Eternal Life

Part 2

Vicky Moots

There are some who may argue, “I know that Jesus said that I am safe in His hand, and no man can pluck me out of His hand, but what if I decide to jump out?” How foolish!

Can you loosen the grip of the Almighty’s hand on you? Are you stronger than God? If you are His child, one of His sheep, He will never let you go.  That is His promise, and He never breaks a promise.

It should also be noted that eternal life is a free gift from God. To be more specific, it is a love-gift, as we previously learned from John 3:16.  That love-gift was in the person of His Son, who was freely given to all who will receive Him as Savior.

God’s free gift is also spoken of by the apostle Paul in Rom. 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” The Greek word which is translated “gift” is “charisma.” According to Zodhiates this word means “the result of grace; an undeserved benefit from God.” God’s gift of eternal life is therefore something that cannot be earned and something which we did nothing to deserve.

In Matt. 19:16 we read of a rich, young ruler who came to Jesus and asked Him, “…Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” Jesus answered him in v.17 by giving him an impossible task: “…keep the commandments.” The young man quickly replied that he had already done that, even as a child.

Jesus then told him to sell all of his goods and give to the poor and to follow Him.  We read in v.22 that he refused to do that and “went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.” Through the commandment to sell all of his earthly goods, Jesus revealed what was hidden in the young man’s heart: money had become his god.  He had already broken the first commandment, and therefore all of the Law: “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20:3).

Jesus was trying to show him that neither he, nor anyone else, is good enough to be able to keep the Law.  The Law shows up sin and brings condemnation instead of life.  There is nothing good that we need to do, or can do, to earn eternal life.  The “good thing” (to die for our sins) has already been done.  It was accomplished on the cross by Jesus.  Eternal life is not associated with our works because it is a gift.

Can this gift ever be lost? Is it possible to shorten something that has been declared by God to be eternal? Eternal life is not probational life.  In other words, it is not conditional.  It begins the moment we are born again and never ends.  How is this possible? The gift of eternal life which has been given to us by God is actually Jesus Himself, and He is eternal.  He has promised never to leave us or forsake us, for He said in Matt. 28:20, “…lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”

In John 4:10, Jesus referred to Himself as the gift of God when He was speaking to the woman at the well in Samaria: “…If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” Then in v.14 He tells her, “…whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Drinking of the living water brings life eternal, for it is the life of Christ Himself.  We drink the life of Jesus into us when we accept Him as Savior, and He dwells within our hearts eternally.  Jesus clarified the source of the living water in John 7:37 when He cried out to all those who were thirsty and said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink.”

Jesus is our source of life, so our new creation life is as eternal as He is.  At the moment we are born again, we are freed from death and condemnation, for Jesus bore the condemnation for our sins on the cross.  The promise of life eternal was given to us by Jesus in John 5:24: “Verily, verily [truly, truly] I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”

Peter also declared in I Peter 1:23, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.” The word “incorruptible” means “immortal.” It is therefore eternal. If we are born again by eternal seed, then our new life in Christ is eternal just as He is.  Praise God for eternal life in Christ!