The Promise of Eternal Life and Salvation to All Who Believe

We have been going over some of the promises of God in our Commentary. The best promise of all is one that most of us in the West have heard many times. It is a one-of-a-kind, extraordinary promise that comes from the most well-known verse, John 3:16. “For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (emphasis added).

Even though we were supposed to be separated from God and everything good because of the wrong things we did, He provided a way for us to be saved from that fate—He sent Jesus to save us.

You have probably heard it before. But, in case you missed it, or in case the frequency of exposure to this verse has made you numb to its significance, let’s focus on what it means:

First, it is a promise of eternal life and salvation. It means that even though we were supposed to be separated from God and everything good because of the wrong things we did, He provided a way for us to be saved from that fate—He sent Jesus to save us. So, we receive a get-out-of-jail-free card (free for us, but not free for God since Jesus had to die for it). And it means we will be with God forever instead of being in a place of torment forever.

The second thing to focus on is that it is also a promise with a condition. Thankfully, God made that condition so easy for us to fulfill. John 3:16 explains what the condition is–what we have to do—to receive this promise of eternal life.

We have to believe in him.

That’s it. 

Believe that Jesus is the son of God, sent to rescue you from the death you earned by sinning.

If you believe that and accept it as true, then you get to claim the promise of eternal life. “This is the message of faith that we proclaim: If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on him will not be put to shame, since there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, because the same Lord of all richly blesses all who call on him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:8–13, emphasis added).

‘Believing in your heart’ is the internal faith that God counts as you being ‘right’ in His eyes. ‘Confessing with your mouth’ is the outward, public declaration that Jesus is Lord and He is the reason you are saved.

The conditions to receive this extraordinary promise of being saved and getting eternal life are easy. But we tend to muck things up and make them more difficult than they are. We cling to our works, our self-righteousness, and our own efforts. Stop trying to earn this promise.

Take God at His word. Believe Him. Accept the promise of salvation and eternal life.