Have LIFE

[traveller]

John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

I would like to see if y'all have comments on the above scripture. What do you think that it means to have life "more abundantly?"

[refugepsa91]

I think "to have life more abundently" means to have security in the knowledge that God loves you....to feel peace and comfort...not to fear what will happen tomorrow...health...a families love...

Its hard for me to explain.

Love and Blessings,

Angel

[ginakay]

travellor, I wonder if he is contrasting what He was to give as opposed to what the devil wants to take. The first part of the scripture says the thief (devil I assume) is come to kill, steal and destroy but HE (Jesus/Yeshua) comes not to take but to give, and not only to give life but to give it abundantly . In fact he gives eternal life and you can't get more abundant than that!

[angels4u]

Good topic !

If we don't have the Lord our LIFE is meaningless and empty, but the minute we accept Jesus to be our Savior He fills our heart with so much love that its overflowing.

And the minute we let Him in He will give us LIFE that is rich-full and meaningful.

In Christ,Angels

[traveller]

Great responses!

Life, as used here, in the Greek, is "Zoe" (S# 2222) referring to the principle of life in the spirit and soul. Distinguished from "bios" (S# 979), which refers to duration, means, and manner of life. So, Jesus is referring to the things of the spirit, not of the flesh.

Those who accept Jesus as Lord and Savior have life eternal. Those that have a close relationship with Jesus have it more abundantly. If we immerse ourselves in His word, daily, we grow ever closer to Him. Then, when trials come, we know where to go for our strength and support. When tragedy stikes, we know upon Whom to lean.

It's my opinion that Jesus is saying that it's not enough to just have eternal life, but that we can have the assurance of His power, His insights, His temperance, His wisdom, His patience, His help - all right now. Right here. We all know of powerful Christian men and women. What makes them different from the person sitting beside you at church? What causes them to stand out? They have life abundantly. They have fed their faith to the point that their spirit is bigger than their flesh. We can all be like that. We can all allow Jesus to fill us full of HIS food.

I had more to say here but my time is too limited! Please, keep on posting.

[Ovedya]

Life = Zoe. You're on the right track, Trav. More to come from the resident "long-winded" poster. For now...lunch time. BBL

[traveller]

You're on the right track, Trav.

Isn't that comparable to "close, but no banana." ?

[Ovedya]

Nope. You got the banana. We just need to make a nice sundae out of it.

[traveller]

With chocolate syrup please.

[Ovedya]

Banana

"...I have come that they may have life and may have it abundantly" (John 10:10b)

Ice Cream

The word used for "life" in this verse is Zoe. In the Bible there are at least three words rendered as life in the English language. The first is bios Bios refers to our outward human life, our flesh; it also refers to our outward manner of living (Luke 8:14). Bios is the Greek word from which we get the English term biology, which is the study of living things.

The second word for Life in the New Testament is psuche. Psuche is the Greek word which refers to our soul-life (Matt. 16:25-26; 10:39; Luke 17:33; John 12:25; Rev. 12:11). Psuche is where we get the word psychology in the English language. Therefore, our soul life would include anything related to our soul, which are our mind (The leading part of our soul), the emotions (The perception of our soul), and our will (The driving force of our being).

Finally, we have Zoe (Acts 11:18; Eph. 4:18). Zoe is the eternal life (1 John 1:2; cf. 1 John 2:25; 3:15; 5:11; 13; 20; John 3:15-16; 36; 5:24; 10:28; 17:2-3), the uncreated and indestructable life of God (Heb. 7:16; 2 Tim. 1:10; cf. 2 Tim. 1:1; 1 Tim. 1:16). This life is even Christ Himself (John 14:16; 11:25; Col. 3:4), as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45), of which life the Spirit is (Rom. 8:2). This life is the life received by the believers the moment they repent and receive Christ, and will issue in their full salvation (Rom. 5:10).

Chocolate Syrup (with cherry)

We can see by these three examples of life in the New Testament that God's desire is not to bring us a longer extended human life, nor is it His goal to bring us into a deeper soul-life. God's desire, and His commission in His Son Jesus Christ, is to give life eternal - to give the eternal life of God - to man. Furthermore, in God's eternal ecomony (That is, His eternal plan for His chosen people), God desires to dispense life into the believers (These, having become partakers of the divine nature - 2 Pet. 1:4) that they may mature in this life (Eph. 4:13; 1 Cor. 14:20; Col. 1:28; Heb. 6:1) and grow unto full salvation (1 Pet. 2:2; 2 Pet. 3:18; Eph. 4:15; Col. 2:19). This life will consumate in the Body of Christ as the New Jerusalem, which is the Bride of Christ - a perfect match, a duplication in life and nature, of Jesus Christ, who is the Bridegroom (Matt. 9:15; John 3:29).