You are right to reject a religion that's a list of dos and don'ts, or a gathering of dour-faced, self-righteous Bible thumpers. Jesus would reject it too. Anything Jesus is involved in is vibrant, liberating, compassionate, powerful and supernatural.
People dismiss Christianity on the basis of an outsider's glance,
like a little boy certain he will always hate being kissed. Knowing
Jesus is more wonderful than the uninitiated could dream.
All yearning is a yearning for Jesus, discovered someone enjoying the ultimate adventure. The love, excitement, challenge, fulfilment and understanding we crave are found in the One who made us.
Jesus likened the Christian spiritual experience to buried treasure. Millions walk passed it, never suspecting the wonders that lie below the surface. Anyone who makes the discovery, however, would eagerly trade for it everything they had previously treasured, like trading trinkets for truckloads of diamonds.
To attempt description of the benefits of spiritual union with Jesus sounds as hollow and self-centred as listing receiving a gold ring as a benefit of marrying the most wonderful person. It's like dissecting the most exquisite, priceless flower and offering the individual parts to the highest bidder. Moreover, it sounds like hype - just too good to be believable. This is to be expected. We were made to enjoy the God who made us, so it is hardly surprising that a relationship with him will fulfil our deepest longing. Nevertheless, it still sounds too good to be true.
Here's a few of the consequences of being united to the One we were made for:
The excitement of living life on the edge,
as God takes you beyond what you are humanly capable of.
Divine power to love the unlovable, to break
destructive habits, to resist peer pressure and to control such
weaknesses as temper, greed, and selfishness.
Being on the winning side - the obvious
consequence of having in your life the God of infinite power
and infinite wisdom.
The ultimate security of knowing you are
forever loved and that nothing - not even death - can rob you
of its endless joys.
The knowledge that you are of the greatest
importance to the most important Person in the universe.
Having as your best friend the Person who
not only sympathises but knows your every weakness and triumph,
your every thought, your every experience since the moment of
your conception, your darkest secret, your fondest dream, and
is committed to you with unswerving devotion.
A life that is highly demanding and challenging,
with the greatest power in existence willing you and empowering
you to achieve.
A brand new start in life.
The thrill of knowing you can now achieve
things of eternal significance.
Involvement in the greatest conceivable
good. Reaching your highest potential. Finding and fulfilling
your reason for being born. Living life to the full.
Entry into the spiritual dimension. Supernatural
dreams, visions, miracles, angelic visitations and other amazing
spiritual experiences are possibilities.
Being at peace with God. No longer running
from reality.
The lifelong opportunity to love and thank
the Giver of every good and beautiful thing everyone has ever
enjoyed.
The freedom to look in the mirror and know
that no matter what your past, you are now pure in the eyes of
the holy God.
Knowing that God is working within you and
in your circumstances to make you more and more like Jesus.
Answers to prayer.
Joy and peace and fulfilment, each of which
are so far beyond what anything else offers that it defies description.
Deliverance from the endless torment of
hell.
Not even all God's incomparable gifts, however,
reach the ecstasy of enjoying and knowing intimately the most
exciting Person in the universe. He is so special that falling
in love with God is the inevitable consequence of truly knowing
him.
8. Science has crippled Christianity
9. Pleasant near-death experiences of non-Christians disprove Christianity
10. A God of love wouldn't send me to hell
11. I don't need God