Jn. 5.24 — “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
When Jesus begins a statement with the words, “verily, verily,” elsewhere translated, ”most assuredly,” or “truly truly” which I believe is the better translation,He is introducing one of the deeper spiritual truths which He came to teach; for these words are not His own but are the revelation of the Father. They were not the words of some teacher, or prophet, or theologian; they contained the thoughts God wanted to convey to man, and of course Jesus was the Word of God. So what Jesus was saying, when you hear my teachings, welcome them as they are, in truth, the word of God, and they are not mere nice sounding words to remember, but they are the words of my Father that effectively work in you who believe them and receive them into your hearts. (See 1 Thes. 2.13) And so, these words of our Lord are so Divinely inspired that they have a kind of energy about them, a spiritual energy, that when received in faith, they actually work within you.
The great revelation brought forth here is that of eternal life, which is not something added to our natural life, but it is actually our sharing in, or having a partnership with the life of God; and this life is not only for the future but it may be possessed now, in the present, by one who is brought into unity with that source of that life, who is God the Father. The amazing thing about having this life is that the believer will not be brought into judgment on that great Day of Judgment (Rev. 20.11-15); because from this time forward, from the hour that this life was received, there can be no separation between him and God, because the two share in the same life. If the roots of the Tree of Life is the Father, and the trunk of the tree is Jesus Christ, we believers are the branches who ultimately receive the essence of life brought forth from its roots—His life is in us. Thus we are forever “in Christ” who is “in the Father.”
This is fundamental understanding to salvation. It goes well beyond a confession of faith or citing some creed of belief; it involves a most powerful and eternal life that energizes us body, soul, and spirit. All things become new.
Jesus makes a profound statement in this verse when He says that those who believe “has passed from death into life.” Has passed, the verb tense is past tense, and past tense is something we look back to as something that has already happened. At this point we have come to a most important junction in this word of revelation; and that is the subject of faith. One may in unbelief choose not to receive these words of Jesus and let things remain as is in his life; or he may believe these words are true and that the words will become active in his life. Again, this is the word of revelation being brought forth, that believers have already passed from a state of spiritual death and separation from God to that of life in unity with God. To be in unity with God is to share in His life. This is written about in Eph. 2.1-2,
And you He has made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sin. In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience.”
Combining these two verses of scripture regarding life, it is written: has everlasting life in the first and has made us alive in the second. Thus revealing a miracle that has already happened in the life of the believer, and it sets a new course of life before him. As stated in the above scripture, the natural state of man is death in sin. Man comes into this world living in the world but dead spiritually towards God. The inception of eternal life is just the opposite. The dead have no regard for the things of God; they are affected by the cares, pleasures, and amusements of the world. They are unmoved by the Gospel or spiritual things, unless of course it be dark spiritual things that they call upon as a substitute for true light. But God has promised life to those that receive His Son and believe in Him. The believer lives his life in unity with God, and lives now to conform his life to the will of His Father.
The life and blessings we have now, and that which we will have in the hereafter, are one and the same—perhaps varying only in magnitude or degree of experience. If the joy of heaven is living with God and for God, and to realize and experience His glory and power, then there must be presently a measure of that very thing in our lives. This is confirmed in a reading from Eph. 2.3-6
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.”
Thus, according to this word of truth, the believer, “has been blessed with every spiritual blessing,” has been “chosen ‘in Christ,’” has been “placed as son,” and has been “made accepted” to the Father. He has already entered the Kingdom of God and began to receive a portion of his inheritance—the inheritance that lasts forever.
Revelation Knowledge
Beloved, this is “revelation knowledge,” understanding that gives insight into the plan of God and His workings into our lives. To understand this principle of eternal life is life changing; we are never the same again. It puts us upon an altogether different foundation of life than what we have known through religion in which our behavior is attempted to be controlled by an endless series of commandments, rituals, and orchestrated worship services. What has entered into us as life no longer strives to practice shallow religion, but now strives to experience our new life in our oneness with God; life is experiencing an interaction with God by being a temple of His Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6.19).
