Eternal Life

The glory of God is the final and sufficient explanation for everything. God in His glory is the beginning and end of all things. When God created the world, ‘the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy’ to the praise of His glory. When the Lord Jesus came into the world, the angels sang ‘glory to God in the highest’. When the redeemed of the Lord enter heaven they shall sing, ‘Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God’. ‘For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.’

For the glory of God

When Jesus the God-man Mediator went to the cross this, too, was to glorify His Father. God is glorified in Christ’s work of redemption and salvation. Jesus’ prayer to be glorified was not for personal advancement, it was for enablement. It was a request for divine help; such was the magnitude of the task before Him. He sought strength to endure the suffering of divine wrath and to defeat the enemies of His people. The Lord Jesus knew the redemption of God’s elect and the deliverance of their souls from condemnation would glorify God’s wisdom, holiness, love, justice, mercy and grace. All the attributes of God are supremely displayed in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

Empowered for office

As God-man the Lord Jesus has been given power over all flesh, over all men and women. This differs from His power as Creator-God which is His own. This power is committed to Christ under the terms of the eternal covenant of grace and peace. It was bestowed for the fulfilment of His covenant obligations. Christ has power in His covenant office to rule over all mankind. He governs the affairs of the world. He orders the times and seasons of all people providentially. He will judge all flesh in righteousness at the world’s end.

Objects of grace

It is the power of the God-man to bestow eternal life. It is His gift to give, though it is not given arbitrarily. He gives it to all those men and women chosen by God the Father in eternal election. He gives it to those set apart by God the Holy Spirit in eternal sanctification. He gives it to those given to Him and committed to His charge to be redeemed from sin according to the terms of the covenant of grace in the eternal council. Elect sinners are not parties to this covenant, they are its beneficiaries. 

Evidence of Christ’s Godhead

Eternal life is the preserve of the eternal God and can be received only by those to whom it is given by Jesus Christ. He gives it to all those, and only those, whom the Father has given to Him. The power to give eternal life is a sure proof of Christ’s Godhead since only the eternal God can give eternal life. Christ says in Revelation, ‘I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death’. Because He lives, all who are His shall live also.

Our experience

Our experience of life eternal begins in the knowledge of God and the knowledge of Jesus Christ as revealed and believed in the gospel. Christ gives eternal life to sinners by giving them the knowledge of the true God in His holiness, justice, goodness and truth. Then He gives knowledge of Himself, the Mediator between God and man, sent by God to secure salvation by His blood and sacrifice. 

A spiritual work

Since man is fallen, dead in sin, blind to spiritual matters and ignorant of the truth there must be divine regeneration and illumination in order to know God. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. To know God is to know him as the righteous Judge, whose curse we are under. Such knowledge brings conviction and fear of everlasting separation as the Holy Ghost reproves us of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. We become anxious to learn about grace and eager to know Christ as our Redeemer. Eternal life is not obtained by a decision of the will. It is Christ’s gift gratefully received as liberty to a condemned man.

Christ’s own church

Saving knowledge of God and of Christ is the door of entrance to life eternal and Jesus Christ alone is the way and door of the sheep. He is Himself our eternal life, having power to open to us and grant us entrance into the presence of God. Christ has undertaken to give eternal life to as many as ‘the Father hath given him’. These are His people, given to Him by God the Father. This is His church, the jewels of His crown, the sheep of His fold, the Bride of His youth and His own spiritual body. 

Amen.