(ADVENT 8) Unwrapping Christmas: Eternal Life

The passage that opens up the 3rd chapter of Colossians provides a sweeping look at the eternal life that Jesus has provided for us and what it means. We can see these words:
1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.
2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

The third verse tells us our lives are hidden with Him; the fourth reminds us that He is our life.

 Ephesians 2 relates:

6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

We are seated with Christ - our lives are hidden with Him in heaven. The Scripture teaches that we are citizens of heaven.  So, when we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior and were born again, we received eternal life - we do not belong to this world anymore, and our lives are to reflect that "other-worldliness," walking in God's ways, which are superior to the ways of the world. We can consider how that eternal life affects how we live.

+++++

We are now on Day 8 of our Faith Radio Advent Guide, "25: A Christmas Advent-ure," and we have been, as I say, "unwrapping" gifts that God has given to us.  The overall theme of the guide is Unwrapping Christmas, and the gift of Day 8 is eternal life. 

There is a familiar Scripture verse that corresponds to today's entry. It's found in John 3, and I want to share that verse - verse 16 - as well as the following one:
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

God loves us so much that He sent His Son, in order that through His death, we might have life.  Certainly, we are taught that believers in Christ will live with Jesus forever. So, we can be confident of our eternal destiny.  Heaven has come to earth, and we are now representatives of heaven on earth - citizens of heaven who have been placed here for a purpose, to reflect the glory of God.

CBN.com recently ran a story that proclaimed: "a new study reveals Scripturally-engaged Americans are 'far more likely than others to donate to charity.'” This study was conducted by the American Bible Society, and the article related:

In fact, the majority of these individuals — people who interact consistently with Scripture and allow it to shape their lives and relationships — report giving to such causes, according to the eighth chapter of “The State of the Bible” report.

“Americans who are engaged with the Bible gave $145 billion to charitable causes in 2021,” a statement from the American Bible Society read. “And … Practicing Christians, those who are actively living out their faith, are much more likely to give.”

To break it down, the story notes: "Bible-engaged Americans gave a total of $145 billion to charities in 2021, amounting to about $2,907 per household. The same figure for the Bible disengaged was just $924."  Another interesting piece of information: "Scripturally engaged Americans account for just 19% of adults yet give 44% of every dollar donated."

This is called putting faith in action, taking the responsibility to be ambassadors for Christ, representatives of heaven, seriously.  The CBN story went on to say:

“People who are Scripture-engaged gave six-times as much to churches as those in the Movable Middle and 13-times as much as those who are Bible-disengaged,” a statement explained. “When it comes to non-church giving, Scripture-engaged Americans gave 9% more than the Bible-disengaged and 165% more than the Movable Middle.”

Because Jesus loved us so much, we now have access to eternal life. Because He loves us, we can love others, and display to the world through our unselfishness the life that God has given to us.

Eternal life will impact our life here and now - we are seated with Christ in heavenly places, the Bible says, and because we are sealed for eternity and confident in the Lord, that can impact the spiritual quality of our lives today - after all, Jesus said that He came to give us abundant life. So, are we living as if we have eternal life?

We have been saved and sealed, we are being sanctified, and the fruit of our relationship with Christ will impact how we live now.  We are called and empowered for a life of obedience - so we can consider how that new life, that eternal life, activates us today.