Listen to Insight

We cannot adequately define eternal life without first defining eternity and time. Eternal life has been defined as life after death. Is this true? We will allow the scriptures to define that later. The scriptures will also define clearly who or what eternal life is.

Isa 57:15 AMP For thus says the high and lofty One--He Who inhabits eternity, …

God is spirit and he dwells in Eternity. Eternity thus is existent now but does man have access to it now or only after he dies?

The King'dom of God is the realm of his dominion. Its expanse begins where the King lives—in eternity and expands to cover everything including time and space.

But where is the Kingdom of God?

Luk 17:21 AMP Nor will people say, Look! Here [it is]! or, See, [it is] there! For behold, the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you].

If the kingdom of God is within you, and the Kingdom of God is eternal, then it follows that eternity exits in the heart/spirit of regenerated man. Jesus said He and His Father will dwell within humanity.

But God is spirit and dwells in eternity [he cannot be limited by time and space] so how can he live in humans unless he sets eternity in the heart or spirit of man.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 NASB He has made everything appropriate [Lit beautiful] in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that [Or without which] man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

This is confusing. Isn't humanity supposed to be subject to time and space only excluding eternity? Isn't eternity for only after death?

Time is a chunk of eternity carved out so it has a beginning and end—and it is measured by the movement of the heavenly bodies. Eternity o the other hand does not have a beginning or an end. It is dateless because there is no sun or moon there for the measurement of time.

Why place eternity in heart of humans?

Eternity was placed within man so that man could comprehend the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end. Moses could write about the beginning because eternity was placed within his heart. If God did not place eternity in the heart of man, he could not come and dwell there and have fellowship with man teaching him about the past, present and future.

To answer that question we must properly according to scripture define who man is and who hu'man is. We'll do that shortly.

But if eternity does not exist within time but time rather exists within eternity, how can God live in us since we live in time and He lives in eternity?

The real "us" does not live in time. We are eternal beings—spirits. We possess a soul and dwell in earthen bodies made of humus/soil plus water.

The first time the word "man" was used in scripture is Gen 1:26. Let us make man in our image. The Hebrew word for "man" that Moses used in writing this passage is 'âdâm. 'Âdâm is spirit. It was only in chapter 2 that God formed dust or a humus structure/sculpture and breathed through the breadth of life, 'âdâm into what he had formed.

This explains the issue or image and likeness of God. It is 'âdâm [the created spirit] that was created to look like [image] and behave and function like God [likeness]—not the houses of flesh [bodies] in which 'âdâm lives.

The real us [our spirit or 'âdâm] is thus eternal and not subject to time and space. The natural world for our 'âdâm is eternity. That is our abode. We are sojourners in time—sent here on an mission.

'Âdâm was also originally created male and female. It was only in chapter three, he extracted female from 'âdâm and built her , her own house.

Gen 5:2 KJV  Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

According to this scripture God called original male and female spirit 'âdâm. This is before he put them in houses built out of humus—hence humus-man or human.

Again, man ('âdâm) does not live in time because s/he is spirit and eternal. God is also spirit and eternal and they that worship him MUST do so in spirit and truth. But the humus part of us is subject to the limitations of time and space.

It is Humus-man or Human that lives in Time. A human is properly defined as man ['âdâm —the spirit God created] that has been breathed or placed into humus. When that happens, man becomes a living soul.

Gen 2:7 KJV  And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

If you are using a KJV version of the bible, the word "of" is greyed out and italicized, meaning it is not part of the original text but was introduced by English translators who were trying to make sense of the text. In this case, they missed it. The statement is okay as is without an "of" introduced. God did not form 'âdâm from dust. He created 'âdâm . The Hebrew word for creed means to create "out of nothing". So man was not created from something—definitely not from dust. By chapter 2, God had already created man out of nothing in Gen 1:26-28. He was spirit. In chapter 2, God formed for man a dust or humus structure/house and then breathed man ('âdâm or the spirit he had created male and female) into the dust and the dust because a living soul.

Why put this spirit or 'âdâm in a house or body. The answer is so that 'âdâm could relate/communicate with the physical world. Again this is because the humus structure is meant to be a temple for the Holy Spirit. So 'âdâm actually lives in a Temple.

So with our flesh, we relate and communicate with the real world and with our 'âdâm we relate and communicate with God who is himself spirit.

It is our spirits or 'âdâm that looks and behave like God and it is this part of us that communicates with God—who is himself spirit. God does not communicate with flesh.

1Co 6:17 KJV  But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.

Notice it did not say one flesh when describing our relating with God who is spirit. Scripture only says the two become "one flesh" when describing a relationship where a humus-man has unauthorized sex with another human (1Co 6:16). But when the koinonia is between God and man, it is purely SPIRIT-[ual].

Spirits are not subject to time. We are spirit but we live in humus.

Our humus structure is actually a temple for the Holy Spirit (1Co 6:19) but it is not us. We live in these temples.

The humus is subject to time and space because its source is from time and space—the earth. It is thus constrained to time and space but not our spirits. Why? Because the source of our spirits is eternal—from God. They proceed from God. In fact they are a part of God.

1Jn 1:1-4 KJV

(1)  That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;

(2)  (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)

(3)  That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

(4)  And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

Verse 1: The Apostle John claims he and his fellow Apostles did the following to that which was from the beginning (Gen 1:1)—the Word of Life:

1. They heard it
2. They saw it with their eyes
3. They looked upon it
4. Their hands handled the Word of life

How can one see, look upon and handle a word of life? In verse 2 he adds something strange to the uninitiated:

1. Life was manifested. The word manifested in the original Gk was transliterated as phaneroō and it means to make actual and visible or to make known what has been hidden or unknown. He says LIFE was made visible.
2. He saw it and handled it.
3. He says as a result of what they saw and handled, they bear witness of it
4. Not only do they bear witness f it, they shew unto us that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us

DEDUCTION: Eternal life can be made visible, seen, touched, handled, witnessed and shown unto others.

In verse 3, the Apostle john says, "That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

He says, I am telling you the forgoing because I want you to enjoy what we have enjoyed. I want you to have fellowship with us. If you have fellowship with us. We also have fellowship with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ AND SO if you fellowship with us, you'll be fellowshipping with who we fellowship with.

But how can mere mortals stuck in time and space fellowship with an eternal divine being? The answer is, they cannot if their dead selves are not regenerated or given life.

2Co 5:17 AMP Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come!

1Pe 1:23 AMP You have been regenerated (born again), not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from one that is immortal by the ever living and lasting Word of God.

If you are in Christ, you are no longer subject to death and decay—mortality—because that which gave birth to you has immortal origin.

But why do we see so many dying. Because few have dared to believ the scriptures.

Joh 11:25-26 AMP

(25) Jesus said to her, I am [Myself] the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on) Me, although he may die, yet he shall live;

(26) And whoever continues to live and believes in (has faith in, cleaves to, and relies on) Me shall never [actually] die at all. Do you believe this?

Either Jesus was lying or telling the truth. Fact is much of Christendom has chosen either through ignorance or unbelief to know him and the resurrection but only few have dared to know him as the LIFE.

What is eternal life? He is Jesus Christ. And he is available to you today. Eternal Life is Jesus and it is also knowing Jesus [koinonia-ing or sharing in Jesus and His Father].

1Jn 5:12 AMP He who possesses the Son has that life; he who does not possess the Son of God does not have that life.

Joh 17:3 KJV  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Jesus is this Life eternal.

Joh 14:6 KJV  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

HE is the LIFE. You do not have to die to meet Him. You can meet and fellowship with Him now.

1Ti 6:12 KJV  Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

Amen & Shalom.