In my “Gospel According to Scripture” online discipleship course, one of the lessons presents 10 reasons you can know that you have eternal life in Jesus Christ. Following this, the course also looks as numerous texts from the Gospel of John in which Jesus promises eternal life to those who believe in Him for it (cf. John 1:12-13; 3:14-16; 5:24; 6:35-40; 10:27-30; 11:25-26).
After we look at these texts in the course, I ask if Jesus lies. He doesn’t, of course. So if Jesus does not lie, and Jesus promises eternal life to those who believe in Him for it, and eternal life (by definition) is eternal, then … if you believe in Jesus for eternal life … you have it. Jesus guarantees it!
Here is a small section from my online course:
Jesus Does Not Lie
The bottom line truth about eternal security from the Gospel of John is this: Do we think Jesus was telling the truth or lying? If eternal life can be lost, then we must say that Jesus was hiding the truth. But since Jesus does not lie, we can know Jesus is telling the truth in the Gospel of John when He promises eternal life to all who believe in Him for it.
J. Wilbur Chapman was a 19th century American evangelist who was greatly used by God to spread the good news of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. Here is what he wrote about how D. L. Moody used John 5:24 to show him that he could be sure he had eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ:
I was studying for the ministry, and I heard that D. L. Moody was to preach in Chicago. I went to hear him. Finally I got into his aftermeeting. I shall never forget the thrill that went through me when he came and sat down beside me as an inquirer. He asked me if I was a Christian. I said, “Mr. Moody, I am not sure whether I am a Christian or not.”
He very kindly took his Bible and opened it to the fifth chapter of John, and the twenty-fourth verse, which reads as follows: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life.”
Suppose you had read it through for the first time, wouldn’t you think it was wonderful? I read it through, and he said, “Do you believe it?”
I said, “Yes.”
“Do you accept it?”
I said, “Yes.”
“Well, are you a Christian?”
“Mr. Moody, I sometimes think I am, and sometimes I am afraid I am not.”
He very kindly said, “Read it again.”
So I read it again, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life.”
Then he said, “Do you believe it?”
I said, “Yes.”
“Do you receive Him?”
I said, “Yes.”
“Well,” he said, “are you a Christian?”
I just started to say over again that sometimes I was afraid I was not, when the only time in all the years I knew him and loved him, he was sharp with me. He turned on me with his eyes flashing and said, “See here, whom are you doubting?” Then I saw it for the first time, that when I was afraid I was not a Christian I was doubting [a promise of Jesus Himself!] I read it again with my eyes overflowing with tears. Since that day I have had many sorrows and many joys, but never have I doubted for a moment that I was a Christian, because God said it.
Jesus does not lie. And since Jesus says over and over in the Gospel of John that those who believe in Him will have everlasting life and will not perish, will not die, will not ever thirst, and will not ever be taken out of God’s hand, we must either agree with what Jesus says, or doubt His word and believe that we know better. As for myself, I believe that Jesus was speaking the truth and that I have eternal life through faith in Him, no matter what. We are eternally secure in the hands of God.
Want to learn more about the gospel? Take my new course, "The Gospel According to Scripture."
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Yep!
Jesus is not a man to lie or the son of man to repent.
I agree Jesus did not lie but he was a man.
I don’t doubt the words of Jesus at all, but what happens when you doubt yourself i.e. sometimes something inside your head questions – “do you truly believe?” and then you worry about your own level of belief or commitment. So it’s not Jesus you’re doubting but you!
Yes it ourselves we doubt, and sometimes when I go to different Churches many times they say things like ” If you were to wake up at the doors of heaven, and you saw Jesus, are you sure that based on how you have been living so far, would he let you in ?” A question like that makes people doubt themselves.
Yes so true, I think we often make people doubt themselves and if they are a Christian. When all they have to do is as John 5:24 says. Its really not that complicated.
So, on the basis of John 5:24, Dan Barker, the author of _God: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction_ is guaranteed a place in heaven.
Jeremy, I believe the second paragraph should read …so if Jesus doesn’t lie… not …so if Jesus does lie.
I do believe according to verses like John 3:16 and 1 John 5:13 that we should have confidence in our salvation. However, Just as a third of the angels fell from grace and as Adam and Eve fell and needed a Savior, I do believe that our names can be removed from the book of life (Rev 3:5 ‘R1He who overcomesG3528 will thusG3779 be clothedG4016 in R2whiteG3022 garmentsG2440; and I will not R3eraseG1813 his nameG3686 from the bookG976 of lifeG2222, and R4I will confessG3670 his nameG3686 beforeG1799 My FatherG3962 and beforeG1799 His angelsG32a. ) Blessings and Prayers