John 3: 14, 16 & I Tim. 1: 16 (Proof Text #8)
"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life...For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
"However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life."
When do we obtain life that is unending? It is when we believe.
There is no life prior to faith in Christ. There is no life prior to union with Christ. Life comes to the dead sinner by his faith union with Christ. That is pervasively scriptural and solidly logical. "Whoever has the Son has life" and "whoever has not the Son has not life." (I John 5: 11-12) There can be no gaps in time between having the Son (by receiving the Son in faith) and having life. Once the sinner crosses the line from being an unbeliever (non receiver) to being a believer (receiver) he is alive from the dead. He does not have to wait to be baptized or confirmed or any other thing post his conversion to be risen from spiritual death.
Both the above texts (and several others like it) teach that faith is the means or way in which spiritual and eternal life is received. Notice these words of our Lord:
"For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will...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. Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself." (John 5: 21, 24-26)
Who has life? Who has spiritual and eternal life? It is the one who believes. There is no life where there is no faith. Faith is necessary to be alive. Jesus is not saying that faith is a product of life, being an evidence of its preexistence, but rather that faith is that which lays hold of eternal life. This is because faith receives Christ and in receiving Christ life is received. No unbeliever has passed from death unto life.
The ones who are made alive are they who were dead when they heard the voice of the Son. They were not alive before they heard. The dead are the ones who hear. They did not have to be made alive before they could hear. Rather, they heard, though dead, in order to be made alive. But, it is not mere hearing, but it is a hearing AND believing. Those dead sinners who both hear and believe are the ones made alive.
Eternal and spiritual life is in Christ the Son of God. He "has life in himself." To obtain life one must obtain Christ and Christ is received by faith. When Christ is received, life is received. Christ is given and with Christ comes the gift of eternal life. Wrote Paul:
"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom. 6.23)
This gift is available to all who hear the voice of the Son of God in the preaching of the gospel and by faith receive Christ and life.
Are you dead to God? Dead to spiritual things? God offers you eternal life and says to you that this life is in his Son. If you would have life, you can have it in no other way than by receiving Christ. Will you hear his voice today and be reborn? Do you wish to be filled with joy and peace? That comes through believing in Christ. (Rom. 15: 13) Every spiritual blessing is in Christ. If you have Christ you have everything. Recall the words of John that was cited earlier in this series and noted above: "whoever has the Son has life."
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