Does Jesus Give Us A Better Life?

One more than one occasion, I have heard Andy Stanley say to people to trust in Jesus and He will give you a better life. While that sounds sweet and lovely, we really have to ask ourselves, does Jesus give us a better life? Where in the Bible do we see this?

To begin answering these questions we need to examine the Scripture. What did Jesus promise His followers? First, we will have difficulty in this world. Jesus said, "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world (John 16:33). Jesus's half-brother, James, said, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness" (James 1:2-3). We see in these two passages that we will have trouble in this life yet we have the assurance that Christ will be with us always, "I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).

If you look through the New Testament, the followers of Jesus did not have an easy life. They were arrested and even put to death. If you examine church history, many followers of Jesus did not have an easy life as well. Charles Spurgeon was known for struggling with depression yet he still rested in the hope of Christ and showed people the love of Jesus through the preaching of the gospel.

Believers today are facing difficulty. Some are now in jail for their faith while others were executed. Some just face tribulations in their day-to-day living. I have a friend who have been handicapped for all of his life say he has had more difficulty as a Christ-follower than he did as a lost person yet he still rests in Christ as Jesus has a hold of him. The prosperity gospel promises financial wealth which really only delivers it to those who are preaching it.

Does Jesus give us a better life? Does this mean all our problems go away when we become a Christian? I wished, but Jesus never promised that. He did promise that we would have eternal life in Him (John 3:16). God promised us those suffering in temptation will have a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Saying, "Jesus will give you a better life" is a little misleading and sounds like prosperity gospelish. I think a better wording would be, "Jesus will give us a better perspective on life." Jesus never promised an easy life, but He did promise to be with us till the end.