Of course the most important questions are those that help move us, by the power of the Holy Spirit, from being an unbeliever to being a believer. A better life now is just more judgment on the horrific eternity of those outside of Christ. There are, however, three important questions that, if we remember to ask them and if we answer them honestly, will have a profound impact on believers’ lives in the here and now. They’re not complicated questions, though neither Wikipedia nor Google nor ChatGPT will be of any use in answering them.
First, what am I due? An honest answer to that question might seem, at first blush, to be conducive to greater misery than to greater joy. The correct answer to the question, given our sinful nature, is the eternal wrath of the living God. I deserve eternity in a lake of fire, and worse. The depth of the evil of my sin is incalculable. The holiness of the one against Whom I sin is immeasurable. How could an honest, albeit necessarily shallow assessment of this question help me? Because no matter how difficult things might be, whatever sorrows I might bear, no matter how deep the pain from the thorn in my side, it is still well short of what I am due. One thing I need not fret over is that I am getting a bad deal, that God is somehow cheating me.
Second, what have I been given? The second question flows naturally from the first and reinforces the positive merits of the first. That is, not only are things not anywhere near as bad as what I deserve, but I enjoy all manner of blessings that I don’t deserve. I may be hated by the world, but my dear wife loves me. I may be underemployed, but I still enjoy my daily bread. This is not some kind of self-induced mind trick. It is rather coming to embrace the truth. My grumbling and complaining is the mind trick. Going back to the depth of my sin, I’m such a sinner that I tend to believe I deserve better than what I’ve been given. This despite the fact that the best thing I’ve been given is the sure answer to my one problem- what I am due. That is, the only real danger I’ve ever faced is the wrath of the Father. But He has united me with His Son such that all my sins are punished in Him and all His righteousness has been given to me. From that I’ve been given the joy of being adopted into the very family of God.
Third, what have I been promised? Only that every trouble that weighs me down will soon fall by the wayside. Soon I will see Him as He is, and become like Him. Only that the blessings will be so unalloyed, so incomprehensible that eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the mind of man what He has planned for me. In more contemporary parlance, my future’s so bright I gotta wear shades.
The more I enter into the glorious answers of these three questions the more I enter into the fullness of the third answer. That is how I enjoy a better life, through gratitude and faith.
If you’d like me to address any questions you might have, about theology, philosophy, apologetics, Steeler trivia or just about anything, feel free to send your question to hellorcjr@gmail.com . I’d be happy to take a swing at it.