Have Life and Have it More Abundantly
- Jack Selcher
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
Healthy relationships supply less stress, better healing, healthier behaviors, a greater sense of purpose, and a longer life.1 All five reflect in the human sphere the benefits of a healthy relationship with God.
Trusting that God is in control is a stress relief valve. God is described as “Sovereign LORD” 285 times in the Bible (NLT). “But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do” (Psalm 73:28 NLT). If God is in control, why worry?
God heals. “I am the LORD who heals you” (Exodus 15:26 NLT). Dr. Jesus, who was God in human flesh, demonstrated God’s concern for healing. “And he healed every kind of disease and illness” (Matthew 4:23 NLT).
Living life God’s way is far better for us than doing it our way. “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21 NLT). Many of these sins describe the self-centered eruptions that occur within toxic, destructive relationships.
God’s way is healthy: “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23 NLT). These nine traits describe the safe, winsome kind of behavior we desire from others in their relationships with us.
Those with a healthy relationship with God have a purpose bigger than self-promotion. Jesus’s purpose is to give us a rich and satisfying life (John 10:10). Yet, that life isn’t about us. It is about advancing God’s Kingdom on earth (Matthew 6:33) and becoming like Jesus (Romans 8:29). The latter is the best destiny an all-wise God could plan for us.
God gives us significant things to do. We have specific assignments within His master plan. “ For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT).
Christianity is good for our longevity. Religious people live about four years longer on average than nonreligious people.2
Concerning a long life, how does eternal life sound? “Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” (John 11:25-26 NLT). Jesus is the only distributor of eternal life.
As a young Christian, I thought of my faith in terms of things I should and shouldn’t do. Not until seminary did I understand that the essence of the Christian faith isn’t do’s and don’ts, but healthy relationships with God and other people.
A healthy relationship with God is good for us. We can have life and have it more abundantly. What does a healthy relationship with God look like?
A healthy relationship with God is Jesus-centered, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and glorifying to our Heavenly Father. To produce much spiritual fruit, as a branch remains in a grapevine, we must nurture a vital connection with Jesus, and He and His words must remain in us (John 15:5, 7).
As we maintain a vital connection with Jesus, and His life flows through us, we produce much lasting fruit, and the Father is glorified (John 15:8).
Loving other Christians is part of this lasting fruit (John 15:17). Because we constantly need a love boost from God, the Holy Spirit fills and empowers us to love and otherwise live like Jesus (Galatians 5:22-23). Spiritual fruit (preeminently Jesus-like, self-sacrificing love) demonstrates that our relationship with God is healthy. #freediscipleshipresources #freeevangelismresources #freechristianleadershipresources
See free spiritual growth resources for Christians at https://www.christiangrowthresources.com
God has empowered me to write “His Power for Your Weakness—260 Steps Toward Spiritual Strength.” It’s a free, evangelistic, devotional, and discipleship eBook. Pastors have used it in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia to lead 7,010 people to Christ and teach the basics of Christianity to 16,725 people. I invite you to explore it.