(AND WHY YOU SHOULDN’T SETTLE FOR LESS)

We’re surviving, but are we thriving? If we’re honest, there’s a gap between what we expected when we became Christian and what we actually experience, day-to-day. We go through the motions—church on Sunday, maybe a quick prayer before meals, reading a devotional when we remember—but something feels missing. Jesus promised abundant life, yet ours often feels more like spiritual survival mode. What gives?

 

WHAT ABUNDANT LIFE IS NOT

Before we explore what we might be missing, let’s clear up some dangerous misconceptions that have hijacked this beautiful doctrine.

• Abundant life isn’t the prosperity gospel’s promise of material wealth. Jesus isn’t a cosmic vending machine dispensing bigger houses and better jobs to those who pray hard enough.
• It’s not constant emotional highs or perpetual happiness—the Bible never promises uninterrupted good feelings.
• It’s certainly not exemption from suffering or trials; even Jesus wept and anguished.
• And it’s not works-based spiritual performance, where our abundance depends on how well we’re “doing” Christianity.

When Jesus declared in John 10:10, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly,” He wasn’t talking about external upgrades to our circumstances. True abundance flows from our union with Christ, not from what surrounds us.

 

WHAT ABUNDANT LIFE ACTUALLY IS

The Reformed tradition helps us understand abundant life through three essential elements that transform everything:

Spiritual Vitality Through Union with Christ: This is the heartbeat of abundant life: a living, dynamic connection to the source of all life. Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5), but the flip side is equally true—connected to Him, you can do all things through His strength. This isn’t about trying harder to be spiritual; it’s about drawing life from the inexhaustible well of Christ Himself.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism teaches our chief end is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” Notice that word—enjoy. When we’re truly connected to Christ, glorifying God becomes our greatest joy, not our heaviest burden.

Purpose-Driven Existence: Abundant life means our existence has eternal significance beyond mere survival. Every ordinary moment—changing diapers, crunching spreadsheets, sitting in traffic—becomes infused with kingdom purpose when seen through the lens of our calling.

Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:10 “we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” The Reformed understanding of vocation teaches our work isn’t just a career; it’s a calling. Whether we’re teaching third-graders or running a corporation, we’re co-labourers with God in His ongoing work of redemption and restoration.

Deep, Unshakeable Peace: The abundant life includes a peace that “surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7)—not because our circumstances are perfect, but because our security rests in God’s sovereign grace. The Reformed doctrine of the perseverance of saints means nothing can separate us from God’s love or snatch us from His hand. This isn’t positive thinking; it’s theology that transforms anxiety into rest. Deep, unshakeable rest.

 

WHAT WE’RE MISSING WITHOUT IT

The cost of settling for spiritual mediocrity is higher than we might realise.

Spiritual Anaemia: Without abundant life, we experience spiritual anaemia—going through religious motions without spiritual vitality. Prayer feels like talking to the ceiling. Scripture reading becomes a duty rather than a delight. We miss out on what Jesus called “springs of living water” (John 7:38-39)—that internal fountain of spiritual refreshment that bubbles up even in dry seasons.

Purposeless Drift: Life feels random, disconnected from eternal significance. We’re stuck in survival mode when God designed us for kingdom impact. Instead of sensing God’s pleasure in our daily work, we compartmentalise our faith into Sunday morning boxes. We miss the profound joy of knowing that our life—yes, our ordinary, sometimes mundane life—matters deeply to God and His purposes in the world.

Anxiety-Driven Living: Without the deep peace that comes from trusting God’s sovereignty, we live in constant worry about circumstances beyond our control. We develop coping mechanisms instead of experiencing true rest. Every trial becomes a crisis instead of an opportunity to experience God’s sustaining grace.

Let’s ask ourselves these diagnostic questions: Does our faith energise or exhaust us? Do we sense God’s pleasure in our daily work? When trials come, do we have deep peace or just coping mechanisms?

 

HOW TO ENTER ABUNDANT LIFE

Abundant life isn’t achieved through a formula—it’s received through relationship. Here’s how:

Genuine Conversion

We must be “born again” to see and enter God’s kingdom (John 3:3-5). Paul declares anyone in Christ is “a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). The Reformed understanding emphasises this regeneration precedes faith—God must first give us a new heart capable of truly receiving Christ. If we’ve never experienced this spiritual rebirth, that’s we begin. It’s our starting point.

Daily Union with Christ

Jesus commands us to “abide in the vine” (John 15:4-5). This happens through consistent use of the means of grace: regular engagement with God’s Word, prayer, Christian fellowship, and the sacraments. This isn’t legalistic ritual; it’s how we maintain our life-giving connection to Christ. Each day, we die to self and live to Christ, finding our identity and strength in Him rather than in our circumstances or performance.

Embracing Our Calling

We seek to discover how God wants to use us in His kingdom. Paul urges us to present ourselves as “living sacrifices” with “transformed minds” (Romans 12:1-2). The Reformed tradition teaches us all of life is worship and service. Our abundant life unfolds as we embrace our unique role in God’s grand story of redemption.

