LOOKING FOR “LIFE”
Many people try to find “life” in the accumulation of stuff, pleasure, prestige, power and such. It isn’t difficult to see that these kinds of self-centered pursuits are not “life” but something usually disappointing and even an enemy of “life.” Could it be that the story the Bible tells about the first humans has something very important to tell us about us as humans and our pursuit of “life?”
The story of Adam and Eve is much more familiar to each of us than we perhaps realize. God created an amazingly wonderful world for Adam and Eve to enjoy. God Himself was the source and the primary object of the LIFE that Adam and Eve knew. Of all the things God created for Adam and Eve there was only one thing He required that they not do. Their only prohibition was to not eat the fruit of one tree. The penalty God described was “death.” You can read the story for yourself in the first book of the Bible, in Genesis chapters 1-3. As you may know, Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the fruit. Their hearts continued to beat, their blood continued to flow for many years until they did finally physically die. The thing to note in the story is that their “life” became “death” as their perfect relationships with God, each other, and their world was characterized by pride, greed, unfaithfulness, mistrust, hostility, disappointment, fear, guilt and all the things that we recognize as ruining our lives.
The “death” God warned us about involves our physical death, but it is so much more. Much of what we consider “living” is really “dying.” We are dead to God, to each other, and to our world, and we only imagine that the pleasures and prosperity we strive for is the “life” that God designed and desires for us to have. So, what does the Bible say about our “deadness?” Is there a way we can find real LIFE? This little booklet has five sections through which we can see how the Bible describes our transformation from death to LIFE. It is simply Bible verses regarding five topics: 1. Death 2. Confession / Repentance 3. Believing / Receiving 4. LIFE and 5. Jesus Christ. I hope you will read through the verses asking God to help you understand what He wants to say to you. To ignore or put off this brief challenge leaves us with only the imaginary life that our spiritual deadness gives us.
ARE YOU WILLING TO SINCERELY AND SERIOUSLY
THINK ABOUT
WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT DEATH and LIFE?
1. SOME OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT DEATH
Genesis 2:17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Job 14:10 But a man dies and is laid low; man breathes his last, and where is he?
Ezekiel 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die.
John 8:24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”
John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, :26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
Romans 1:32 Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
Hebrews 9:27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
Ephesians 2:1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins
James 3:8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
Proverbs 14:12 16:25 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
Ezekiel 18:32 For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live.”
Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, (Adam) and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
Romans 6:16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 7:24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
James 1:15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
Deuteronomy 30:19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live,
??? QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT:
- what are some of the indications of spiritual death?
- Why is spiritual death more serious than physical death?
- Is my relationship with God dead or alive?
2. SOME OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT
CONFESSION AND REPENTANCE
(confess means to agree with what God says about us.
repent means to turn from our way to God’s way.)
1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Ezra 10:1 While Ezra prayed and made confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men, women, and children, gathered to him out of Israel, for the people wept bitterly.
Prov 28:13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
Mark 1:5 And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
Romans 10:9,10 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. :10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Jeremiah 5:3 O Lord, do not your eyes look for truth? You have struck them down, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent.
Ezekiel 14:6 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn away your faces from all your abominations.
Ezekiel 18:30 “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Luke 13:5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
Luke 15:10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Acts 3:19 Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out,
2Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
??? QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT
- How are confession and repentance connected?
- Can either one be genuine without the other?
- What are some specific things we need to confess?
- How can we know if we truly confess and repent?
3. SOME OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT
BELIEVING AND RECEIVING
(believe, faith, trust are synonyms. receive is to accept what God offers and provides.)
Numbers 5:6,7 “Speak to the people of Israel, When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the Lord, and that person realizes his guilt, :7 he shall confess his sin that he has committed.
Romans 3:28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.
Romans 5:1,2 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. :2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
1Corinthians 2:5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
1Peter 1:9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Genesis 15:6 And he believed the Lord, and He counted it to him as righteousness.
Numbers 14:11 And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?
Mark 1:15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
Mark 9:24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
John 1:12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
John 5:24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
John 12:46 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.
John 20:31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Romans 10:9,10 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. :10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
Galatians 2:16 yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
1John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.
1John 5:13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.
Psalm 40:4 Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
Isaiah 12:2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”
Ezekiel 3:10 Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.
John 1:12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
Acts 10:43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Acts 17:11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
Romans 5:17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
1Thessalonians 2:13 And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
James 1:21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
??? QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT
- What are the consequences if I continue to not believe or receive what God offers me?
- What does the Bible say are the results if I do believe and receive what God offers me?
- What makes it hard for us to believe and receive what God offers us?
