5 Essentials for How to Live a Good Christian Life

5 Essentials for How to Live a Good Christian Life

As Christians, we are called to pursue the righteousness of Christ. A life submitted to Christ is how to live a good Christian life, but its more than just going to church and trying to be “good”. A good Christian life is about having a relationship with God. An example of a perfect Christian life is only seen in Christ Himself. The Bible is full of ways to live a good Christian life. Let’s explore 5 essentials for how to live a good Christian life. 

5 Essentials for How to Live a Good Christian Life

This a general list, of course, and in absolutely no way is this an exhausted list of how to live a good Christian life. These 5 essentials are written to motivate us to live in way that honors God and that can help draw us closer to God.

A Good Christian Desires to Seek God Daily

When we are seeking how to live a good Christian life, it shows that we are desiring to live in a way pleasing to God. Seeking God daily can be through spiritual disciplines such as prayer and worship. Since Jesus lived THE utmost perfect example of how to live a good Christian life, we must put to action what we can learn from Christ. The Bible mentions in several verses about Jesus retreating to places by himself to pray to the Father. (Mark 6:46, Luke 5:16, Luke 6:12) Like Jesus, we should spend time in prayer daily. 

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Jeremiah 29:13, NIV

A Good Christian Maintains a Heart of Worship 

Through daily seeking God, it should cultivate in us a heart of worship for God. Seeking God leads to praise and thanksgiving in our heart. We were made to worship God! Psalm 150:6 says, “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.” Or look at what is stated in Psalm 95:6, “Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker”. The Lord Father is our Maker, praise God for His goodness and all that He had done and continues to do. Sincere worship means devotion and reverence towards the Lord.

 “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—

the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.”

Hebrews 13:15, NIV

A Good Christian Values the Bible 

Just like how we show reverence to God during praise, we should have a reverence for God’s Word. The Bible is our guide for life. Studying the Bible is important for our spiritual growth. It is more than just an ancient history book of books; it is the gospel of Christ! Scripture is the standard for our beliefs of God and how to live a good Christian life, through teaching, admonishing, correcting, and training in righteousness. God’s word must be valued as the authoritative that we must live by. A good Christian knows the Bible’s authority over our lives and the value of regular Bible study.

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

2 Timothy 3:14-17, ESV

A Good Christian Obeys the Commands of God

Prioritizing Bible study is a wonderful spiritual discipline, but if it we don’t do what it says then what value is that to us. Therefore, when we study the Bible, we should apply the scriptures to our life. If we have any area of our life that we intentionally know is disobeying God, then a good recommendation is to turn from our disobedience and find relevant scriptures that we can dwell on to prompt us to obey God’s commands. Be doers of word of God, for the Bible says that we will be blessed in what we do if we are obedient!

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.”

James 1:22-25, NIV

A Good Christian Shines the Gospel of Christ

Through obedience and drawing near to God, our life cannot help but shine the light of Christ Jesus our Lord. God’s people shine in this dark world. We are called to let our light shine before others, so that they may glorify our Father in heaven. Just like Jesus stated in Matthew 5:14-16:

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

We are all a part of the body of Christ and though one person may serve different from the next person, it is all the same God at work though us. A good Christian uses their spiritual gifting to shine their light to the world. We are to grow in spiritual disciplines and serve God with our talents and abilities, which can draw us near to God and can be an example to the other people in our lives as well.

 “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.”

1 Corinthians 12:4-6, NIV

Conclusion | How to Live a Good Christian Life

Although we continually strive to be a good Christian, we still are born into a fallen world. No matter how hard we focus on spiritual disciplines, we will still have times that we struggle and sin, but that why we cling to the wonderful power of the gospel. Jesus already paid the price for our sins—in Christ, we are made a new creation. God will never leave us or forsake us as long as we remain in Him. Seeking to grow closer to God will continually lead us to learn how to live a good Christian life!