Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Life.


John 8:12 - Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Our pastor, Terry Fischer, spoke on Abundant Life on resurrection Sunday. He searched scriptures and read several to show us examples of what the Bible says about life. It was a great word study. Only through a relationship with Jesus Christ can we have an abundant life, one not just of living happily, but overflowing. Before I posted this blog, I reviewed my emails and found his Eyesalve devotion, highlighted above.

So...I sat down this morning and did my own research on the word. I searched a concordance and chose scripture after scripture on that one single word, life.

Surprisingly enough...but not really...life just always points to Jesus. Without Him we have no life, no eternal life. We are dead in this world unless we have Him in our lives, in our hearts and that His words are alive and living within us as well. Let me give you some examples I came up with.

In Him is life - John 1:4
The Son brings life - John 11:25, 1John 5:11-12, John 6:40, John 10:28, John 5:26
The Spirit gives life - John 6:63, Romans 8:10
In Christ we have eternal life - 1john 5:11, John 6:47, Romans 6:23
Belief in Jesus is life - John 3:15
Christ is our life - Colossians 3:4
The Good Shepherd gives life - John 10:11
Hope in Christ is life - 1Corinthians 15:19
The Lord redeems life - Psalm 103:4, Psalm 72:14
Christ in me is life - Galatians 2:20

Then there were others describing other forms of life that only Christ gives to us:
Jesus is the:
Bread of life - John 6:35, 48, 51
Fountain of life - Psalm 36:9
Word of life - John 6:63, Psalm 119:50
Righteousness - Proverbs 12:28
Lovingkindness - Psalm 63:3
Truth - John 14:6, 20:31
Water - John 4:14
Narrow gate - Matthew 7:14
Wisdom, discretion - Proverbs 12:28
(God's) precepts (Word) - Psalm 119:93

There are also these examples:
Sound heart, wholesome tongue, understanding, humility, fear of the Lord, spiritual mindedness, instruction
Faith - 1Timothy 6:12
Seeking the Kingdom - Luke 12:28-29, 31

Many of the scriptures come out of the Book of John. This book is the most powerful book, I believe, pointing to Jesus and all He has for us. We see Him through the words He spoke, the healings He did, the images He gave us of who He is. His words are not all kind and loving, as some churches might say. He also has some hard sayings which He directed to Pharisees who believed because they knew the scriptures they were right with God. Jesus directed a lot of what He said to them to point out their faults. Yes, faults. He came to seek and save the lost, not those who were/are well, but those who are sick or dying in spirit of whom the Pharisees, despite their knowledge of scripture, were part.

I still find it hard to explain what belief in Christ truly means. It's not about knowing who Jesus is but knowing Him intimately...I've said it before and I'll say it again. You can know a person just by being a friend to them, but really knowing them is like being married and having an intimate relationship. You can, however, know a friend well by sharing your innermost thoughts and desires. It's the same with Jesus on a spiritual level. One can't just say they know who He is and believe that's enough. You have to get to knowing Him through His Word and His words. Read the Book of John and find out more about Him. He could really reveal Himself.

Just because we are alive in this world, that we breathe, work, love, play, marry and have children, are successful in life, have all we might desire (or not)...it doesn't mean we are alive. Being alive in the spirit is more important than alive in this world. Being alive is what one is when one receives Christ as the Lord and Savior of their life. In Him alone is eternal life. I will never be able to say it enough...it's all about Jesus.

Sadly, many do not understand this. It's that narrowness of thinking that is said believers have by unbelievers, or those just a little misguided in their thinking, those whose thinking is skewed because it is not the "normal" way of thinking by most others. Jesus described it Himself. There is life in that narrow way.

Matthew 7:13-14 - Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

No comments:

Post a Comment