Eternal Life — A Present Possession

Introduction

Interesting that Reagan would leave that song. Because there is a very real sense in which we inhabit Zion as the Lord’s people already. And the reason why that’s interesting is because it has everything to do with the message you’re going to hear tonight about eternal life. But I’ll have more to say about Zion very soon. Coming soon to a pulpit near you. That’s a very old familiar hymn. It’s a beautiful hymn. But our understanding of Zion, I would like for that to grow and develop a little bit in the near future. Alright, we’ll start with some very simple stuff tonight from Psalms and Proverbs. If you have your Bible, let’s begin in Psalm 36. If I get my clicker to work properly.

1. With You Is the Fountain of Life

Some observations about life. Beautiful words. Your loving kindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the skies. I mean, that’s that’s a lot of loving kindness and faithfulness. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains or the mountains of God. Your judgments are like a great deep, the qualities of God, just boundless in their dimensions. Oh Lord, you preserve man and beast. How precious is your loving kindness, O God. And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of your root your wings. They drink their fill of the abundance of your house, and you give them to drink of the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life in your life. We see light. And so it is that phrase, the fountain of life, that I want to talk to you about.

Look at a couple of passages in the Proverbs, the teaching of the wise, because it is that which matches the will of God. The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life. How important is that? Well, you turn aside if you listen to such a fountain from the snares of death. Physical death or spiritual. Or both. The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death. Isn’t it interesting how many times in just these three verses the term fountain is used? Apparently, that was a concept that was very pleasurable in people’s minds. And think of how we can do fountains today with our mechanical know-how. And kids, of course, especially are attracted to fountains. They are refreshing.

There is an abundance of water. People are drawn to fountains. Perhaps in the first century, more for a drink of water that might have been a little bit more scarce than in our times.

And so as we come to the New Testament, this truth is emphasized, interestingly enough, in resurrections from the dead. We talked about resurrections last week in regard to Cleopas’s question about the resurrection of Jesus. So we talked about resurrections. And we might think because we’ve read so much about resurrections in the Bible that they were commonplace. And may I suggest that they didn’t just happen every week during Jesus’ ministry. As I was sitting there, I was thinking about the implications of resurrections from the dead. Especially if someone had already gone on to receive their reward. They have to come back. And so I don’t know why I was thinking about that. Okay, Luke 7. Luke 7, 11 through 17. The only son of the widow of Nain dies.

And perhaps that the fact that he’s the only son, and she might need him to help her through life, this widow. He is resurrected at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. I’ve always loved that in Luke 7 and verse 15. But here’s the response. Fear gripped them all. Of course, they’d seen someone who was dead, who was now alive again. We don’t see that every day now, do we?

God has visited his people. And this report concerning him went all over Judea in all the surrounding district, beginning to explain why there was such excitement building in regard to the ministry of Jesus.

Certainly it testifies to our Creator as the giver of life and also the sustainer of life. He is able to impart both spiritual and then ultimately eternal life. And one of the things we should be appreciating is the limited amount of control that we have over life. There are so many things, despite our stockade of guns here in Texas. I don’t know why guys own a hundred guns, but some of you may. You only got two hands. But we have to have a hundred. I mean, despite the stockade of guns, we can only protect ourselves so much. There are some things out of our control, like if you go to the airport at the wrong time, as we’ve been seeing in the news. Your guns at home will do little good for you there.

2. Do You Possess Eternal Life?

We’re not as in control as we would like to think. And really, our sins have caused us to be very out of control and in need of the one who can impart spiritual and eternal life. Life in one’s soul is not only of great quality, but it has an eternal quality to it. And so I want to ask you this question, and that is do you possess eternal life? That’s the question to you. Do you possess eternal life? And I want you to look with me at a somewhat controversial passage in John chapter 5 and verse 24, where Jesus says this. Truly, I say unto you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me. Oh, look, I’ve got it highlighted for you.

Hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life. And does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death and into life. Now, Paul would talk about this in Ephesians chapter 2, though you were dead in your trespasses and sins, you have been made alive. Okay, you’ve passed out of death and into life. We’ve been called out of darkness and into the light, into the kingdom of God’s dear son. Colossians 1 and verse 13. But what’s interesting is the verb tense here, and I saved this quote from a brother from a while back for just such an occasion. He makes this comment about John 5 and verse 24. He says, if you’re talking with a knowledgeable Calvinist, and you may not know what a Calvinist is, but if you do, you’re going to see where this goes.

It’s not going to be long before he brings up this passage. Wanting to talk about the present active indicative, I believe, the present active indicative of the Greek word translation has.

