Eternal Life: A Divine Gift and Present Reality

This life is divine it is in Christ before it's in us it's not native to us John 1:4 in him was life and that life was the light of men we get our life from Christ Jesus said to him I am the way the truth and the life no one comes to the Father but through me so this life is Christ life it is not simply the extension of life we have it is a divine life in Christ which we have. [00:01:21]

The second thing we can say about it is that it is through the word summon Peter answered him John 668 Lord to whom shall we go you have the words of eternal life words words mediate this life somehow or 17:20 I do not ask for these only but also for those who will believe in me through their word that's us in the 21st century we believe in him through their word their word echoing Christ's word is the mediator of life eternal life so it comes through the word. [00:01:58]

No one comes to me unless the father who sent me draws him so the coming to Jesus which we said was faith the coming to have our soul satisfied is a gift of God so the life is not only a gift of God in that he loved the world by giving his son it is also a gift of God in that our coming to him is something that the father himself grants. [00:03:07]

John 5:24 it is a present not just a future reality so many people don't realize this and don't know the awesome work that God has done and he's doing in their lives truly I say to you whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life he does not come into judgment but has passed from death to life Oh glory we have already decisively by God's design and permanent disposition come into life we're not waiting to get eternal life eternal life has come to us and therefore we will not come into judgment that have already passed out of death into life. [00:04:13]

This present experience of life now is a personal relation with God look John 17:3 and this is eternal life what is eternal life this is eternal life that they know you the only true God's is Jesus talking and Jesus Christ whom you have sent so when you have Christ's life imparted to you by the work of the father you know the father and you know Jesus the Son in a way that no one else knows him except those who are united to him this is a a personal intimate sweet self authenticating relationship knowledge. [00:04:57]

This relationship will not be interrupted by death amazing John 11:25 Jesus said to her to Martha I am the resurrection and the life whoever believes in me though he died yet shall he live oh it's better and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die I think as glorious as it is I think that means that the eternal life which we have now will not experience one second of interruption in the instant that we die we are not dead but have the fullest experience of union with Christ. [00:05:45]

For this is the will of my father that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life and I will raise him up at the last day so when death comes there's no break here's life here in this world as we fellowship and know the Father and know the Sun here's death and there's life and here's resurrection and here we have a conscious experience of life in Christ that Paul says in Philippians 120 is far better but here we have resurrection the last day so that our life will be full with the glorious resurrection of a body made like unto Christ's body. [00:06:17]

Jonathan Edwards reminds us that the joy and delight we find in God are supplied by an infinite fountain, ensuring that our experience of God will never be exhausted. The fountain that supplies the joy and delight which the soul has in seeing God, knowing God, having eternal life is infinite. The fountain that supplies our joy is infinite. [00:08:38]

The understanding our understanding may extend itself as far as it will it does but take its flight into an endless expanse of glory and dive into a bottomless ocean it may discover more and more of the beauty and loveliness of God but it will never never exhaust the fountain for God so loved the world that He gave His only Son so that whoever and I hope every one of you watching this will feel so preciously included here sweetly deeply amazingly stunned included whoever believes in Him will never perish never go to hell never go under the wrath of God but we'll have this 9 fold glorious eternal life amen. [00:09:24]