@BigDogg
I believe this actually does potential followers a grave disservice by glossing over the real difficulties involved in living out this life, here on earth.
I wasn't writing a book above, only a post with limited scope.
It is important to me to point people as soon to the intimate relationship with the living Person of Christ. A believer never graduates from the simplicity that at each stage of the Christian life a single eye and undivided heart for the living Person of Christ is the critical thing.
Take for example, Paul's final written words in the NT,
2 Tim. 2:22 -
"The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you."
Like
"I wrote many, many things to you Timothy. Above all, never forget, the Lord Himself is with you. The Lord with you is grace to empower you and enable you to live this life."
I don't want to "gloss over" this now so I write a little more. Paul warned the Corinthians of losing the
simplicity and purity loving Jesus, above all. At that as a virgin wife presented to Him as a dear loving Husband.
"For I am jealous over you with a jealousy of God; for I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I fear lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your thoughts would be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity toward Christ." ( 2 Cor. 11:2,3)
It is prevailing to keep that love affair vibrant by telling the Lord Jesus often that you just love Him. You just love Him for Himself. You just receive the living Spirit of Christ into your spirit and never be distracted from the fact that the Lord is actually with your spirit.
I noticed that you, too, are completely dismissive of advice aimed only at this earthly life. You want your supernatural Jesus and your heaven, or else it "doesn't matter".
I did not mention heaven I don't think.
And I was not trying to be too long but to the point.
In this post I have added something about loving the Lord and often telling Him so. Loving Him keeps the simplicity and purity of Christ being central in your life and vibrant. When tempted by sin, how effective it is to just call on His name to touch Him and tell Him -
"Lord Jesus. I love You. Lord Jesus thankyou you are with my spirit. Lord Jesus I love You Lord."
We draw near to Him and He draws near to us.
We are strengthened into the inner man, our regenerated spirit where the Spirit of Christ comes to unite with us.
The empowering grace to live flows from the Person being with us, within us who ask Him to come into us.
"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit." (Phil. 4:23)
So I need to turn to my spirit where the Spirit of Jesus is.
"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen." ( Gal. 6:18)
We have to declare
Lord Jesus, You are living in me. Lord Jesus You are my grace, my strength, my wisdom, my everything. Lord thankyou You are with my spirit."
The simplicity with which the believer initially RECEIVES Christ she should continue to WALK in all the days of her Christian life. Like Paul wrote the Colossians -
"As therefore you have received the Christ, Jesus the Lord, walk in Him." (Col. 2:6) If we continue as the pure virgins in love with Him initially, to WALK step by step trusting and loving Him we will do well.
He can be everything we need. If we need endurance we take Christ as our endurance. If we need love for the brothers and sisters in Christ we take Christ as our love. If we need patience we can take Christ HIMSELF as our patience. Whatever we need we take Christ Himself as that matter. We can trust Him to be everything FOR us.
In so doing, you have ironically missed the importance of many of Jesus' own teachings aimed directly at this life, here on earth.
Somehow I think you assumed I was only concerned with the next life or the next age. No, I am speaking to receiving Christ and continuing here to walk in Him.
And there is much, much more to say. One also needs companions in the faith. This Christian life God seems to have tailored to give us the incentive to companion up with fellow believers. Two or three coming together in His name with Him as the center increases that indwelling grace.
That is because it fulfills HIS purpose to build us up with others for His mystical Body. Do you have a few others you come together with for mutual encouragement and praying with one another?