…appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Please turn to 1 John, chapter 1, from verse 1 through verse 4.
That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we contemplated, and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life—
and the life has been manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father, and has been manifested to us—
that which we have seen and heard we report to you, that ye also may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.
And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
And finally, the Gospel according to John, chapter 17, verse 3.
And this is life eternal, that they should know Thee, the only true God, and Him whom Thou didst send, even Jesus Christ.
Dear Lord, we do thank Thee for gathering us together here this morning unto Thyself. We remember Thy promise to us: “Where two or three are gathered together unto My name, there am I in the midst of them.” And Thou art always keeping Thy promise.
So we believe that Thou art here, and this makes this a holy ground. Lord, we do want to remove our shoes, stand in the place of Thy bondservants, look up to Thee, and say, “Lord, what Thou hast to say to us, speak. Thy servants hear, that we may do Thy will.” We ask in Thy precious name. Amen.
Dear brothers and sisters, in recent months and years, the Lord seemed to impress upon my heart one thing, and that is to go back to the basics.
We are all living at the end of the end days. This is a dangerous time. We see temptations all around us, violence, sin, and departure from the truth everywhere.
And as we are living in such a time, what should we do? To me, I feel there is one thing we need to do: examine our foundation, to see if our foundation is firm, so that no matter when the wind blows and the rain falls, the house will stand.
And I believe that among the foundations, there is one thing that we can consider together before the Lord at this time. I think this is the very basic of the basics: it is eternal life.
I believe that all who are here this morning have experienced eternal life. We who were once dead in sins and transgressions had no hope, no future; and yet, by the grace of God, He sent His beloved Son, our Lord Jesus, into this world.
God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have eternal life.
So thank God, by His grace, every one of us in this room, I believe, has experienced eternal life. We thank God that through Jesus Christ our sins have been forgiven. Not only has He delivered us out of hell, but He has given us eternal life.
Eternal life is the gift of God. And the Bible says that God’s gifts know no repentance. In other words, once that gift is given, He will not call it back.
You know, I often think of children. When they are playing together, they may be able to share their toys; but then, after a little while, you find something happens, and they begin to fight for their toys. You will find them saying, “This is mine.”
We can sometimes give people something when we are on good terms, but when we are not so, I think it is the tendency of man to say, “This is mine,” and take it back. But God is not like man. When He has given, He will never ask it back.
So I think, brothers and sisters, at least all of us here know that God has given us eternal life, and we will never lose that eternal life. Once given, forever yours.
You know, as I recall, when I was young, the generation before me did not even know whether they were saved, whether they had eternal life or not.
The former generation was very pious, very godly, as it were. But if you asked them, “Do you have eternal life?” they would say, “No, you cannot say that. You have to behave well, believe continuously, and when you die and go to heaven, then it will be decided whether you can enter in or not.” You never knew whether you had eternal life.
That was my former generation. But thank God, in my generation, it seemed as if God gave us revelation and restored our basic truth. Among my generation, people who believed in the Lord Jesus had the assurance of faith. They knew they had eternal life. It was a common thing among God’s people.
But again, if you asked them, “What is eternal life?” many people in my generation would say, “Well, eternal life is something God has given to us as an insurance policy. When you die, by that policy you can enter into heaven. But it is not something for today.”
Now, brothers and sisters, I believe probably you know better now.
In the late sixties, I was invited to Peru to visit a couple of missionaries. They loved the Lord. They went there to evangelize the natives.
They lived in a place called Yurimaguas. I had to fly in because there was no highway going in. They spent six months on a boat, sailing on the Amazon River and visiting villages; then half a year they lived on a truck, going over the high mountains in Peru and visiting those natives. They loved the Lord very much.
One day they heard that a Chinese family had moved to Peru, and that family was Christian. So they came to visit the Chinese family, a family that I knew very well.
During their conversation, it was discovered that this missionary and his wife, even though they sacrificed for the Lord, loved the Lord, preached the gospel, and led people to Christ, did not know that eternal life is now—it begins now.
