ABUNDANTLY!

ABUNDANTLY!

In John’s gospel Jesus tells us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

So often we think of eternal life with regard to time, i.e. life unending, but that is not God’s perspective. First and foremost, eternal life is what Jesus describes in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

Abundantly: in extreme, large, and plentiful quantities.

Synonyms: amply, lavishly, profusely, luxuriantly, extravagantly, copiously…

The flip-side of that relationship equation is death. Jesus tells us, “The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy…” The thief is our nemesis - satan. He is not a mythical creature with red skin and black horns. No. Scripture tells us, “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.”

Satan’s greatest scheme is temptation. He takes something that appears fairly innocent at first, e.g. a piece of fruit, a photo, one taste, one puff, an opportunity, a relationship… and he encourages us to take “one tiny step.”

The problem is that the Thief’s motive is not life, but to steal, kill, and destroy. The first step seems innocent enough, but then we’re in the thick of it and hopelessly lost. The tragedy is that we never realize it until we are WELL BEYOND the point of no return.

The truth is we were conceived and born beyond the point of no return. We were born into the darkness of sin and death. Satan’s objective is to keep us there.

Fortunately, thankfully, graciously God had other plans from before the foundation of the world.

So Jesus came and joyfully offered Himself upon that Cross in our stead that we might have life, and have it abundantly.

His promise of eternal, abundant, extravagant life was NOT exclusively reserved for a future time and place. Life is found in Him, and when we call upon Him, He imparts eternal life in that moment, and every subsequent one that we deliberately and obediently choose to walk with Him.

Consider His words today, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

Far greater than the idea of life unending is the reality that Jesus, God, came so that we could enjoy Him, LIFE ITSELF, and experience it ABUNDANTLY!

Blessings,

-Kevin M. Kelley