It is has eternal life. And see, he’s going to teach you, the Calvinist is, once saved, always saved. When you’ve passed from death to life, you have salvation, and you have salvation eternally. Now, of course, the major problem with that view, besides the fact that it isn’t so, is the number of passages that speak of eternal salvation being conditional. We’ll get to that in a moment. But here’s what our brother said, and this is funny. This, thus, it will be terribly frustrating for him to learn that we too believe the eternal salvation mentioned here is something that is, in a sense, already possessed by the believer. I mean, you can’t get over the tense here. In some sense, the believer has eternal life, the one who has heard the word and believes him who was sent.

Already possessed by the believer. Understanding, of course, that we do not think that the believer mentioned here is exercising the faith alone kind of belief that Calvinists are committed to.

It is an ongoing belief. This belief that leads to or ultimately provides eternal life. Let me show you some passages that are like this in the New Testament. When Paul in 2 Timothy chapter 4 says that his time had come to be offered. And he says, I have what? Fought a good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but to all those who love his appearing. Sounds pretty confident, doesn’t it? Paul is not dead yet. He could still slip away from the faith. But he has confidence of where he’s going. There’s a crown awaiting him.

But that’s because he’s pretty certain that his belief is going to carry on all the way to his death and likely his martyrdom. But the New Testament makes very clear that though, in a sense, as we embrace the life of faith, we are the possessors of eternal life. That implies that faith will be ongoing in our lives as a result. And Peter clearly makes a delineation between being in Christ and the growth that we ought to be experiencing, and he says, if we continue in the faith, he says, an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord will be abundantly supplied to you. And maybe that we can go back to Zion here and just say, while we inhabit the walls of Zion as Christians, and I believe that’s what the Bible teaches, there is a sense in which perfect Zion is yet future.

And so when the Bible talks about eternal life, it is saying we have tasted life, and if our faith continues, it will eventuate in eternal life. And that’s probably not just talking about duration, but also involving quality of life. It’s not just duration, but quality. When I ask the question, do you possess eternal life? Now, this is the backdrop for statements that are made in 1 John regarding eternal life. And I want to go with these quickly before we make some very practical observations with 1 John. 1 John chapter 2 and verse 6. The one who believes, if our faith is legitimate, he is going to walk as Jesus walked. He says in 1 John chapter 2 and verse 6, or any confession that we might make about being a servant of Jesus is not true.

If we walk in the light as he is in the light, he said in the previous chapter in chapter 1 and verse 7. That’s sort of a theme that runs throughout, as we’ll see in a moment, that the true believer continues to walk in a certain way as Jesus demonstrated. Now, when you come to the end of this, and there’s a lot more going on in 1 John that we can explain tonight. But notice he says, this is why I’ve written this.

3. Passed Out of Death Because We Love the Brethren

Now I want you to go back to 1 John 3, and this is where I want to focus our attention. 1 John chapter 3 and verse 13.

He says, Do not marvel, brethren, if the world hates you. And here’s this same concept as John 5 24. We know that we have passed out of death and into life because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. See, you’re either abiding in life or abiding in death. And ultimately that extends to what? Eternity. So he says, if we do not love, we abide in death. Look at verse 15. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer. Okay, the way we regard each other, that’s where we’re going with this ultimately. The way you look at your brethren in Christ. If you don’t love your brother but hate him, what does the Bible say? You’re a murderer. And we don’t look on murderers as being in very good standing, do we?

And certainly not with God. We know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. Did you see that in verse 15? He who does not love abides in death. No murderer has eternal life abiding in him. So apparently, eternal life abiding in us is a possibility. I wrote these things, he said back to verse 13, in order that you may know that you have eternal life. We know love by this. Okay, you want to know what this kind of love is? That Jesus laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. And if someone has a need, one of your brothers, and you close your heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?

He goes, here’s a real simple test. Here’s your brother in Christ. He’s hungry, and you say, Oh, just go on. Be filled with what? Be filled. No, you have an opportunity to help your brother, and you say, No, I’m not going to be interested in that. And then he says, This, little children, let us not love with word or with tongue. I love my brethren, but I hope you find a meal somewhere else. Let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and truth. Okay, so does eternal life abide in you? And that’s really what John is addressing. We see that in 1 John 5 and verse 13. And let me tell you what’s going on in 1 John. And for those of you who were in my 1 John class that I taught here, this will not be new, but I don’t mind repeating it.

4. John Is Providing Objective Tests

It’s that important. For those of you who were not in my 1 John class, this might be the first time you’ve ever been exposed to this. And here is the first point. John is providing objective tests, and the reason why he’s doing this is the kind of influences his audience has come under in regard to most likely what is called Gnosticism. So he’s going to talk to them about things that they can know for sure. He’s going to give them some objective tests to determine the validity of their faith. And he keeps repeating these tests in 1 John over and over and over again. He cycles through them over and over again. The first test is the moral test, but I’m going to jump to the middle of the book to demonstrate this.