They told people, “If you believe in the Lord Jesus, you will have eternal life. Then, when you die, you go to heaven.” That was all they did.
So through their fellowship, they began to realize that eternal life begins today. They told my friends, “We will preach the gospel, telling our people that eternal life is not just for the future. Eternal life is now. You can live that life even today.”
My friend invited me to visit them, so I spent three weeks with them, traveling with them on the Amazon River and also over the high mountains.
So, brothers and sisters, I believe you who are here certainly know better. We know that eternal life is the gift of God, and we know that when His life is given to us, it is meant to be lived today and to live forevermore.
As I was reading 1 Timothy, chapter 6, we know that this letter was written by Paul to his son in Christ, Timothy.
Timothy naturally was a timid person. He was not an outgoing person, an introvert. And the apostle Paul tried to encourage him.
Toward the end of his letter, he said, “Strive earnestly in the good conflict of faith.” In other words, even at that time it was not easy for Christians to live among unbelievers. They were surrounded by temptations and assaults, and we need to fight the fight of faith in order to be maintained in faith.
Then he said, “Lay hold on eternal life.” Now, this word, “lay hold on eternal life,” arrested me.
Is not eternal life the gift of God? Is not eternal life something that we already have? Not only that, but we will never lose it. God will never take it back from us. We have the assurance.
And yet, when you read this word, “Lay hold on eternal life,” the word “lay hold” simply means seize upon it, get hold of it. It is as if something can slip from you.
You know, in Matthew 11, our Lord Jesus said that the kingdom of the heavens is taken by violence, and the violent seize upon it.
The violence here, of course, does not mean doing violence to other people. It means doing violence to yourself—deny yourself. Only the violent seize upon it.
It means something that you have to hold. You have to catch it. You have to strive, as it were. That is laying hold on eternal life.
Now, is there a contradiction here? On the one hand, we know eternal life is the gift of God, and God is not like man. Once He has given us that gift, it is yours forever. You will never lose it. It is safe.
And yet, on the other hand, when you read this verse, “Lay hold on eternal life,” it is as if something can be missed. You have to be very careful, very diligent. You have to strive, as it were, in order that you will enjoy its full fullness.
So what does it mean, “Lay hold on eternal life”? Well, as you read on, you will find, “to which thou wast called.” In other words, you find eternal life is not only a gift of God, but eternal life is a calling of God.
When you receive a gift, it is yours. You will not lose it, no matter how you behave. “Once saved, forever saved”—that is a slogan used through the centuries. But when you come to this matter of calling, now it is something different.
Eternal life is also a calling. In other words, when God gives us eternal life, within that gift there is a calling to all those who have received that gift.
And we all know a calling is a calling to something. The Scripture tells us that our calling is a heavenly calling, a holy calling, and an on-high calling.
What do all these mean? It simply means that when God calls us, when God gives us eternal life, within the life there is a calling or a fulfillment.
That is to say, when God calls us, He does not call us according to our need. He calls us according to His character, to His glory, and to His virtue. That is what we find in 2 Peter 1: God has called us according to His virtue, according to His nature.
So, brothers and sisters, I think there is something that we need to be very clear about: we who have received eternal life, together with that, have received a calling.
And what is that calling? You know Romans 8. Whom God has foreknown, He has predestinated us to be conformed to the image of His beloved Son. Whom He has predestinated, He has called; whom He has called, He has justified; and whom He has justified, He has glorified.
In other words, He has called us to glory. Now, glory is a word that is most difficult to define, but we know whenever God appears, there is glory. So, in other words, glory almost is synonymous with God.
And God calls us by giving us eternal life so that we may be transformed and conformed to the image of His beloved Son. And being such, we become co-heirs with Christ; and if we suffer with Him, we shall also be glorified with Him.
So, brothers and sisters, here you find eternal life is more than just a gift. Within that gift there is a calling, and it is a calling that we may be like Him.
He has given us His life. Now, for what purpose? Just to guarantee us that we can go to heaven? No.
