GETTING BEYOND FELT-NEED FAITH
By John Fanella

Jonathan Edwards, in his Treatise on Religious Affections, said, “The primary ground of gracious affections is the transcendentally excellent and amiable nature of divine things as they are in themselves; and not any conceived relation they bear to self, or self-interest.” This is perhaps the most important sentence ever penned by a man outside of the Holy Scriptures. Its modern-day equivalent might be, “The most important thing in the Christian life is recognizing the holiness, perfection, and worth of God regardless of what you think He can or should do for you.”

Much of the Christian church has fallen into an idolatrous reversal of this statement. God is now seen as worthy largely in relation to what he can do for us. Our preaching, our singing, our evangelism, and our prayer often focus on us rather than on God. We may not say that we are the center of our Christian experience, but when our worship becomes an extended “thank you for all of your many blessing to us,” we are guilty of idolatry. God is worthy and deserving of our praise in Himself, regardless of what blessings we perceive He has given us.

The primary statement of a Christian is “praise him” not “thank you.” Because even when we do not see any reason to thank God, He still deserves our praise. Even if God were to allow the worst of all tragedies, He still deserves our praise. Even if God chose not to save us, He would still deserve our praise. True gratitude, therefore, flows out of the worthiness of God. God deserves our whole-hearted praise and gratitude just because of who He is—nothing more.

If a person comes to God for any other reason (such as thinking that God will make their life better or easier), it is simply an act of self-love. A person’s conversion, if done out of self-love, could actually be the most vile sin he has ever committed. If God is viewed as worthy of our devotion only in relation to what he can do for us, we have made ourselves to be god.

This does not, I trust, belittle the very real problem of human pain. People are hurting, suffering, and living lives that could be so much better if they lived in covenant relationship with God. However, their pain, suffering, and even their sin are not where the Christian message begins. The Christian message, like the Bible itself, begins with the person of God. The Bible begins with God and not man – “In the beginning God…” He is infinitely worthy even if he does absolutely nothing about my difficult life. Indeed, He is infinitely worthy even if I choose to scorn His worth by rejecting Him. In my condemnation, others will behold the fact that He is so holy that he cannot tolerate rebels.

When we come to recognize the absolute worth and moral beauty of God in Himself, we then have the right motive to receive the gift of salvation. We humbly place our faith in Jesus Christ because God deserves my devotion and my discipleship. Our motive in salvation cannot be to get all we can from God. Even if God chose not to give us any physical or spiritual gifts, he would still be worthy of our devotion and discipleship.

What is your motive for serving and worshipping Almighty God? Is it all about you and what God can do for you, in keeping with the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel so prevalent in the church today? God wants you pursue Him in his glory in and of Himself. He is our pursuit; He is our delight; He is the beauty of our soul’s gaze. He is the one that saints and angels adore.