It was evident in 1 John 2 and verse 6. Walk as he walked, 1 John 1 and verse 7, the passage that I quoted, but he says this everyone who has this hope fixed on Jesus purifies himself just as he is pure. One way to test the validity of your faith and whether eternal life is abiding in you is are you puring purifying yourself as Jesus is pure? And that would go to some things Paul said, like, examine everything carefully, hold fast to that which is good, abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5, 21 and 22. Paul really talks about the same tests that John does. All the passages that talk about holiness and sexual morality and all of that are purifying ourselves as he is pure.

And that’s one of the ways that we know his spirit bears witness with our spirit that we’re the children of God. Romans chapter 8 and verse 16. But there’s a second test, and that’s really what’s going on in the context of 1 John 3 that we just read, and that’s the social test. That is how you relate to others. Do you play nice? Particularly in regard to your brothers, because as we therefore have opportunity, let us do good to all men, especially those of the household of faith. And that’s what John is talking about, your brothers in Christ, particularly. He says in 1 John 4 and verse 16, as he goes through a long section that begins with the concept that God is love. And after he talks about God being love and all the implications of that, he comes down to verse 16.

He says, the one who abides in love abides in God. And again, this business of abiding is where the whole concept of eternal life comes in. The one who abides in love abides in God. And so we see in 1 John chapter 3, you want to know if your faith is legit. Do you love your brother? If you hate your brother or close your heart against him, you do not have eternal life abiding in you. Okay, we’re coming back to this in a minute. And then the third test that gets repeated over and over, beginning in chapter 2 is the convictions test. And that is the things that you believe about Jesus, some were denying that he even came in the flesh. And he equates that to the Antichrist in chapter 2.

But he concludes this argument in chapter 5 and verse 1 when he says, Whoever believes that Jesus is the Messiah is the Christ, is born of God. Now, it’s more than just that one simple affirmation. Okay, he’s the Messiah of the Old Testament. But all the implications of that affirmation, that indeed he did come in the flesh. And if you go back to chapter 2, I want you to look at this, verses 23 and 24. This convictions test is born out here. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father. The one who confesses the Son has the Father also. As for you, and here’s the word abide again, let that abide in you, what you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you will also abide in the Son and in the Father.

5. None of These Tests Are Optional

And so are you believing and confessing the right things about Jesus? And so what we need to do daily is assess where we are. Am I believing the right things? And that’s why we spend so much time and study to make sure we get these things right. Am I believing the right things? How does it play out in regard to my behavior, my moral choices? Abstain from fleshly lust which wage war against the soul, 1 Peter 2 and verse 11. And how does it play out in my attitude and treatment toward others? Now, here’s the observation I want to make quickly tonight. None of these tests are optional. He makes the case for these three tests in 1 John over and over and over again. He makes it in 1 John 1 and 2.

He goes through each one of these, and then he starts repeating them in different ways throughout 1 John until he finally gets to again that verse 13 and says, I write these things that you may know you have eternal life. And so, listen, folks, none of that’s optional. We go, of course not. I get it. I know it’s not optional. But you know what? Sometimes folks act like it’s optional. And I don’t believe our struggle, and I’m not going to spend much time on this, is in regard to the convictions part of it. We do pretty good with that. I don’t face challenges on a regular basis among the Lord’s people with somebody denying that Jesus came in the flesh. That doesn’t come up. People pretty grounded on that.

Or terms of admission into the body of Christ. We’ve got that pretty nailed down. We’ve been doing that every Sunday morning in our study of Acts for several. We got that. Not having any pushback on that. The nature of worship, though there’s a lot of implementation and improvisation that goes on in the religious world, you know, not hearing a lot of hankering for instrumental music in this group, or altering worship in some unauthorized fashion, or even the nature of the work that we do collectively. I mean, our convictions, pretty solid. Now, some of us might admit some struggles from time to time in regard to the moral test. And John is basically saying in 1 John, we’ve all had problems here. I mean, if anyone says he has not sinned, he’s a liar.

And the truth is not in him. And he says, again, and this is a very comparable statement to the chapter 5 statement in 1 John 2 and verse 1. He says, I write these things what? You can complete the sentence, right? I write these things that you may not sin, but even if we do happen to stumble and it’s not ideal if we do, it’s never ideal if we do. Don’t ever start thinking about the practice of sin. Well, it can be forgiven. Sin is always a big deal. Please get that. But yes, there is a remedy. We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He’s the propitiation for our sins and not for our sins only, but for the sins of the whole world.

And so, okay, that’s not the end of the story. He says, I write these things as you may not send. And so we might acknowledge tonight some struggles, perhaps more so in the moral area than the convictions area.

But I believe perhaps an even greater challenge.