He gave us His life so that there will be the potential and the possibility of being changed from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.
And I am afraid, brothers and sisters, that when we consider eternal life, we often neglect this part of eternal life. What is eternal life for? Why does God give us eternal life?
There is only one reason: He wants us to be like His beloved Son, so that we may become His life companion, suitable for Him.
As you read 1 Timothy 6, it continues on and says, “to which thou wast called, and didst confess the good confession in the sight of many witnesses. I charge thee in the sight of God, who preserveth all things alive, and of Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed the good confession.”
You see here that when we receive eternal life, within it we get a calling. And if we are faithful to our calling, we will have a good confession, just like our Lord Jesus.
He came into this world and bore a perfect testimony of God. Even before Pontius Pilate, His testimony was firm and strong. Yes, He suffered for His confession, but thank God, He accomplished the work of redemption.
So, brothers and sisters, we who have received a calling have our responsibility to see if we are able to bear a good testimony on this earth.
Then you find it is more than just a calling and a confession. He said it is a commandment. The Lord has commanded us that we shall fulfill our calling.
We shall keep the commandment without spot, irreproachable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Brothers and sisters, we have just sung a song of the coming of the Lord: Maranatha. Thank God, we are at the very verge of the coming of the Lord.
The Lord will come like a thief, when people are unsuspecting. Suddenly, He comes, and He will steal away His treasure.
Just like the Bible says: two are grinding the meal in the morning, two are working in the field at daytime, and two are sleeping at night. Suddenly, the Lord will come like a thief, and He will steal away one and leave the other one.
Now, of course, you know, when a thief comes, he will never blow a trumpet and say, “I’m coming.” Strangely, the thief seems always to know when you are not watchful. He will come suddenly and quietly.
And he will never go to your garbage and take it. He will know where your treasure is, and he will take it, and he is gone.
Brothers and sisters, so far as the coming of the Lord is concerned, we are living in a most exciting time. He is coming any minute.
But remember, this has much to do with our calling. No doubt we all have eternal life. Now, I personally believe that the two actually represent the Christians who are still living and alive at the coming of the Lord.
The Lord promised He is coming, and He even told John in Revelation, “I come quickly.” But now it is the twenty-first century, and in every century you find God’s people who love the Lord waiting for the coming of the Lord.
Were they wrong? No. Their spirit was right, because they were waiting, they were preparing, they were fulfilling their calling, they were making a good confession, and they kept the commandment of the Lord irreproachable.
The twentieth century has already passed. I believe that those who are waiting for the Lord somehow, in our spirit, all have the sense that He is at the door—very, very close.
He will take away those who are faithful to their calling.
You know, when you read Matthew 20, our Lord Jesus used a parable. He said a man went out to engage people for his field. He went out in the morning and settled with some on the wages, so they came in and worked in his field.
Then he went out again, did the same thing, and went out again. He saw that even at late hours they were still standing there because nobody had engaged them. So the master said, “Come and work, and whatever you deserve to have, I will give it to you.”
After they finished the day’s work, you remember the master said to the steward, “Give them the wages. Begin with the last one.” When the last one, who came only an hour before the work was done, received a denarius—a day’s wage—those who began in the early morning said, “Well, of course, we must have more.”
But strangely, the master also gave them the same money, and they were unhappy about it. So what did the Lord say? He said, “Many are called, but few are chosen.”
Because those who worked from the early day worked for wages. But those who worked later had no idea of wages in their eyes. They just worked for the sake of love.
And in Matthew 22, you find our Lord Jesus used another parable. A man had a marriage feast prepared, but those invited were too busy. They refused to come to the marriage feast. They wanted to be excused, but as you read into all these excuses, they were a little bit inexcusable.
But anyway, the Lord asked people to go to the byways and highways and brought many in to fill that wedding feast.
And then the Lord would come in. You know, in the early days, when people were invited to a royal feast, they would always be given a garment for the feast. So every guest would have a garment on.
