Why Bother with Christianity?

“…For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Mat. 5:45). I was once asked by someone why he should bother with Christianity since the same things happen to both Christians and non-Christians. That was a genuinely honest question the young man asked, and, to be honest, one that I had struggled with on my path to Christianity. I will also say with relatively high confidence that even Christians wrestle with that question from time to time. Let’s face it, when you see the faithful struggle to make ends meet or suffer some debilitating disease, and then see the unfaithful prosper financially and live relatively unscathed lives, it does make you wonder.

Of course, the young man was correct in his assumption: Christians lose jobs, struggle to pay bills, put food on the table for their loved ones, become homeless, get life-threatening diseases like cancer, and suffer injustices just like any unbeliever. The fact is, nowhere in scripture are we promised an easy life after baptism. We witness that fact in Joh. 15:18-20, which states, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you…

And that is not the only place where we see the idea of believers being persecuted: “In the world you will have tribulation” (Joh. 16:33). Clearly, the idea that putting on Christ in baptism somehow guarantees a life free of trials and tribulations is never found in the Bible. Of course, this raises the question, “If the Christian life isn’t a shortcut to ease and success, then why bother? What makes it worth it? What is the point if you escape nothing that a non-believer experiences?” Unfortunately, when viewed through the lens of suffering versus escape, the purpose of it is lost. Let me explain: the answer isn’t found in what you get out of Christianity, but who you get.

Christianity isn’t a self-help strategy. It’s an intensely personal relationship with our Lord and Savior. It’s waking up each day with the presence of the living God by your side. It’s being fully known and deeply loved despite our many flaws. It’s walking through this broken world hand-in-hand with the One who created it and who promises to make all things new, not make all things go away. The truth is that the benefits of Christianity aren’t always loud or flashy. They’re often subtle but profoundly deep. A peace that steadies you when the storm is raging. A hope that clings on even when the diagnosis is grim. A purpose that lifts your eyes higher than the daily grind. Those aren’t small things—they’re everything.

But beyond that, there’s this truth: Christianity isn’t mainly about this life. That’s a difficult reality to accept in a culture that wants results now. But Scripture states it plainly: “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1Cor. 15:19). Paul didn’t follow Jesus because it made life easier; he followed Him because He rose from the dead. And that changes everything because if Jesus truly walked out of that tomb, then death isn’t the end. Suffering doesn’t get the last word. Justice will be served. Tears will be wiped away, and every sacrifice, every unseen act of faithfulness, every lonely decision to choose Christ over comfort, will all be worth it.

The words, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom. 8:18 are empty words. They are a promise from someone who endured much and persevered. I’ve seen this played out in real lives. I’ve stood at hospital bedsides where families grieved, but not as if there was no hope. I’ve seen joy on faces where the world would expect bitterness. I’ve watched people let go of everything the world said mattered and cling to Christ, knowing they had a future inheritance.

So maybe the better question is: what’s the point of life without Christ? Because without Him, pain serves no purpose. Death has no remedy. Guilt has no answer. The future has no stability. And the joys we find? They fade, pass, and leave us chasing after the next thing. But with Christ, there’s hope—something eternal. So yes, life still hits hard. Christians cry too, but we cry with someone beside us. We walk through the fire with Someone who’s been through worse. And we know that every valley, every battle, every loss is strengthening our resolve, our faith, and our hope.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light, momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison (2Co. 4:16-17). We are not Christians to escape the trials and tribulations of life; we are Christians because we have hope beyond this life, despite the challenges. James perfectly describes our attitude toward them in Jam 1:2-4: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”