you join the greatest group on earth. As a faithful member of Christ’s church, you can expect to enjoy several of the benefits other Christians have discovered. Let me describe some of them.

I can’t promise you’ll never die, of course, or even that you’ll not die today. That’s not in my power. But what I can tell you is that, according to statistical evidence, church members live longer than non-church members. One study found a 5.7 year difference in life expectancy between members and non-members. That’s significant.

Other studies prove that active participants in church are healthier than nonparticipants. The Christian lifestyle encourages healthful habits and attitudes. If you develop a Christlike outlook, and as you treat others with real Christian love, poisonous emotions will not be able to have their health-destroying way with you.

This is a rather dangerous promise to make, but it’s based on a lifetime of observations. If you take the Christian faith seriously, seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (see Matthew 6:24-33), you can expect to live better materially than you would otherwise.

One reason is that you will become a better manger of the possessions God had given you. Another reason is that your priorities will change. You’ll probably spend less for entertainment, for example, because you won’t feel the need to pursue what the world calls a "good time." You’ll be having a good time with Christian friends. You’ll probably give up some costly habits that drain money away and give nothing in return.

If you tithe, you’ll find what other tithers have found: your nine-tenths will now go farther with God’s blessing than your ten-tenths used to go when you were keeping the entire amount for yourself.

One of my favorite songs is, "I Am Happy in the Service of the King." You will be, too. A dominant note of the New Testament is JOY:

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete" ( the words of Jesus in John 15:11).

"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17).

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice" (Philippians 4:4).

Christians speak of the joy of their salvation, which is rooted in the security they feel in the Lord. They can laugh more because they know that they are at peace with God and they want to be at peace with one another. They are joyful because they do not have to worry about tomorrow, or even about today. They trust God to work for good in everything that happens (Romans 8:28).

We talk a lot about love, agreeing that "what the world needs now is love, sweet love," but talk is cheap and love is expensive. So we talk about love more than we love. And we’ve made a feeling out of love. If you feel good, that’s love. And sometimes that’s bad.

If God is love, than love has to be more than feeling. And if "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son," then love is an act, it is wanting and doing the best for the one you love.

Jesus summarized the entire Old Testament law with love: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind....Love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:37 & 39).

We’ll spend the rest of our lives studying and trying to apply the full meaning of love, God’s love for us and our love for Him and for one another. In a world that mostly just talks about love, you’ll put that talk into action.

You may be a bit embarrassed because you know so little about the Bible. Don’t feel alone. All of us feel that we have only begun to fathom the depths of Biblical knowledge. But we agree with a famous Christian author, C.S. Lewis, who said that it doesn’t take much of an education in itself. We spend the rest of our Christian lives learning more and more about Jesus, and about ourselves.

You’ll want to take advantage of every opportunity to study the Bible. Don’t be discouraged if it seems too hard at first. Some parts are hard; in fact, even scholars who have given their lives to Biblical study debate the meaning of some passages. So don’t condemn yourself if you stumble over some parts of the Bible.

Begin in the New Testament, with one of the Gospels. I suggest Mark, because it is the oldest and the shortest. It will give you a good introduction to the most important moments in Christ’s life. Then you can move on to John, another treatment of the life of Jesus from a different perspective. Then read Acts, to learn of the beginnings of the church. The letters are a little different. I recommend Philippians as the first one, because of its simplicity. Then you can move on to the other letters, preferably in a study with others.

It is not good enough to read the Bible on your own. You do want to do that, of course, but you need the assistance of a qualified teacher, and fellow students to get the rich, full meaning of the Scriptures. In other words, if you are in earnest about your Christian life, you’ll learn daily.

The church is no hangout for loafers. There is too much work to be done for the Lord. Everywhere you turn you will see jobs that are begging for workers. The whole world is in jeopardy; lives are being lost. A contented Christian is almost a contradiction in terms. While we are "happy in the service of the King," we are not happy with conditions on earth and we want to do something about them.

So church members are usually busy people. Sometimes we overextend ourselves and need to be reminded that a "dedicated no" is as important as a "dedicated yes," but we would rather run the risk of over involvement than court the dangers of uninvolvement. Christ sent His followers out two by two to preach, heal, and help. At the close of His earthly ministry He commissioned all His disciples to go into all the world to make disciples. Throughout the ages since, Christians have been famous for their preaching, teaching, healing, and helping ministries.

There’s no doubt about it. You’ll work harder. But as a result...

Not fatter, you understand, but bigger. Some people just grow older; Christians grow better. They grow wiser, more mature, more peaceful, more influential, more at home with God and fellow Christians, more determined to right the world’s wrongs and live according to the highest possible standard, more compassionate, and more adventurous in faith.

The goal of the church is

Christ - the biggest person of all time - is our model. To grow like Him is to grow bigger.

"Families that pray together stay together" is a timeworn slogan, but a true one. In modern society families are under extreme stress. Without a spiritual bond to hold them together, many are being wrenched apart.

But Christian marriages are resisting the pressures. While there are unfortunately some failures, statistics still indicate that church families have a far greater chance of succeeding than do those marriages and families that have no church membership.

There are many reasons for the success of Christian homes: higher moral standards, more emphasis upon love and giving than upon selfishness and getting, shared family activities in the church, a wider circle of supportive friends, the abiding help of the Spirit of Christ, an atmosphere of acceptance, and a hopeful future.

Christians look forward to the future because they have nothing to fear in it. They believe that the God who created the heavens and the earth is one day going to wrap up this earthly existence. They believe that as God once sent His Son to rescue dying humanity, He will again send Him to draw His own to Himself. No matter what tomorrow holds - nuclear holocaust, floods, freezing, famine, whatever - God will take care of His own. He is God of today and tomorrow, of life on this earth and life beyond. Anxiety about tomorrow is not part of the Christian program. Their future is secure.