But there was one person who thought that his own garment was good enough for the king’s table, so he refused to receive that garment. You remember the master saw it and threw him out.
Again, the Lord said, “Many are called, but few are chosen.”
So, in other words, whether it is work or whether it is life, you know, in Matthew 20 it refers to work. We who believe in the Lord Jesus are also His servants, His mates. We are supposed to work for Him, not for ourselves.
But how often we work for wages instead of for the love of God. The apostle Paul was constrained by the love of Christ.
In the church in Ephesus, in Revelation 2, they had everything right, but they had lost their first love. Because of this, the Lord said, “Unless you repent, your candlestick will be removed.”
So, brothers and sisters, we who are saved, we who have eternal life, are supposed to live for Christ, work for Christ, and labor for Christ. But what are we doing? Do we really serve Him with first love?
With whatever profession we may have, our life is to serve Him. It is out of love. But are we doing that?
And the same thing is true about our life. Do we consider ourselves good enough to be in the wedding feast of our Lord Jesus, or do we put on Christ—put on the work of the Holy Spirit, Who works Christ in us—that we may be worthy to be at the marriage?
All these, you find, are connected with our calling. We need to make our calling sure.
Thank God, we have eternal life. That is for sure. But whether that eternal life is fully realized, whether that life in us is fully grown and conformed to the image of Christ, that is something for which all of us need to be responsible.
So this is one thing that I feel very deeply in my heart. Thank God, He has saved us. He has given us eternal life. But, brothers and sisters, do remember that eternal life is also a calling to every one of us.
And when you come to this matter of calling, we have a tremendous responsibility.
Now, what is eternal life? Is eternal life a package of gifts that God gives to you when you believe in the Lord Jesus, or is eternal life something more?
Usually we consider eternal life as a thing. But if you read the Scripture very carefully, you will find that eternal life is more than a thing given to you.
It is as if God has many things, many spiritual things, heavenly things, and if you ask for one, He gives you one; if you ask for another, He gives you another; and eternal life is one of the gifts.
But when you read the Scripture, you will find what eternal life really is.
In John 17, it tells us what eternal life is: “And this is eternal life, to know the living God and to know Him whom He has sent.” This is eternal life.
Eternal life is not a thing. Eternal life is a person.
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. In John 1:4, “In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.”
In John 14, the Lord said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one cometh unto the Father, but by Me.”
In 1 John 1, the apostle John said, “That which was from the beginning”—that is eternity—“that which we have heard,” that is what we have heard from the prophets in the old days; “that which we have seen,” this is after our Lord Jesus became flesh and tabernacled among men.
These apostles saw Him with their naked eyes. “That which we have contemplated”—many saw the Lord Jesus while He was in the flesh, but few contemplated, really meditated, thought, and were illuminated by the Holy Spirit to see that He is none other than the Son of God.
“And that which we have touched”—that refers to His resurrection, because the Lord said to Thomas, “Touch Me. Put your finger to My wounds.” It is the Word of life.
He said, “The eternal life which we have seen and contemplated we report to you, that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with the Son, that your joy may be full.”
So, brothers and sisters, when you put all these Scriptures together, you see very clearly: eternal life is not a thing. Eternal life is Christ.
When God gives you eternal life, it is in His Son. First John 5 tells us, “He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life.”
So eternal life is living, vibrant, spiritual, and heavenly. Eternal life is Christ Jesus Himself.
Now just think for a moment: when you believe in the Lord Jesus, what really did God give to you?
Probably we think, “Well, what God has given to me is remission of my sins.” Indeed, our sins are the big problem to us. No one can solve our sins, but thank God, through Jesus Christ our sins are forgiven.
And maybe you are thinking, “Well, I do not have life. This life of mine is a fallen life, a sinful life. I cannot do what I want to do, but I do what I know I should not do. O wretched man that I am! Who can deliver me?” Thank God, through Jesus Christ.
Brothers and sisters, God not only forgives our sins. He restores our dead spirit and makes it a new spirit. He Himself comes into our very spirit, and even His Holy Spirit comes and dwells in our spirit.
