What Is Eternal Life?
Feature 1 – January 2024 – Grace & Truth Magazine
What Is Eternal Life?
Once, a young rich man met the Lord Jesus and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mk. 10:17 ESV ; see Mt. 19:16; Lk. 18:18). Being young, he expected to have a long life ahead of him. He was rich, enabling him to enjoy his life. Religious, he kept the law (Mk. 10:20). Still, he was looking for something more than a successful life; he was looking for eternal life!
What Is Eternal Life?
The Lord Jesus talked about a new type of life that He would give to our dead spirits. He called it abundant life (Jn. 10:10) and eternal life (11:25).
Let us start with the assertion that “eternal” life is not an indication of its time duration. All humans have spirits that will last forever. And the Bible is clear that the evil people will receive eternal punishment (Jn. 5:28-29; Mt. 25:46). Jesus defined this eternal life in His high priestly prayer: “This is eternal life, that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (Jn. 17:3).
The present tense of the verb “to know” indicates this knowledge is by experience, not just intellectual knowledge. This type of knowledge transforms our lives to be more like Jesus. After all, Jesus is the true eternal life (14:6). That means having eternal life is knowing Jesus in a close way, changing us to be like Him. The end result is we will live as He did.
The Source Of Eternal Life
Adam received his life from God. Eternal life is a new type of life which also comes from God (Ti. 1:2). This life is associated with our salvation; it is not earned, but we received it by grace (Eph. 2:8-9).
The Lord gave a clear promise, “Whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (Jn. 3:16). The only condition here is believing in the Lord Jesus. This means eternal life is a gift from God. If you haven’t believed in Him, then stop reading and pray now to God to start this beautiful journey with the Lord. Admit that you are a sinner and cast all your burdens on the cross of the Lord Jesus so that you may enjoy His gift of eternal life.
Blessings Of The Eternal Life
The eternal life is a present reality for everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus. He promised, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life” (5:24). He was not talking about a future promise but a present reality. We can enjoy the eternal life – the divine life of Jesus – now, in our present bodies and current conditions.
The Lord gave us an interesting metaphor of eating and drinking Him when He said, “Whoever feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life” (Jn. 6:54). He explained, “Whoever feeds on Me, he also will live because of Me” (v.57). When you have a strong relationship with Jesus, you will be appropriating the life of Jesus into your life. You will be making His life part of yours in practice, and that will change you to be more like Him.
One of the important blessings of having eternal life is the eternal security that it brings. Christ indicated that His true sheep – His disciples – are the ones who listen to His voice and follow Him (10:27). To those disciples, He gives “eternal life, and they will never perish” (v.28). This is a blessing that we can enjoy now and forever.
Eternal Life As A Future Experience
In the present age we are in weak bodies that suffer from aging and sickness, because we live in a world that is cursed because of sin (Gen. 3:17). We are tempted and frequently fail because of the fallen nature that we still have. These conditions limit our ability to enjoy eternal life to the fullest. In the future we are promised eternal life that will compensate for all the sacrifices we made for Christ in the present age (Mk. 10:30).
Paul calls this promise “the hope of eternal life” (Ti. 3:7). Having this hope enables us to endure the suffering we have in this world, with the confidence of fully enjoying the eternal life in the future. The Lord Jesus expressed this idea in a perfect way when He said, “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (Jn. 12:25). The challenge is how to spend our lives on earth, for the way we do will impact how we will enjoy the eternal life in the future. The more we are in communion with the Lord now, the more we will be transformed to be like Him, and that will enable us to enjoy eternal life here and even more in the future.
By Shereen Ghobrial