We are told our belief in God and in His son Jesus Christ ensures we will have a blessed life in eternity. This is a wonderful assurance to anticipate! While every person will eventually leave the earthly world and enter eternity, you may be amazed to learn the eternal life our Bible speaks of is not what you may think.
Scripture says the eternal realm is a reality that exceeds our human ability to fully comprehend. “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.” (a) [see end notes for scripture] We all have an idea of what eternity will be like, but when is the eternal life of Scripture?
Defining “Eternal”
The English word ‘eternal’ means without beginning or end. The only passages in Scripture that even resemble this meaning refer to God. He is “the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God,” (b) “who lives forever.” (c) He is the “I Am.” (d) For our time related thoughts, God is “the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last,” (e) “who is and who was and who is to come.” (f) God is and has always existed.
As offspring of the Eternal One, everyone has a deposit of God’s Spirit, called the spirit of life. (g) When our time in this world ends, our body returns to dust and our spirit returns to our heavenly Father. (h) While our soul’s consciousness goes with our spirit into the eternal realm, we are not and never will be eternal beings. We all have beginnings and endings! In eternity we will continue to grow and mature.
God has given us eye witness previews of the eternal realm. History records hundreds of thousands of near-death experiences, where people from all faith persuasions die and their consciousness escapes the limitations of this natural realm. Many accounts tell of a point that could not be crossed if they were to return to this natural world. This indicates they only saw and experienced a preview into eternity.
These experiences verify our conscious awareness continues beyond this natural life. These elementary peeks into the eternal realm come while natural perceptions of life are still present. This is why people see animals, hills, buildings and things that belong to this natural world.
Most near-death accounts report seeing a brighter light and feeling a more intense love than anything in this world. They felt and observed a quality of life that appears to exceed this natural life, confirming there is an expanded reality that we will enter and fully partake of.
In eternity we will continue to grow and mature.
Scriptural Translations
Our Bible translations tend to hide some of Scripture’s insightful meaning. One hidden insight is found in the Greek aion, which means ‘age.’ The KJV translates it as ‘forever’ 27 times, as ‘forever and ever’ 20 times, as ‘world’ 32 times (really!), and 15 times in other ways. The Greek aion was translated in the KJV correctly twice, as a plurality: “in the ages to come” and “the mystery…hid from ages.” (i) Bible translations allow us to assume incorrectly that aion speaks of eternity instead of this life’s time cycles.
A variable of aion is aionios, which means age lasting, indicating ongoing. This word is in Scripture 68 times to speak of enduring ages of time. Since our English ‘eternal’ means without start or end, the nearest English to the Greek aionios is “ongoing,” as enduring for age, ages, cycles and seasons of time.
Another hidden insight is in the three 
different Greek words in the New Testament that are translated simply as ‘life’. The Greek bios appears 10 times to speak about our physical life. The Greek psuche appears 101 times to address the maturing of our soul (mind, will and emotion). And zoe appears 135 times to speak of our spiritual life. So, what aspect of our life is Scripture addressing in these passages: our physical activity, our soul’s perceptions, or our spiritual interaction?
What does our Bible actually mean when it says eternal or everlasting life? Clarity is provided in the adjectives Scripture attaches to zoe (spirit life). We can receive a newness of zoe, the light of zoe, the word of zoe, the bread of zoe, the water of zoe, from the river of zoe, an abundant zoe, and a crown of zoe. These phrases speak of the nutritional spiritual sources that support our activity and well-being.
When Jesus was asked “What shall I do that I may obtain (have) eternal life (zoe – spiritual life)?” (j) Jesus in essence responded “Keep the Commandments, love your neighbor, care for the needy, and follow God’s lead.” (k) These are simple instructions for having an enriched quality of spiritual life. When we read “eternal life” in our Bible, we should think of “lasting quality of spiritual activity.”
In the Garden of Eden our first parents turned away from God’s guidance. (l) Jesus spoke of restoring an intimate interaction with our heavenly Father. “This is eternal life (ongoing zoe-spiritual activity)…to know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ…” (m) Why should we know Jesus? He is the example God provided for us to observe, gravitate toward, learn from, and follow in our days.
A lasting quality of zoe – spirit life is not just for an after-life. We are all invited to partake of God’s Kingdom reign that is “in our midst.” (n) For God “is over all and through all and in all.” (o) Scripture tells us our spiritual health can even “quicken, give life (vitality) to your mortal body. (p) While all forms of life are supported by the Eternal One, when we consciously respond to God, our spiritual life thrives.
Scripture declares responders receive this enduring value: “God has given us eternal life (zoe-spirit) …you have eternal life (zoe-ongoing spiritual activity).” (q) We can arise and enter levels of freedom from this world’s dominant perspectives and temporal approach toward life. Our active interaction with God provides elements of eternal perceptions that enrich our lives with enduring values.
Our active interaction with God provides elements of eternal perceptions that enrich our lives with enduring values.
Living With God
Scripture defines the Eternal One as “Light” and “Love.” (r) Our spiritual interaction is a force that can enlighten our thoughts and enrich our ability to live. God’s insights can “become…a well of water springing up to eternal (lasting) life (zoe).” (s)
We all begin life under the limitations that Adam brought on humanity. “For sense by a man came death (spiritual inactivity)…as in Adam all die (Hebrew-are dying).” (t) This first death was a demise of man’s intimate interaction with God. This lack of spiritual activity began a dying, deteriorating process.
We are also informed that “by a man also came the resurrection (arising) of the dead (inactivity)…as in Christ all shall be made alive.” (t) As we respond to God’s guidance, we begin to arise out of our dying inactivity of the first death. Our spiritual awakening is as a rebirth that puts “an end to the agony of death,” (u) so we will “not be hurt by the second death;” (v) we do not fear our physical demise.
Our response to God’s guidance enables us to partake of His eternal perspectives and see the quality of our life improve. The ongoing qualities of spiritual life that we are to adapt as our own are identified in Scripture as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” (w)
These enduring qualities in us produce heavenly thoughts, godly attitudes, and eternal perspectives. “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.” (x) These spiritual qualities tend to improve our lives daily, bit by bit; “order on order…line on line…a little here, a little there.” (y)
In this life, no one is fully mature or perfect. When we live in close union with our Eternal Father and partake of His guidance, we become better expressions of His nature. God is patient, compassionate, and long-suffering. He offers to lead and guide us through this life’s difficulties.
So, when is the eternal life of scripture? We can interact with God now and experience a taste of the countless benefits of an enduring quality of spiritual life. Living with a spiritual awareness improves the quality of our experience – spirit, soul, and body. God’s influence affects our quality of life today and even more so tomorrow.
God’s influence affects our quality of life today and even more so tomorrow.
a) 1 Corinthians 2:9; b) 1 Timothy 1:17; c) Isaiah 57:15; d) Exodus 3:14; e) Revelation 22:13; f) Revelations 1:4, 8; 4:8; g) Genesis 2:7; h) Ecclesiastes 12:7; i) KJV Ephesians 2:7; Colossians 1:26; j) Luke 10:25; k) Luke 10:27-28; l) Genesis 2:17; 3:8; m) John 17:3; 1 John 5:20; n) Luke 17:20; o) Ephesians 4:6; p) Romans 8:11; q) 1 John 5:11, 13; r) 1 John 1:5; 4:8, 16; s) John 4:14; t) 1 Corinthians 15:21-22; u) Acts 2:24; v) Revelations 2:11; 20:6; w) Galatians 5:22-25; x) James 3:17; y) Isaiah 28:10;
Keith Carroll, “The Relationship Guy”
Relational Gospel Founder
When We Arise And Shine author