JESUS IS LIFE
Being a Christian means being a disciple of Jesus Christ. It does not mean just holding correct theological beliefs. It is a radical surrender to Jesus in our hearts and lives. And when we make that kind of commitment to surrender ourselves to Him, He becomes our life. He is the very reason for our existence.
Jesus lives within us and is to live life through us. Through the presence of the Holy Spirit, Christ lives within us and gives life to our mortal bodies (Romans 8:10-11). He is not talking here about the bodily resurrection at the end of time. Those will be IMMORTAL bodies (1 Corinthians 15:53).
Our mortal bodies are what we live in now. And because Christ is in us (Galatians 2:20), we have life in Christ. Jesus means real living. One of the greatest verses in the New Testament is where Paul says that Christ is our life (Colossians 3:4).
There is no other way to the Father in heaven except through His Son Jesus Christ. And He gives eternal life to those who view Him as the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). Christ GIVES life, and Christ IS life Himself. And those are two things that we must never forget or lose sight of.
John makes this statement: Whoever has the Son has life, and whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life (1 John 5:11–12). We have life when we “have the Son.” This is a personal relationship with Him. When we choose Christ, when we choose to follow and love Him, we have eternal life. Without Him as the center of our life, we do not have life. So He gives life, but more than that, He IS life. Real life. Lasting life. Abundant life here (John 10:10). And eternal life in heaven.
Perhaps no greater statement has ever been made by a follower of Christ than this one: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). This is the perspective from which to view the world. This is the “correct” view of life on earth and everything about it.
Christ Himself is our reward. He is our salvation. He is our blessing. He is our Prophet, Priest and King. To us He is EVERYTHING.
So choosing to live for Christ becomes a life-changing event. Choosing to love Him and put Him in the proper place on the throne of our lives is truly what life on this earth is all about. It is all about Jesus Christ Himself.
Bryan Dewayne Dunaway
