Last night at our Bible study we looked at what Jesus had to say about eternity and eternal life. In John’s gospel, Jesus is described as ‘the Word’ in whom there is life and light (John 1:1-5) and He defined eternal life as knowing God and Jesus Christ. (John 17:3) The Bible describes God as eternal (e.g. Deut 33:27, Isaiah 26:4), which means lasting forever; because He is eternal, He longs to give us eternal life. This was His original intention in the beginning, but sin introduced death and separation from God into the world. Jesus is God’s remedy for sin and the giver of life to us. (John 3:16)
John’s gospel focuses on eternal life and how this is bound up in the person of Jesus and in the faith of those who trust Him. (John 3:12-21. John 5:21-27, John 6:26-59). Eternal life is seen as a gift (see also John 10:27-30), not something which can be earned through good works or our own righteousness. It is something which has both present reality and impact and a future application. Jesus tells us ‘whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. ‘ (John 5:24) Our confidence in possessing eternal life does not arise from our self-importance or understanding but from these words of Jesus.
The ‘now’ and ‘not yet’ of the Christian faith are evident in Jesus’s words about our future home with God (John 14:1-7) and in passages found in 2 Cor 4:16-18 and Rom 8:18-25. Eternal life is linked to the sacrificial death which Jesus must bear in order to reconcile humanity to God. (John 6:48-51) Communion with Christ (remaining in Him, as He puts it in John 15) is essential to eternal life: ‘the one who feeds on me will live because of me.’ (John 6:58)
Ultimately, Jesus taught about two ways, two kingdoms and the importance of making wise choices. Mark 9:43-48 uses stark language to emphasise the importance of these choices as to our eternal destiny. The choices we make now affect our lives not only on earth but beyond this lifetime.