The Bottom Line, Ministries Christian News, Articles, & Poetry 
I am so glad that I am a Christian, but there are many ideas that people have about what constitutes being a Christian, so it first needs to be defined. It is not going to church, praying, or even reading the Bible. It is not adhering to some religious dogma or practice. Being a Christian is admitting that one is a sinner in need of God’s grace. Then it is believing on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ as the only way to salvation. This includes accepting that Jesus, God’s son in human flesh, died on a cross for one’s sin, and bodily rose from the dead. Christianity is not simply a religion, but it is a relationship with the living God, who is the creator, the sustainer, the redeemer, and the only savior. With this said, here are eight reasons why I am so glad to be a Christian.
1. I have a hope and a peace in the midst of the current world conditions. In First Peter 1:3-4 it is recorded, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope…to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven…” Philippians 4:7 tells me that I have “the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension…” and in John 14:27 Jesus is quoted, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you, not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, not let it be fearful.”
2. I can make sense out of what is going on in the world. Romans 1:18-28 provides the answer. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness…Therefore, God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts…For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator…For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions…And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind…”
3. I have a source of inspired truth from the Creator himself. The Bible is a historical record combined with prophecy, some of which was foretold 2,500 years ago, but which is being fulfilled to the exact detail in the present day. II Peter 1:20-21 says, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” II Timothy 3:16 builds upon this. “All scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and training in righteousness”
4. I know the final outcome of history. Christ will eventually reign upon the earth for 1,000 years (Rev. 20:4). Satan will be overthrown and defeated once and for all time (Rev. 20:10). There will a new heaven and a new earth (Rev. 21:1).
5. I know God is in control. Colossians 1:16-17 affirms this. “For by him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created by him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” The reader can also reference Psalm 2:2-5, Psalm 53:2, Isaiah 40:22, and Isaiah 66:1.
6. I am saved by grace. I am so glad I don’t have to try to earn my way to heaven. I fall far short of the righteousness of God necessary to enter, but I am declared righteous by God when I accept his grace. Galatians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not as a result of works, that no one should boast.”
7. I have assurance of eternal salvation in heaven. I can stake my claim based on I John 5:11-13. “And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his son. He who has the son has the life; he who does not have the son does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.”
Which of these seven things do you believe are the most important to you personally?
