WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
MAY 09, 2023
TOPIC: DO YOU HAVE ETERNAL LIFE?
BY T. O. BANSO
“And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3 New King James Version).
Many people often view eternal life from the perspective of endlessness. They consider eternal life as everlasting life. And this is true. But eternal life is not just everlasting, endless, unending, or perpetual life but it is also the quality of life that God gives to us through His Son and this life begins on earth at salvation and continues after death. In Luke 18:29-30, Jesus talked about those who had left home, wives, brothers, parents, or children for the sake of the Kingdom of God, being repaid many times over now, as well as receiving eternal life in the world to come.
Eternal life begins when someone accepts Jesus as His Lord and Saviour. In other words, it starts when one gets born again and continues in the age to come. So it is not just about living forever. There is no eternal life without knowing God and Jesus Christ. This refers to having a living relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.
What is eternal life? Jesus said, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3 New King James Version). Eternal life is knowing God and Jesus Christ. And both are one. Jesus said He and His Father were one (John 10:30; John 17:11, 22). Jesus also said anyone who had seen Him has seen the Father and that He was in the Father, and the Father was in Him (John 14:9-10).
Eternal life is in God and Jesus Christ, and we receive it by knowing God and Jesus Christ, whom He sent to save the world. Eternal life is in God and Jesus is also God. 1 John 5:20 says, “And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life” (New King James Version).
As the Bible says, eternal life, which was with the Father, was made manifested to us when Jesus became man to die for our sins (1 John 1:2). God gave Jesus Christ the authority to give eternal life, as Jesus said in John 17:1-2: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him” (New King James Version).
How do you have eternal life? Anyone who believes in Jesus Christ will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:15). Do you believe in Jesus Christ?  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (verse 16 New International Version). This is how to have eternal life.
Eternal life is the gift of God. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Roman 6:23 New King James Version). And what you do to a gift is to receive or reject it. If you receive it, it becomes yours to enjoy. The opposite is also true. Eternal life is the gift of God. You cannot earn it.
Do you have eternal life? 1 John 5:11-12 says, “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life” (New International Version). Whoever is not born again or has not accepted Jesus as his Lord and Saviour does not have eternal life. “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40 New International Version). Whoever doesn’t have eternal life on earth cannot have it in the world to come. Eternal life starts on earth at salvation.
Eternal life will exempt you from eternal damnation. If you have eternal life, you will not perish. Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:27-28 New King James Version). The sinners (the goats) will go away to eternal punishment but the righteous (the sheep or those who are born again) to eternal life righteous (Matthew 25:46).
Do you have eternal life? John 5:24-25 says, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life” (New International Version). To have eternal life, you must be born again. You must believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died to save you and was raised on the third day. Jesus said in John 6:47, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, he who believes [in Me as Savior—whoever adheres to, trusts in, relies on, and has faith in Me—already] has eternal life [that is, now possesses it]” (Amplified Bible). Do you believe in Him?
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Father, thank You for the gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. I pray that those who are yet to have eternal life will accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour and receive the gift of eternal life. They will know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He sent to save the world.
(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
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