped into this whole planet, solar system, galaxy thing. What if there are other things besides this right now or will be. What if God has things planned or already in the works that are different than planets, etc. Things we can't even begin to imagine.

So I said all that to say, there is no way we will get bored in eternity when there is a God like that.

As far as I know from studying the Bible, there are 3 heavens currently, the sky and atmosphere around the earth are one, outer space(all of it) is the 2nd and the third heaven is where God dwells right now. I believe this heaven is outside of the influence of time.

Everybody suffers some sort of disability, some worse than others, but bodies will be incorruptible and perfect.

The age thing I don't know, we are not given a specific answer. But since perfection will reign I think we will all be in bodies that will be awesome and constant for eternity.

The marriage thing we are given a slight glimpse into. If someone meant something to you on the earth, you are both going to be special to each other in heaven, but we are told how we think of marriage now, will not be what it will be like in heaven for two people who were married while in the present time. It will be different and I believe better, because God made us to love and real love lasts forever so God has that all planned out also to bring us the maximum satisfaction possible. God says all things will be made new.

Originally posted by Poison
Become Mormon and you will get more then you have ever asked for. All your questions about faith,god,christ will be answered. You will feel the love and warmth of Christ and the holy spirit. Plus, you will become a better person in general.

I was Mormon for 3 years. I didnt get anything like that!!! Unless thats for the gold members. You definitely get a smaller bank balance coz you have to tithe 10% of your earnings each week. You also have to starve yourself for one Sunday every month.

In my experience what you get for being christian is an inflated ego and a nasty tongue. I have a few christian friends who are wonderful and a few who arent so wonderful. Infact Im more christian than them and Im pagan!!

A good saying - "Going to church does not make you a Christian anymore than going to the garage makes you a car."

Originally posted by SapphireHarlequin

A good saying - "Going to church does not make you a Christian anymore than going to the garage makes you a car."

LOL...FANTASTIC !!!

Originally posted by dbrandt

Someone else asked about the bored thing. I was reading a book by Pastor Tony Evans. The "not being bored thing" is my paraphrasing of a point he made in the book.

This is just his opinion

Those who have accepted Christ will have eternal, everlasting life with God. In his book he asked the question of the reader's, "Do you know one of the reasons we are going to live with God forever?" Then he answered the question by saying, "It's going to take forever for God to reveal everything about Himself to us." So that means we will never know everything there is to know about God. But that's not a bad thing, it's a good thing. Why?...... So God will be constantly revealing Himself to us and we will be constantly learning something new and doing something new. So I don't believe there will be the chance for boredom to take place.

We learn new things every day and its still boring sometimes, most people have special aptitudes for specific tasks i.e mechanics, scientists,nurses etc so if God gave them some menial task then I think they would be bored sometimes.

As far as I know from studying the Bible, there are 3 heavens currently, the sky and atmosphere around the earth are one, outer space(all of it) is the 2nd and the third heaven is where God dwells right now. I believe this heaven is outside of the influence of time.

I thought there was seven heavens! Well from the replies on this thread I dont think I would like to be a Christian. Seems God wants you for a slave in Heaven just as he want you as a slave on Earth.
I reckon Hell would be much more interesting, I mean why would Satan (the Nemesis of God) do Gods bidding and torture the people who disbelieve. You would think that Satan would welcome these people would you not?
Unless God and Satan have a deal, God bores you for eternity and Satan tortures you for eternity. Seems to me that we all get a bad deal so I think I'll stay the way I am and take my chances when I die.


G