¹¹ And this is the testimony: God has given 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.

Somebody asked me recently what would happen to those who never got to hear about Jesus when they eventually die. The short answer is that I don’t know and I don’t think anyone really can know so we have to leave that up to God to decide. What I do know is that our God is a God who loves us all so much that He will give us second, third and fourth chances to have us back with him. So rather than worry abut what might or might not happen to those we know and love who haven’t found Him we should do our best to share what we know of Him and live our lives as He calls us to in the hope that others will see what we have.

Remember the day that Jesus was crucified on the cross. Two others were crucified with Him. One of them repented of his sins while the other denied Jesus (See Luke 23:39-43). Jesus made the repentant sinner a promise that he would see Jesus in paradise. Even in the final few moments of his life this man was given the opportunity to receive forgiveness and from there eternal life. Jesus never gives up on us.

There is another promise in this that we need to understand. When we receive Jesus as our Saviour eternal life effectively begins from that moment. At some point our bodies will die but our lives continue. And even more, we enter into a profound quality of life that we cannot hope to have without Him. It’s a life that’s characterised by an intimate relationship with God and a new sense of purpose. It’s that life that shows others how to find the eternal Jesus for themselves.

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Application:

Consider the chances you were given to receive Jesus as your Saviour. Was there just one or were there several different times that He reached out to you? Now consider your friends and your family who don’t know Him yet, what have they seen that points to Him. If Jesus told his disciples that they should forgive someone who has sinned against them 70x7 times, (see Matthew 18:21-22) how much more will God give for those who don’t get it first time around? Keep living in faith.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus help each of us to live in faith so that those we know and love, those we rub shoulders with each day and even those we pass in the street might see You in us and want to know for themselves. Bless us with wisdom and knowledge to know how to live in righteousness for You. Amen.