 

OUR INHERITANCE AWAITS

Jesus didn’t die to give us a mediocre existence. The abundant life isn’t a luxury reserved for super-Christians—it’s our inheritance as a child of God. The question isn’t whether God wants to give it to us, but whether we’re ready to receive it.

Friend, stop settling for spiritual survival when overflow awaits. Our empty can become overflow, our anxiety can transform into peace, and our purposeless drift can become kingdom impact. The abundant life Jesus promised isn’t just possible—it’s what He died to give us. What will you do with this truth today?

 

THE ABUNDANT LIFE JESUS PROMISED: RELATED FAQs

“I’m drowning in financial debt and family crisis. How can I think about ‘abundant life’ when I’m just trying to survive?” Scripture teaches us abundant life isn’t exemption from trials but Christ’s presence through them. Even in survival mode, we can experience the peace that “surpasses understanding” (Philippians 4:7) by trusting God’s sovereignty over our circumstances. The Puritans often found their deepest spiritual abundance during their greatest earthly struggles, discovering Christ becomes more precious when everything else fails. Our current crisis may actually be the doorway to experiencing God’s sufficiency in ways prosperity never could.

• “I’m trapped in addiction and besetting sin. I keep failing. How can someone like me have abundant life?” The Reformed understanding of sanctification teaches us victory over sin is progressive, not instantaneous, and depends on Christ’s power, not our willpower. John Owen, the Puritan theologian, taught we must “kill sin or it will kill you”—but always through the Spirit’s power, never through self-effort alone. Our repeated failures don’t disqualify us from abundant life; they drive us deeper into dependence on Christ, where true freedom is found. Consider joining a gospel-centred recovery community where you can experience both accountability and grace.
• “I just lost my spouse/parent/child. How dare you talk about abundant life when my heart is shattered?” The Bible never minimises grief—Jesus Himself wept at Lazarus’s tomb even knowing He would raise him. The abundant life includes the freedom to grieve deeply while simultaneously being held by sovereign love. Our sorrow doesn’t negate God’s goodness; it reveals the depth of love He created us for, which will be perfectly fulfilled in eternity. The Puritan Richard Baxter, who lost his beloved wife, wrote grief can become a pathway to experiencing God’s comfort in ways joy never could. Abundant life doesn’t mean the absence of tears, but the presence of hope even in sorrow.

“I’m desperately lonely and long for marriage, but I’m still single. How is this abundant life?” The Reformed tradition teaches that singleness isn’t God’s consolation prize but can be a unique calling for kingdom service (1 Corinthians 7:7-8). Your longing for companionship reflects the image of God in you—we were created for relationship—but ultimate fulfillment comes through union with Christ, not human marriage. Many Reformed saints like Amy Carmichael found that their singleness allowed them to serve God with undivided devotion, experiencing profound spiritual intimacy that married people sometimes struggle to find. Seek Christian community actively while trusting God’s timing for your relational future.

• “I work a mundane job that feels meaningless. Where’s the abundant life in filing paperwork and answering phones?” The Christian doctrine of vocation teaches that no legitimate work is “secular”—all honest labour serves God and neighbour when done unto Christ. Our filing and phone calls become acts of worship when done with excellence for God’s glory (Colossians 3:23). The Puritan work ethic wasn’t about working harder but about seeing ordinary work as extraordinary service to the King. Ask God to show you how your seemingly mundane tasks contribute to human flourishing and kingdom purposes—you might be surprised at the eternal significance of your “ordinary” work.
• “I struggle with depression and anxiety. My emotions feel dead. How do I access this abundant life you describe?” Mental health struggles don’t disqualify us from spiritual abundance—many great Reformed theologians battled what we now call depression. Charles Spurgeon called it “the minister’s fainting fits,” and Martyn Lloyd-Jones, himself a physician, taught spiritual depression often has both physical and spiritual components that need addressing. Abundant life may include seeking professional help for brain chemistry while simultaneously finding our identity in Christ’s unchanging love rather than fluctuating feelings. Our emotions are real and matter to God, but they don’t determine our spiritual reality.

“I’ve been hurt deeply by the church and Christians. How can I pursue abundant life when God’s people have wounded me so badly?” Reformed theology acknowledges the church’s imperfection while maintaining it’s still God’s chosen means of grace—we need the church, but we don’t worship it. Our wounds may be real and valid, but isolating ourselves from Christian community ultimately robs us of the very relationships God uses to heal and restore. Consider finding a different, healthier church community while remembering that all churches are “hospitals for sinners,” not “museums for saints.” The abundant life includes the messy, sometimes painful, but ultimately beautiful experience of being sanctified through relationships with imperfect Christians. Our hurt can become a ministry to others who’ve been similarly wounded.

 

THE ABUNDANT LIFE JESUS PROMISED: OUR RELATED POSTS

• Losing Your Life Vs Wasting It: How Are the Two Different?
•  ‘My Yoke is Easy and My Burden Light’: What Did Jesus Really Mean?