PLEASURE SEEKER
Psa. 16:11 ¶ You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
True religion has a way of sneaking up on you. What do I mean? You see the average person would never see spiritual things as the pursuit of pleasure. Most people would think that religion is the denial of pleasure. Actually it is exactly the opposite. The spiritual man can enjoy the natural pleasures of this world within their proper boundaries, he also has another whole source of pleasure seeking. Actually, the greatest of all pleasures is found in knowing and enjoying Jesus Christ. He is the highest form of pleasure, everything else falls miserably short. Jonathan Edwards believed that the pleasures of God would overcome in our lives by replacing the excessive carnal pleasures of this world. Here are some of his own words about the pleasures found in religion. He said we must fight fire with fire.
“then, we come with double forces against the wicked, to persuade them to a godly life. The most common argument that is used to urge men to godliness is the pleasures of the life to come; but this has not its effect for the sinner [who] is in pursuit of the pleasures of this life. Now, therefore, we urge to you the pleasures of this [life]: therefore you can have nothing to say. The common argument is the profitableness of religion, but alas, the wicked man is not in pursuit of profit; ’tis pleasure he seeks. Now, then, we will fight with them with their own weapons, {for religion does not deny us outward delights and pleasures}. If it be so, that ’tis worth the while to be religious if it were only for the pleasantness of it, then how exceeding great is the reward of the godly. What a reward have they in the world to come; what joys {in another life}. But yet this is not all; no, they have a reward in this life.”
Really this is quite shocking. How many people avoid Christianity because of their perception of losing out on all the fun? It is actually in Christ where the shame and burden of sin falls off and we begin to enter into the real pleasures of this life and the life to come. Try it out for yourself, it is much better than you think.