- What is keeping me from saying to God “I believe, help my unbelief?”
4. SOME OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT
GRACE AND LIFE
(grace is God’s powerful love giving us what we could never earn or deserve. LIFE is the kind of LIVING that Jesus has and offers and gives to whoever accepts it)
Psalm 86:6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer; listen to my plea for grace.
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Romans 1:7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
Romans 5:2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Ephesians 2:5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
Titus 3:7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
Revelation 22:21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.
Genesis 2:7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.
Job 10:1 “I loathe my life; I will give free utterance to my complaint; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
Job 10:12 You have granted me LIFE and steadfast love, and your care has preserved my spirit.
Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of LIFE; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my LIFE; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 34:22 The Lord redeems the LIFE of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.
Psalm 56:13 For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of LIFE.
Psalm 119:93 I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me LIFE.
Luke 12:15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s LIFE does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
Luke 12:23 For LIFE is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
John 3:15,16 that whoever believes in him may have eternal LIFE.” :16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal LIFE.
John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal LIFE; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see LIFE, but the wrath of God remains on him.
John 5:24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal LIFE. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to LIFE.
John 10:10 I came that they may have LIFE and have it abundantly.
John 20:31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have LIFE in his name.
Acts 2:28 You have made known to me the paths of LIFE; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’
Romans 6:4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of LIFE.
Romans 6:13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to LIFE, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal LIFE in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is LIFE and peace.
Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the LIFE I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Ephesians 4:18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the LIFE of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.
1 Timothy 6:19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly LIFE.
2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to LIFE and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,
1 John 5:11-13 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal LIFE, and this LIFE is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has LIFE; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have LIFE. 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal LIFE.
??? QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT
- What are some differences between “life” and “LIFE?”
- Why can’t we earn or deserve the “LIFE” God offers?
- What makes some people content with “life” when God offers and provides “LIFE?”
- Am I willing to live with the near and distant
consequences of the life I am now living?
5. SOME OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT
JESUS CHRIST
Romans 6:9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.
1Corinthians 15:12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
1Corinthians 15:16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised.
Romans 5:10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his LIFE.
John 1:4 In him was LIFE, and the LIFE was the light of men.
John 20:31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have LIFE in his name.
JESUS SAID HE CAME:
> TO SEEK SINNERS
Mark 2:17 And hearing this, Jesus *said to them, “it is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
*** Jesus is seeking me! ***
> TO BRING CHANGE
Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
*** Jesus can change me! ***
> TO SPEAK FOR GOD
John 8:42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me; for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me.
*** God is speaking to me through Jesus! ***
> TO DIE
John 12:27 “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.
*** Jesus died for me! ***
> TO SAVE THE WORLD
John 12:47 “And if anyone hears My sayings, and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.
*** Jesus saves me by taking my judgment on himself! ***
> TO REVEAL THE TRUTH
John 18:37 Pilate therefore said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”
*** Jesus tells me the truth! ***
> TO GIVE LIFE
John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly.
*** Jesus offers and provides LIFE to me! ***
JESUS SAID “I AM …”
1. “I Am the Bread of Life” (John 6)
*** Jesus nourishes and sustains my LIFE! ***
2. “I Am the Light of the World” (John 8)
*** Jesus enables me to see LIFE in this dark world! ***
3. “I Am the Gate of the Sheepfold” (John 10)
*** Jesus is the only door to LIFE! ***
4. “I Am the Good Shepherd” (John 10)
*** Jesus gives LIFE to me, a wandering sheep! ***
5. “I Am the Resurrection and the Life” (John 11)
*** Jesus gives me LIFE now and forever! ***
6. “I Am the Way, Truth, and Life” (John 14)
*** Jesus is everything I need for LIVING! ***
7. “I Am the True Vine” (John 15)
*** Jesus is the source of all my LIFE! ***
??? QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT
- How am I currently dealing with the pride, greed, unfaithfulness, disappointment, fear, and guilt in my life?
- Am I willing to live with the near and distant consequences of the life I am living now?
- Is there anyone else who has done for me what Jesus Christ has done?
- What do I think my life will be like if I continue to ignore or refuse what Jesus Christ offers me?
- What is keeping me from confessing, repenting, believing and receiving the forgiveness and LIFE Jesus Christ has paid for and offers me?
Write down some of your thoughts about what you have read.
Go back through this booklet and note the verses that especially catch your attention.
*** Just talk to God, He can hear every word you say. Tell Him what you are thinking about these verses you have read.
Confess…Repent…Believe…Trust…Receive God’s forgiveness and the LIFE Jesus gives you.
all content by J Neil Evans
Rapid Weaver - Foundation 6 — ©2024