Because the believer has already passed from the state of death into that of eternal life, what remains for him is the development of that life, something we refer to as spiritual maturity. We thus no longer seek to practice our faith in a routine and ritualistic manner, but to live our life growing in understanding of our oneness with God in Christ; and by having that knowledge, it will begin to work in us, transforming us bit by bit into His likeness.
In this message I am talking about “life,” not from a physical or biological viewpoint but from a Biblical and spiritual perspective. You see, science and culture will define life in a logical and reasoning way based upon mere observation and experience in the natural; whereas the Bible explains it from an altogether different source, not based upon worldly facts and observations, but upon the “word of God,” which is spiritual truth that supersedes natural understanding.
Whether it is life in the natural or life in the spiritual, life is to be “experienced;” meaning the definition of life must go beyond the idea of mere vitality and the ability to reproduce; for without the ability to interact with and experience people, places, the world about us, and those spiritual things of God, life is only as the single cell organism, it enable one to move around and replicate.
I believe the word “experience” lies at the core of life. We experience life in the natural through our senses, intellect, and emotions—as one experiences the embrace of a loved one or a fine meal. We also experience eternal life in the spirit as we discern the deeper things of God, distinguishing good from evil and things of light from things of darkness, and life from death. Spiritually we have intuition or the ability to understand something without the need for intellectual reasoning, as there is an inner witness to the truth; and we sense an inner peace and joy from the presence of God. Rm. 15.13 describes this spiritual experience,
“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, for you to abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
From the beginning of time mankind has sought true joy and peace; for in the natural they are but fleeting experiences, but spiritually they abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
A family reunion is quite an experience. Here we have fellowship with those we are in relationship to, mothers, father, sisters, brothers, cousins, aunts and uncles, etc. These are special people in our lives who enrich our lives with their presence. It stirs remembrances, our emotions, and our feelings. It is a joyful occasion. In a similar manner, when believers gather together for worship and fellowship, the experience goes beyond the natural and touches on life itself. A higher order relationship is brought about by those sharing in a higher life, bound together by the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus. As God is our Father, these are our true brothers and sisters in the faith. We even share a common surname, Christian. This thought is capsulated by John in 1 Jn. 1.1-,4
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.”
This word introduces to us one of the main thoughts of the epistle. The true life in man, that eternal life, which comes into us through the acceptance of Christ and belief in the Father, consists in fellowship with God and with man. To enter into such fellowship means to be made partakers or partners in the sharing of His life. The word fellowship, as written here, is even stronger because it stresses both the enjoyment and the realization of personal interaction, as compared to the mere fact of fellowshipping together in common worship: singing songs, praying, and listening to sermons. Are we members of a church, or a spiritual family of brothers and sisters bound together in life; religion robs the church of its life.
John is writing to believers everywhere, in all parts of the earth, to enjoy the same fellowship, being fully persuaded by their testimony, that of the Church in Jerusalem having apostles of Peter, James, and John, and to lay hold of Christ to the measure of having spiritual fellowship with God. John continues writing, that because we are in Christ and He is in us, that “truly our fellowship is firstly with the Father;” God the Father in whom we have access to and the door opened to have intimate fellowship, in which fellowship we offer praise and thanksgiving as we are gratefully blessed with so many benefits and privileges which are ours in heavenly places. John continues with the thought of having fellowship “with His Son Jesus Christ,” again with humble thanksgiving for the Divine favors, which is grace, we have been blessed with—being born again, inheriting eternal life, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit, and being so much in Christ Jesus that we are now sitting with Him in heavenly places. This is our new environment in which we have been placed to spiritually experience, by faith, the Divine fellowship with God and with fellow believers—remembering that faith is the “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Heb. 11.1
Life Abundantly
Jn. 10.10 — “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
Here, Jesus is again saying that the believer might have “zoe” life, which is both spiritual and eternal. This sets believers apart from the rest of mankind who are by nature dead in trespasses and sins and subject to eternal death; those who now, according to Eph. 4.17-19, “walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.”
These are souls without hope, who walk in darkness, now subject to sin and death; while thinking they are creature of light and truth. But we know there is only one source of light and truth…Jesus Christ.
