Number three, the right to eternal life. There is a general misunderstanding about the subject of eternal life, but I would try as much as possible to make it a bit more clearer in order to have a fresh understanding, and with Bible references as well. I will focus on two main things which are the gift side of eternal life and then, I will look at it from the life of God point of view.

The first understanding you must have when the Bible talks about eternal life is that it is a gift of God that comes through Christ Jesus alone. In other words, eternal life cannot be gotten elsewhere, except in Christ Jesus. Romans 6:23 says:

²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Notice the phrase.. 'but the gift of God is eternal life...'. That is to buttress the first point that eternal life is actually a gift. A gift is something that you are bestowed or given as result of another person's benevolence to you. Most of the times, you do not work for it, you simply earn it from the one giving it without expecting any form of compensation from you. So, eternal life is a gift of God to you, it is a right you enjoy as long as you have come to terms with the finished works of Jesus Christ on the cross. Hope you got that?

The second angle is this. Eternal life is not an unending progression of years. As a matter of fact, there is no one that is born of a man and woman who will live forever. Many people have come to hold the belief that eternal life is living forever and ever in this present state, this is not true. The subject of eternal life simply revolves around the quality of life that God Himself has. Because of this, eternal life can be viewed as something a believer enjoys right now, at the moment as long as he or she is saved. It is not something that you begin to enjoy when you die, no. It is simply the quality of life that you have right now, which is ZOE, the God-kind of life. John 3:36 (NLT) says:

"And anyone who believes in God's Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn't obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God's angry judgment."

If you examine the word 'has', it connotes something that has already been possessed. In other words, you have eternal life right now if you already are in Christ Jesus. So, eternal life talks about the quality of life that God Himself has, being in you. It is not necessarily about longevity of years. It is rather about the quality of life that you enjoy. Someone may then ask: what about this whole idea of man living in eternity is all about? Where do we go when we leave this earth? The truth is this, when a man dies, his spirit either goes to enjoy eternity with God, or goes to enjoy eternity with the devil in hell, if the person spirit man isn't born again.

Man's spirit does not perish, only the body does. In case you are wondering why this is so, in the book of Ecclesiastes 12: 7, Solomon wrote: "Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who made it." Did you see that? So at death, one’s spirit returns to God, while the body is left to decay on the earth where it was originally made from. And if you are wondering, what will God be doing with our spirits in heaven? The Bible says He will give us a new body, and then we will reign with Him forever. 2nd Corinthians 5:1 says:

"For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands."

So, eternal life is a right you enjoyed as a believer. It is a life free of sickness, weariness, tiredness and discouragements because God never gets tired, wearied, sick or discourage; and He has bestowed upon you, in His benevolence, that quality of life at salvation. So, continue to enjoy to the fullest as long as you remain in Christ Jesus.

Number four, the right to good health and prosperity in Christ. You see, God's plan to mankind through Christ Jesus is substitutionary in nature. What Christ originally came to do for mankind is take their place, and be the sacrifice as well as the propitiation for all the errors that man had committed in the garden of Eden against God. When man was originally made, talking of Adam and his wife, Eve; they were made in glory and dominion. God's original plan for them was to live in wealth, good health and prosperity. As a matter of fact, the aspect of prosperity can be seen from this angle, how God made everything they would ever need in the garden of Eden, before even created them. Man was made last, after every other thing had been put in place.

But the devil came and stole this dominion from man. Just because the devil wanted to be the god of this world, he needed some authority to be able to function, and so, he stole the authority that God gave man from him, and then God was angry that man was careless enough to allow the devil do that. So, he was angry and then He threw them out of the garden He's made for them. By that singular decision of man, poverty, sickness and diseases and everything you see plaguing the earth today, came into existence. As a matter of fact, you can say man became the architect of his own misfortune by yielding to the devil's counsel.

As God's grace and mercies remains sure, He never wanted man to continue under the rulership and dictate of the devil, so, He sent Jesus to come and take the place of punishment that was due man once and for all, so that He can once again be the bridge that connects man back to God. So, Jesus took upon Himself, the sufferings, the curses, the sicknesses and everything that was against God's plan for mankind, including poverty. The Bible documents in 2 Corinthians 8:9 and 1 Peter 2:24, two Bible passages that vividly explains that Christ had redeemed man.

⁹ For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.

²⁴ who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.

Those two Scriptures above explains part of Jesus' substitutionary work for us on the cross. Therefore, you have access to riches in Christ Jesus as well as healing for your body and soul. Sickness and diseases can no longer have dominion over you, because you now belong to God through Christ, and not to the devil any longer. Apostle John wrote in 3 John 2. He says: "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers." In other words, as long as you remain in Christ, you enjoy a prosperous life and good health, which is found in Christ. Glory!

Finally at Number five, is the right never to be afraid. One of the tools the devil uses against his subject is that of fear. You see, fear is the opposite of faith and as believers, you have been given access to faith through Christ Jesus, and not fear. Fear is of the devil, while faith is of God. People are usually afraid of so many things: they are afraid of tomorrow, some are even afraid of their past. There are people who are afraid of their health, whether it won't all of a sudden fail them. You see, many today are living in these fears. They are simply afraid, not knowing what would happen to them or their lives the next minute.

But God has made it point clear to us, He says He has not giving us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. This was rightly documented in the book of 2 Timothy 1:7, it says:

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control]. [AMP]

So, if you are constantly afraid, it means you have not fully come to embrace all that God has done for you through Christ Jesus. Embrace faith and not fear, believe the best of yourself and all that concerns you. Let your mind solely rest on all that Jesus has done for you, exercise your rights in Him, declare His plans and His finished works for you, choose to see life from the perspective of Christ and not what the devil constantly plants your way. When you do these, your life will never remain the same again, and the spirit of fear would vanish from your life.

I believe God this piece has blessed you tremendously.

Thanks for the gift of your time, I am Obayomi Abiola Benjamin!

Feel free to share your thoughts or testimony in the comment box below. I promise to respond to them as soon as possible!