Now the question is: why did He do all these things? Is not our sin forgiven enough? No, because if our spirit is still dead in sins and transgressions, there will be no contact with God.
So our spirit had to be renewed. “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” So, dear brothers and sisters, when we believe in the Lord Jesus, at that time not only are our sins forgiven, but our dead spirit is quickened into life.
And God Himself, our Lord Jesus, comes into our spirit and becomes the life in our spirit.
But that is not good enough for God. He even gives us His Holy Spirit to dwell in our spirit. You know, if anyone does not have the Spirit of God, he is not of God.
So when we believe in the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes and dwells in us. Now why? To see to it that the life of Christ in us will grow, will mature, and that we will be transformed to His own image.
Because we already have His life, dear brothers and sisters, you can see all the provisions that God has given to us—not only for us to be saved, but even to fulfill our calling.
Now, in view of that, I believe there is an urgency among God’s people today. That is the reason why Peter, when he wrote his last letter, in 2 Peter 1, beginning with verse 3, said:
Seeing that His divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that called us by His own glory and virtue;
whereby He hath granted unto us His precious and exceeding great promises; that through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust.
What a provision that God has provided for us. He called us by glory and virtue, and He has given us all things—nothing left—which relate to life and godliness.
Now, godliness simply means to be like God. You have the life of God now. Now this life has to mature, that you may be like Him.
All these things have been given to us through Christ Jesus. All spiritual blessings in the heavenlies have been given to us in Christ Jesus. It is all in Christ, and it is all by the Holy Spirit that this will be brought into fruition.
God has done it all. But what is our responsibility?
In verse 5: “But for this very reason also, using therewith all diligence.”
In verse 10: “Wherefore, brethren, give the more diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never stumble: for thus shall be richly supplied unto you the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
So, brothers and sisters, I would like to conclude this morning with this exhortation.
God has given us everything by giving us His beloved Son. And Christ Jesus today lives in us—not to be dormant, but to be living, active, and vibrant.
But how can we be transformed and conformed to His image? Not by outward imitation, but by the inward work of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit transfers us, as it were, out of ourselves and into Christ. He works to constitute Christ into us.
The Holy Spirit will work patiently with us throughout our life. Oh, brothers and sisters, I do thank the Lord that the Holy Spirit is so patient.
You may grieve Him, you may quench Him, you may not obey Him, but He will never leave you nor forsake you, because He has a mission in you. He wants to see that the Christ-life in you becomes your very life.
Not only your very life, but even in all your service and ministry toward God, because only this will be accepted. So we need to be diligent.
We dare not lie back, cheating ourselves that we are safe anyway and that we have eternal life.
We have a commandment. We have a confession to make, a witness to bear, and we have to be diligent so that our calling and election may be sure. We may be able to enter into the kingdom of God richly furnished.
So may the Lord stir our hearts. Brothers and sisters, this is not a time for us to go to sleep. We need to be stirred up by the Spirit of God.
Rise up. Seek Him diligently. Allow the Holy Spirit to do His work in you. Obey Him.
And if we need to suffer, thank God, we will be able to reign with Him, as we find in the Word of God.
So may these few words encourage us, that we may be ready for our coming Lord. God bless you. Shall we pray?
Dear Lord, our hearts are full of gratitude. We who were hopeless and helpless, dead in sins and transgressions, had no hope.
And yet, Lord, Thou in Thy great mercy hast sent Thy beloved Son into this world, not only to accomplish the work of redemption on Calvary’s cross, but even today, before Thy throne, He is our High Priest, living forever to intercede for us in order to save us to the uttermost.
O dear Lord, we do pray that the Holy Spirit will stir up our hearts, that we may not be as those who miss the way, who remain babes all our life.
O dear Lord, touch us. Quicken us, that we may rise up and follow Thee. Wheresoever Thou goest, Lord, we will go.
That Thy purpose in saving us might be fully realized, to the praise of Thine own glory. We ask it in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.