But perhaps one that we might tend to focus so much on the moral test. Controlling our thoughts in relation to lust, for instance, or greed or selfishness or pride. And certainly there’s a lot of work to be done in an ongoing way in regard to that or our tongue. So the moral test is formidable. I wonder if we give as much effort and attention and work to the social test. For some reason, my experience has been we tend to look at this test as the most optional of the three. When the least little bit of upset happens, or somebody gets sideways with me and the way I think, my opinions, or my analysis of a given text, even though it may not be that earth shaking in regard to its ultimate implications, the fact that they would have the audacity to disagree with me.

All bets are off. And the way we treat and regard others can get really optional. And I think that’s really what John is dealing with in that section that we read. But what if you just don’t like someone? Oh, I know. In an ideal world, we will love all brethren because they are our brethren in Christ. As I quoted before, isn’t it pretty to think so? But the reality is, because we come from so many different backgrounds and have so many different personalities, some brethren aren’t going to mess with you as well as others. What if you just plain don’t like someone? And all of a sudden, their well-being and salvation doesn’t mean as much to you anymore. But the fact that you just don’t like them.

And may I suggest that you’ve now moved the pendulum toward the hate meter. You know, when John is talking about hatred of your brother, he’s not saying, I just despise them. I hope they get in a car wreck and die. That’s not the kind of extreme he’s talking about. He’s just talking about you don’t care what happens to them at all. You don’t have any compassion where they’re concerned. You don’t have any regard for them. If they’re lost, they’re lost. No big deal. That’s just as much hatred as loathing someone. And let me just throw this in. There is no special exemption here in regard to the treatment of preachers. Sometimes they get treated in local churches like there’s some kind of strange commodity that has special rules.

I know I may be a strange commodity, but it’s like, again, no rules apply. You can treat a preacher however you want to, especially if you want to get rid of him. It doesn’t matter what it means to his family. It doesn’t matter what impact it’s going to have on the congregation. I’ve gotten sideways with a preacher, and I want him out of here. And I’m going to say this now before something happens between me and a brother. Nothing going on. I’m just saying. It’s like special rules for the preacher. I’m sorry, you have to love me too. And I’ll just want to say this in conclusion about this.

You know, I could talk about loving your brother, as we say until the cows come home. But until you work on the attitude that you have toward others and realize that no matter what kind of conflict that may take place, that I’m supposed to possess this desire for the wellness and life, the spiritual life and eternal life of my brother.

6. Abide in These Things Despite the Passing of Time

And so what we learn in 1 John, and I said emphasize that word, abide, is that we must continue in these things to evidence the eternal life that is in us. Evidence that we have indeed passed out of death and into life because these qualities are ours. Now I’ll tell you what the problem is here. There is this one great big issue that affects all this. And it’s simply the passing of time. Because as time goes on, what can happen almost imperceptibly, that is, you don’t even notice it, is that your perspective changes. And you don’t even detect it when it happens. Over time, perspective can be altered. And that’s what we learned from the churches of Asia Minor in the book of Revelation. Something happened.

I don’t think the people in Laodicea, hey, we’re a bunch of lukewarm Christians here. They didn’t see it until Jesus said it. Well, there might have been a few who perceived it, but overall they probably thought they were doing pretty good in Laodicea. Or they had left their first love in Ephesus. They had a name, they were alive, but they were dead in Sardis. I’m not sure they really assessed that in themselves until they got the letter. Something happens in the way we look at things. I’ll tell you what else happens. The cultivation of these qualities, I said, you’ve got to have, you’ve got to work at it. It doesn’t just magically happen. I think sometimes we just get tired. I’ve achieved enough. I’ve, you know, the convictions thing.

I’ve got the right convictions about so many verses. I’ve said in so many Bible classes. Surely I’ve done enough by now. And this ongoing work we need to do to make sure we’re, again, complying in all three areas. We get tired. And another thing affects it, and that is we get enthralled with the world. And that’s why after his treatise on the resurrection, Paul makes the admonition that he does. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, as much as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. Ongoing faith, abiding in these things. I want to tell you, as long as you abide in these things, eternal life is yours. It’ll be abundantly supplied to you, Peter said.

Conclusion

Be diligent to make your calling and election sure. He said in the previous verse in 2 Peter chapter 1 and verse 10, or as the New American Standard says, make certain of his calling and choosing you. That’s what I’m talking about tonight. As we abide in these things, eternal life is signed, sealed, and delivered for you. You have passed out of death and into life. You have eternal life. And you’ve already received a taste, as the Hebrew writer said, of the heavenly gift. It’s just an extension beyond your death into the presence of God. And so we sing, and rightfully so. As we ask finally this question, is eternal life abiding in you? Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine, air of salvation, purchase of God, born of his spirit, and washed in his blood.

Is eternal life abiding in you? Have you embraced his salvation and this assurance? And as we go on to sing in that song, watching and waiting, looking above, filled with his goodness, lost in his love. Such a person has eternal life abiding in them. And so, when the role is called up yonder, will you be there? Let’s stand and sing.