John
10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to
kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may
have it more abundantly. NKJV
The Apostle John tells us in the very first Chapter
of His epistle that in our Lord Jesus Christ is life. It seems odd and strange
to many that breathing human beings would need life to be given to them by
Jesus Christ. The people walking around on this earth talking and breathing in
the earth’s oxygen already believe they have life. The man, woman, boy, or girl
that lives in the gratifying, satisfying, and glorifying of the physical
pleasures found in this physical visible world along with indulging every
sensual, sexual, and sultry lust of the flesh is dead already while they live (1 Timothy 5:6).
Our Lord Jesus warned humanity to take heed about
being covetous for temporary things (Luke
12:15). We learn from the lips of our Lord Jesus that it is He who has come
to give His life for the sheep of His pasture (the souls of individual human
beings that He will redeem by His Blood) that they would through His life be
granted new life (John 10:11). We
learned from our Lord Jesus in John 5:21-30
that those who are dead and buried in their graves will hear His voice, but
also He said that those who are alive but dead spiritually in their trespasses and
sins will hear His voice and live. Since we now see that despite men and women
being alive physically, they still apart from Him are dead spiritually and need
His life in them to truly have real life. The question then is what kind of
life our Lord Jesus Christ gives.
We need to look closely into the most important
words found in this 10th verse of John Chapter 10. The first word is
actually the English phrase “that they
may have” and it comes from the Greek word “echo” and it is a primary verb which means to hold or to have
ability; to be possessed with; to hold as a relation or condition; and finally
to enjoy. The second word is also from another English phrase “it more abundantly” and it comes from
the Greek word “perissos” and it has
the sense of beyond or beyond measure and life that is superior in quality; a
life marked by preeminence; exceeding abundantly above (used in the same sense
as Ephesians 3:20).
These words spoken by our Lord Jesus have been used
by many thieves to sell snake oil to untaught, unsuspecting, and unregenerate
people throughout the ages promising them that God wants them to be rich. So
many thieves have used this verse to fleece people out of their money and into
their pockets making only the false teaching, stealing, and killing thief or snake
oil salesman rich financially (2 Peter 2:1-3).
Our Lord will provide every need for His true sheep and they will never lack
anything, but He did not die in order that men would build their own kingdoms
here on this earth. This is why He told us to lay up our treasures in heaven
and that we would receive true riches in a vibrant and real relationship with
Him. Why would the One who walked in ministry for 3 ½ years with no place of
His own to call home tell His sheep to seek earthly riches. He would not and He
did not ever convey this message through this passage of Scripture or any
other.
These two words tell us the whole truth and nothing
but the truth of what message our Lord Jesus Christ conveyed to those disciples
then as well as to His true disciples today. The message is the life He gives
to every sinner who comes to Him in repentance and faith is a life superior in
quality to the life once lived under the mastery of sin, guilt, and shame. The
life our Lord Jesus Christ gives to every one of His blood bought children is
one of overcoming the corrupt world, the corrupt flesh, and the corrupt devil. Our
Lord Jesus Christ does not wait for us to die physically to then give us this
life, but we are given life by Him the moment we truly trust Him and we are
then regenerated and born again by the Holy Spirit. What kind of life does our
Lord give? Our Lord Jesus gives us eternal life (true spiritual life
forevermore) that can never be forfeited, revoked, lost, or even abandoned by
the receiver. Once a soul is purchased by His Blood it is eternally safe,
satisfied, and secure.
John
10:26-30 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and
they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish;
neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them
to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My
Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” NKJV
Hebrews
7:25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God
through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. NKJV
“Saving faith is an immediate relation to Christ,
accepting, receiving, and resting upon Him alone, for justification,
sanctification, and eternal life by virtue of God’s grace.” Charles Spurgeon
“It ought to be placed in the forefront of all
Christian teaching that Christ’s mission on earth was to give men Life. ‘I am come,’ He said, ‘that ye
might have Life, and that ye might have it more abundantly.’ And that He
meant literal Life, literal spiritual and Eternal Life is clear from the whole
course of His teaching and acting.” Henry Drummond
“Eternal life is not a peculiar feeling inside! It
is not your ultimate destination, to which you will go when you are dead. If
you are born again, eternal life is that quality of life that you possess right
now.” Major Ian Thomas
“The God Who can change a sinner into a Christian by
giving him His life can
equally transform the fleshly Christian into a spiritual one by giving him His life more abundantly.”
“Eternal life means more than mere future blessing to be enjoyed by believers;
it is equally a kind of spiritual ability.” “Since this life is God’s and
cannot die, it follows that everyone born anew into possessing this life is
said to have eternal life.” Watchman Nee
If
you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this
from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear
Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I
believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from
the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn
from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control
of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you
Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus
Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and
Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple
I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reader,
Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…
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