According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, life expectancy at birth in the United States is as follows. Males: 73.5 years, and Females: 79.3 years. This is as far as human life as we know it is concerned.
However, God freely offers ‘another’ kind of life, which is “eternal life.” And it is available free to all humans. A person can either accept it or reject it. Eternal life means exactly what it says, that is, to live forever.
Those who have trusted Jesus Christ as their Savior are assured of having eternal life. The Bible says, “God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:11-13).
The Bible also says, “God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
Dr Charles Stanley explains what eternal life is, and what it does under the topic: “What is eternal life?” He writes as follows: “It includes not only quantity of life, but quality of life. Eternal life can be defined as an everlasting duration off life that includes intimacy and fellowship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.”
“The wise person will choose to live with Christ in eternity. There are three different kinds of death: physical death, spiritual death while physically alive, and eternal death—separation from God forever for those who don’t accept Christ during their earthly lives (Heb. 9:27; Eph. 2:1). Our bodies will die, sooner or later, but our selves will continue to exist with everlasting life or death.
“Eternal life is a Gift from God. Serving the Lord, giving, praying, worshipping, and reading Scripture are all part of the Christian life. But those activities aren’t the reason why God sees us as righteous or considers us fit for eternal life with Him.”
“It is a gift. “The wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord: (Rom. 6:23).
“It is not based on our good deeds. “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we did in righteousness, but in accordance with His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5; see also Eek. 18:4, 20). (Excerpted From Sermon Notes From In Touch With Dr. Charles Stanley).
If you have never accepted eternal life as a free gift from God, why not embrace this present opportunity to do so? There’s no time like the present time. And tomorrow is not guaranteed.
Doing so could be one of the best decisions you will ever make. First, you must be willing to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior since it is only through Him that eternal life is obtained. Therefore, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).
Here is the crucial choice one has to make: “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:12,13).
To do the right thing, this should be your response: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Romans 10:9,10).
Eternal life starts immediately when a person accepts Jesus Christ as Savior. May the Lord Jesus grant it. Then you will be on your way rejoicing because of the choice you made.
If you’ve done so, you should connect with the pastor of a local Bible-believing church for further instructions and help in your new found faith.
Jesus gives us this guaranteed wonderful assurance: “Whoever comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37). Amen.