What is Eternal life?
John 3:14-15 (NKJV) And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
What is eternal life?
To live forever?
What is immortality?
To live forever?
Doesn’t everyone live forever? One way or the other every living soul will continue on throughout eternity, in one place or another. Therefore the Eternal Life Jesus and the Bible talks about must be more than just existing forever. Jesus wouldn’t offer eternal life to people who already have immortality if those terms actually meant the same thing.
In this passage in John we can see an implication, if you do not believe in Jesus you may perish. It also boldly states that once you believe in Him, Jesus, you have eternal life.
When I was a young boy I was allowed to watch scary movies. The old black and white Count Dracula and Frankenstein movies. The idea of these monsters, vampires, zombies, werewolves, etc., living forever was a prominent theme. They could only be killed by some type of special means otherwise they would go on living and terrorizing the town folk forever and ever.
Immortality in it's truest definition does not mean the same as eternal life. Immortality is a word which describes a state of existence but eternal life describes a quality of that existence. You are probably thinking, "What"? If you are alive you have life, right? Ok, when Jesus says in John 10:10 (KJV) "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." Jesus is talking about giving us a life that has an enhanced quality to it. We are alive but in Christ Jesus we can have an enhanced quality called "Abundance!"
Immortality is living forever but Eternal Life is an enhanced immortal life.
Take a look at this passage out of John's gospel. Jesus gives us the definition of eternal life.
John 17:3 (NKJV) And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
Jesus is telling us eternal life is not just living out eternity. It is the quality of that life everlasting which is eternal life. My immortality began when I was conceived. I became a living soul and from that moment I was going to spend "forever" somewhere. Either in the presence of God or in eternal damnation in the fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels.
My Eternal Life began when I was born again in 1975 at a David Wilkerson crusade. Eternal life is the quality of life you have in God through Jesus! Knowing God as abba Father. Walking with Him, talking with Him, spending your days with God is enhanced life, it is eternal life.
Do you have eternal life?