What does it mean to have life, and to have it more abundantly? Adam had life breathed into him, but the life Adam had was a natural life, not a spiritual life. We must remember that eating of the Tree of Life would have “added” abundantly to his created life, but he chose to eat of the forbidden tree instead, which eventually brought forth death. But the Tree of Life, is actually that Divine life hidden with Christ in God. (Col. 3.3) The word “abundantly” denotes something above and beyond essential life, not merely eternal existence, but what is added to that is exceedingly above and beyond what we could ask or think. Perhaps at a minimum to be added to life is eternal joy, peace, the fellowship of all believers, and the presence and fellowship of the Lamb of God and the Father. This is life in abundance.
The experience of fellowship in the Divine presence of the family of God, the Father, and the Son (the Lamb of God) will reach its culmination in the age to come, as this heavenly environment is more fully displayed in Rev. 21.22-27.
“I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”
Understand, if you will, that the city mentioned is not one of buildings and streets, of wood and stone, but is figurative of the church now resurrected, and prepared to become the eternal Bride of Christ, as it is written in Rev. 21.2,
“Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” (See also Rev. 21.9-10)
I guess we will have to wait to see and experience anything more of this abundant eternal life, and we will, for we have this confidence in Christ. Continuing on with the revelation of eternal life, Jesus declared,
Jn. 6.50-51– This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”
Eating Christ in this manner signifies believing in Him, and not just believing but receiving Him as someone special to fill the void in our hearts. For one just to say, “I believe in Christ” is but a mental assent or agreement that Jesus is the Christ and He died for our sins. It is more of a confession of faith for some hope of eternal life. There is a vast spiritual side to faith which involves anticipating changes in one’s life, growing up spiritually, which is the expectation of the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives—it is a time of an altogether new beginning and new walk of life.
Of course, eating of His body is not to be understood as physically eating of His flesh as some of His followers thought; nor was He instituting a ritual to be performed as a sacrament; nor was He implying, as the belief in Catholicism, of transubstantiation that a miraculous transformation takes place at communion and the bread is changed into the body of Christ. These thoughts range from communion being a simple memorial, which it should not be, to something far beyond its spiritual intent, which it is not. This act must be considered as eating and feeding upon Christ spiritually by faith, believing in Him to the extent of identifying with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection. In the realm of the communion of the Spirit, He alone is to be fed upon, and His food is transforming life.
Believing is rightly expressed by this notion of eating; because as eating is the application of food to our stomachs in order to energize our bodies and keep us alive, so believing is the application of the Spirit of Christ to our souls for sustaining and giving increase of spiritual life. There is the same need of daily bread for our souls as for our bodies. Experience and change through interaction with Christ in God…experience and change.
Finally, I wish to take a step a little deeper into the reality of this truth concerning eternal life. We just read where Jesus said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven.” This is keeping with the thought of Jn. 6.33 where Jesus said, “For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world,” and of Jn. 5.26, “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself.” Whether it be the bread of God inJn. 6.33 or the Son of God in Jn. 5.26, both speak only of Jesus Christ. He alone has zoe life in Himself which He has of the Father; and He is the author and giver of this special Divine life to others. The Son is of a heavenly origin and came from heaven to give this same life to men, to you and me.
This bread is of such a high value and virtue that if any man eat of this bread he will live forever, a life that begins now and in fullness at the resurrection of our bodies in the age to come. This is spiritual life in unity with Christ in God. With the initiation of this life comes a measure of spiritual perfection by just being in Christ, and furthermore there is an anticipated continued work unto perfection (or maturity) of our souls as we feed daily upon Him. This is a life of glory that will never end.
I wish to end this message with the same thought that pervaded it throughout: that life is not mere vitality, but it connects us with the natural world through our bodies and the spiritual world through our spirits; and by this connection means we “experience” that in which we are brought into contact with, whether earthly things or heavenly things. And all that we experience changes us, molds us, and transforms us into the people we are. The natural life that was in Adam worked a work in us to this day; the spiritual life that is in Christ Jesus works a work in us now, shaping and transforming us to be true children of God and members of the Body of Christ, the Church. Faith is the full anticipation and expectation that all that this life is, in Divine quality, is now in us who believe, and will forever be to eternity.
