by-products

i wanted to highlight an extract from today's TGIF devotional, but since it needs some context, i've reproduced it wholesale.

I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:10-11 - Acts 21:11-12

Paul understood his personal mission, which should be the personal mission of every believer in Jesus Christ. It is the one summary statement that best describes the purpose of our existence on earth and the goal of our Christian experience. It can be reduced to three important characteristics.

To know Christ.

To know and experience His power.

To identify with His sufferings.

All that flows from these three objectives becomes a by-product. Salvation is a by-product. Miracles are a by-product. Christlikeness is a by-product. Paul's focus was on relationship. He understood that the deeper the relationship, the more power he would experience. He also understood that as he grew in this relationship, there would be suffering. Whenever the Kingdom of Light confronts the kingdom of darkness, there is a battle, and this often results in casualties. Christ confronted these earthly kingdoms and suffered for it. If we are living at this level of obedience, we, too, will face similar battles; it simply comes with the territory.

Does this sound like your personal mission statement? Is your focus in life centered on knowing Christ and the power of His resurrection? If not, press into Him today in order to begin experiencing Christ more intimately.

i think that to say that salvation and miracles aka blessings are the by-product and not the be all and end all of christianity is quite radical because i often come across christians in their zealousness no less, who hinge their entire faith on salvation or the lack of. subsequently their concerns becomes engulfed by the "mechanics" of salvation and measures to ensure its surety.

while salvation is an important aspect of christianity, i feel that it is also the aspect we shouldn't obsesses about. if we lead our christian lives for the sole purpose of obtaining salvation and are constantly checking our "score sheet" for admittance then we'll be missing the point of the relationship with Christ. why bother knowing Christ if we can simply play by the rules to attain salvation? this also implies that i'm not a fan of the hell and brimstone theology where essentially heaven is offered as the lesser evil to hell.

i suppose for some its an added incentive to embrace the faith. but for me the relationship with God is the cornerstone of my faith and meeting the maker at the of it is simply having the faith that the friend/brother/father/someone you've grown to know and trust will fulfill the appointment with you at the end of the day.