Questions About Eternal Life

Text: I John 5:11-13

                   Today we are going to take a last look into I John.  Over the past weeks He has shown us a lot about how much God loves us and why we can trust that His love is real for all who accept His plan for our salvation.  Our text today is I John 5:11-13 where he writes:  " (11) And this is the record [the record being the Word of God] that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  (12) He who has the Son has life; and he who has not the Son of God has not life.  (13) These things have I written unto you who believe on the Name of the Son of God; that you may know that your have eternal life, and that you may believe on the Name of the Son of God." 

                   We're told in Psalm 90:10,that the  average human life expectancy is 70-80 years.  Most scholars say this comes from Moses' final blessing to Israel in 1440 B.C.  After more than 3,000 years have gone by, that range still applies today.  It shows that our earthly life is still short even if we happen to meet or surpass the 80 year mark.  This is because Jesus offers us something so much better than our human life expectancy.  Jesus tells us in John 3:16 that all who believe in Him will have everlasting life.  In John 5:24, He tells us that if we hear Him and believe in God who sent Him, we will have everlasting life.  And yet even with this confirmation there are still many believers who fear death.

                   There are also many non-believers that will go to extraordinary lengths for eternal life.  They look for ways to preserve their bodies, such as freezing, hoping that there will be life after death.  Still others think that if they do good things in this life or participate in religious rituals, they will have eternal life.  But this kind of thinking falls far short of what it actually takes to be given God's assurance of eternal life. 

                   We become Christians with the assurance of eternal life because of God's grace not as the result of any effort, ability, intelligent choice, or act of service on our part.   When someone gives you a gift, do you say, "That's very nice now how much do I owe you?"  Of course not.  The appropriate response is "Thank you!"  Then, out of gratitude to God for this free gift, our hearts will overflow with a desire to help and serve others with kindness, love, and gentleness.  Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9:  " (8)For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of  yourselves; it is the gift of God  (9)not of works, lest any man should boast."                                     Everyone one of us is free to choose to accept or reject God's gift of eternal life.  It's not something that we can earn, nor must we pay it back after we choose to accept what He offers.  He saves us because of His love and mercy, not because of any good things we have done.  But, while no action or work we do will allow us to receive salvation, our response must be one of graceful acceptance with gratitude.  Then we should go on to do what God intends for all His people, which is to serve others as best we can.  We aren't saved merely for our own benefit, but to serve Christ and build up the body of the Church.

                   So just exactly when does eternal life begin?  Verse 12 of our text says if we have Jesus, we have eternal life.  Whoever believes in God's Son has eternal life.  Because of Jesus, we have all we need.  And we don't have to wait until we leave this life because our eternal life begins the moment we accept Jesus into our hearts.  We don't have to work for it because it's already ours.  And we don't have to worry about it because God Himself gives it us because Jesus paid it for on the Cross and guaranteed it with His resurrection. 

                   Then how do we get Jesus?  John tells us in John 1:12 when we welcome Jesus into our hearts, we are reborn spiritually and immediately receive a new life from God because, as Paul shows us in Romans 5:1, our faith has justified us before God, and we can now have peace with Him through Jesus.  Our sin kept us from having a relationship with God.  But the moment we accept and believe in Jesus and what He has done, it restores our righteousness in God's eyes and gives us His peace.  Peace with God means we have been reconciled with Him and there is no more hostility between Him and us because sin no longer blocks our ability to have a relationship with Him.  This kind of peace is only possible because of Jeus through His death on the Cross.  We can have God's peace because of our confidence in His promises to us.   Those who choose to reject Jesus also reject eternal life with Him.  Whoever believes in God's Son has eternal life.  With Jesus, we have all we need.  We don't have to wait for eternal life because it begins the moment we believe.   We don't need to worry about it because it is guaranteed by God.

                   The purpose of I John is summed up in verse 13 of our text.  John wants God's children to be confident of God's promises.  If we believe in Jesus as the Son of God, we are assured of eternal life that begins the moment we accept Him as Lord and Savior.  We can have complete confidence knowing that God keeps His promises and rest in the fact that our future is secured when we leave life on earth to enter eternal life in Jesus.  Some people hope they will receive eternal life, but John says with Jesus, we know we have it.  God's promise gives us this certainty through His Son.  This truth doesn't depend on whether we feel close to God or far away from Him.  Eternal life comes from facts, not feelings.  We know we have eternal life if we believe God's truth. 

                   If you aren't sure that you have eternal life, you need to ask yourself if you have honestly committed your life to Him and that He affects your life decisions and daily choices.  If your answer is yes, you know by faith that you are indeed a child of God.  If you still aren't sure, then don't waste anymore time in making the decision to totally commit your life to Jesus and all He stands for.  Ask Him to come into your heart so that your sins can be forgiven before God, and you can have a life that is covered by His peace and will ultimately spend eternity with Him.  This choice is personal to every individual.  No one can make it for you. And when you do make it, the people of the world may call you crazy and look at you differently.  But never allow that to question your choice.  Instead, wear it as a badge of honor because the children of God are never losers in life on earth nor in life in eternity.

                   Until we meet again, may God bless and keep you, may He shine His light on you, show you grace, and give you peace in all the days ahead.