When Paul made his defense before King Agrippa, he tried to persuade the king to become a Christian. “Then Agrippa said to Paul, Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian? Paul replied, I would to God, that whether with little or with much, not you only, but also all that hear me this day, might become such as I am, except these bonds” (Acts 26:28-29).
There are really many good reasons for being a Christian. Rational people seek for reasons when challenged to do something and for this reason we are happy to present a number of excellent reasons given in the Scriptures for being a Christian.
Reason number one would be to please God who made us for His purpose and sent His Son to redeem us from sin and its consequences. God loves us and wants us to be saved. Peter wrote, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Being a Christian is the greatest honor and advantage ever bestowed upon any creature (I John 3:1). The Psalmist asks this question and answered it: “What is man, that Thou dost take thought of him? And the son of man, that Thou dost care for him? Yet Thou hast made him a little lower than God, and dost crown him with glory and majesty” (Psa, 8:4-5). Solomon also expressed this truth when he said, “The conclusion, when all has been heard, {is:} fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14). Because God made us for His purpose and loved us enough to send His Son to die to redeem us from all iniquity, He teaches and persuades us, through the constraining power of the cross and the transforming power of His word, to become Christians (Acts 26:28; 2 Corinthians 5:11).
Reason number two is that Christ makes us better persons. “O To Be Like Thee” is an excellent hymn that expresses the desire and goal of every Christian concerning Christian development. To be a Christian is to follow Christ in doing the Father’s will. This includes becoming like Him in mind and life. Christianity has no equal in this respect: it makes us better persons because it furnishes the best incentives, inducements and motives to draw us upward to higher ground and shape us for eternal glory. Paul wrote: “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him who died for them, and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Read the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew Chapters 5-7 and you will see that the teaching of Jesus contains the truest scale of values and the finest ideals in the world. When understood, believed and fervently practiced, Christianity makes the best husband, father, wife, neighbor and citizen because it produces faith, virtue, kindness, knowledge, self-control, patience, godliness and love (Peter 1:5-8).
Reason number three is that it brings more joy, happiness and true pleasure than a life of sin. The truth is that it pays to serve Jesus, “it pays every step of the way.” This line from a Christian hymn echoes the truth Peter expressed: “For, Let him who means to love life and see good days refrain his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile. And let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears attend to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil” (1 Peter 3:1012). Don’t listen to Satan when he whispers in your ear that one must give up all pleasure to be a Christian. One never gives up lasting joy or any pleasure that is good for the life or soul to follow Christ. Sin enslaves, scars, stains, separates, destroys and damns. Its temporary pleasures, therefore, are to be avoided by wise people. The best life is a clean, pure, Christian life. Unrighteousness produces misery and sorrow now and eternally. Being a Christian is not only best for the individual Christian, but for his family, neighbors and the world. This, in turn, makes it possible to enjoy the happiness and pleasure of a better life, home and neighborhood and world.
Reason number four is that it meets all our spiritual needs: yesterday, today and forever. The love God expressed through Christ meets our needs produced by the sin we committed yesterday. Forgiveness of sin is the supreme human need. The peace and joy of this liberation is made possible through obedient faith in the blood Jesus shed on the cross for our sins, a faith inspired by the resurrection of Christ from the dead, which expresses itself in repentance and baptism for the remission of sins as Jesus commands (Mark 16:15-16; Romans 6:3-9; 1 Peter 1:3). There is “no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus,” their sins have been washed away and their guilt lifted from their hearts. They have peace of mind (Romans 8:1). Being a Christian also meets all our needs today (Philippians 4:19). A child in God’s family enjoys supreme security and supreme motivation. With sincere gratitude for mercies received, unwavering trust in His promises as the special objects of His special care and providence, consciousness of the indwelling Spirit as a child in God’s family, the Christian enjoys life’s most honored position and greatest opportunity. Being a Christian also meets our spiritual needs of tomorrow: because we have an appointment to keep with God someday, being a Christian is the best and only possible preparation for that day. We must all die and be judged (Acts 17:30-31; Romans 12:10-12; Hebrews 9:27). Being a Christian places one in position to be ready for the Day of Judgment, at the second coming of Christ.
These are but a few of the reasons for being a faithful child of God. If you are not a Christian we encourage you to become one in God’s way. The Monte Vista church teaches the complete word of God.