In this sermon, Dr. Ironside discusses the concept of eternal life and its significance. He emphasizes that eternal life is not physical life or religious life, but something far greater. He explains that eternal life is a free gift given by Jesus Christ, obtained by accepting him as a substitute. Dr. Ironside also addresses the misconception that eternal life can be lost, citing the words of Jesus in John 10:28 to support the belief that those who have received eternal life will never perish.

...important truth in the Bible, and very much misunderstood. My subject tonight might be entitled, Eternal Life, What Is It, and How Can I Get It? To answer the first question, what is it, it may help you if I answer it from a negative point of view, and tell you what eternal life is not. First, it is not physical life. The human race has been given a form of life that is far superior to animal or plant life. But even though it is a higher form of life, it is not to be associated with eternal life. Second, it is not religious life, for many enter into religious life who know nothing of eternal life. Religious life is a mysterious thing, rather difficult to describe. For the most part, it is an imaginary thing. If you listen to the testimonies of those who claim to have religious life, the testimonies will greatly vary. But they will all have this in common, it is more or less mystical or imaginary. One will say, I received this hard to explain thing when the rites of baptism were conferred upon me. A mysterious feeling came over me, which I have always prized very highly, and since that day I have tried to keep that feeling with a hope that it will have something to do with my eventually getting to heaven. Another one will say, I received this strange religious life when I walked down the aisle and a very sincere preacher gripped my hand and with it I promised to live better. A third will say, I have always had it, as long as I can remember, I have had an inward feeling that I was eligible for heaven. The next one will say, I received it when I began to work for the Lord, and since then I feel secure as long as I keep on working for Him. And thus I could go on for an hour to describe the varied ideas that would be expressed regarding those who claim to have the imaginary, mystical thing called religious life. But religious life is something entirely different from eternal life, for religious life is something that you may possess one day and lose the next. Religious life is associated with unstable things. Eternal life is divine life, the very life of God imparted to the soul. It is not something imaginary, it's a divine reality and it's not associated with emotional feelings. I had religious life before I had eternal life, and I know from experience the religious life that I had was altogether imaginary. It included saved feelings, a voice within that cried, you have nothing to worry about. You have never sinned to the extent that God would keep you out of heaven. You are as sincere religiously as the average, and all is well. I tried very hard to be content and rest on my religious feelings, but I must frankly confess that I had a deep longing for something more stable, and my own heart tried to express itself by crying, there must be something more, and I must find it. Little did I realize that I was longing for eternal life, but I discovered that religious life is a very poor substitute for eternal life. It may be profitable to pause and raise this question, do you have eternal life, or do you have religious life? I don't need to hear the answer, but I ask you to answer it before God. When I received physical life, I found that it was adapted to this physical creation. It is a life suited to enjoy my earthly existence. In the word of God, heaven is described as being very much different from this creation, and to enjoy heaven, I must of necessity have a life that is suited to the surroundings. I could not enjoy heaven without having a nature that is suited to heaven. Eternal life is the only kind of life that will enable you to enjoy the abode of God. To be in heaven without possessing eternal life would make heaven a prison, and the God of all grace will see to it that no one will be in heaven without a capacity to fully enjoy it. Eternal life is just as the name describes it. It is endless. It is everlasting. It is not something that you can have and lose, then have again and lose again. All that may be true of religious life, but not so with eternal life. The simplest way to declare it is to say that eternal life is eternal life. And in my many years of observation, I have never known of one single instance of a person receiving eternal life and losing it. In the verses that I have read in John 10, 27 through 30, we have a sevenfold cord to prove the blessed truth, and first, that everyone who is born again is a child of God and is one of his sheep. And it is the duty of the shepherd to care and to keep each of his flock. To suggest that any of Christ's sheep may be lost is to cast a blasphemous reflection on the strength and ability of the shepherd. Second, it is said they follow Christ and no exceptions are made. The Lord does not say they ought to, but they do. All who have eternal life do follow the shepherd. Third, to the sheep is imparted eternal life, and to speak of eternal life ending is a contradiction in terms. Fourth, this eternal life is given to them. They did nothing to merit it, consequently they can do nothing to demerit it. Then fifth, the Lord himself declares that they shall never perish. The man or woman who says a child of God may perish and be lost makes God a liar. God says they shall never perish. Sixth, none is able to pluck them out of the shepherd's hand. And seventh, none is able to pluck them out of the Father's hand, which is above them. I trust that will briefly answer the first part of the question, eternal life, what is it? Now I want to get to the second part, eternal life, how can I get it? Perhaps you would like to see the answer in your own Bible. In the verses I have read tonight, eternal life is presented as a gift. I give unto them eternal life. Eternal life is neither earned as a wage or merited as a prize nor won as a crown. It is a free gift. In Romans 6.23 I read, The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. This truth of eternal life being a free gift is foreign to the natural man's way of thinking. He will make his own verses to suit himself and make them sound like Bible verses. Here are a few. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you and thou shalt have eternal life. Here is another one of man's ridiculous verses. If thou shalt keep the ten commandments thou shalt have eternal life. Here's another one. Repent and be baptized and thou shalt have everlasting life. All of these man-made verses which cannot be found in the Bible prove that man will insist on earning eternal life rather than to receive it as a gift. As long as you insist on working for eternal life you will never get it for it can only be received as a free gift. In John's first epistle, chapter 5 and verse 11 I read, And this is the record that God hath given to us eternal life and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life and he that hath not the Son hath not life. From these verses it is very clear that eternal life cannot be obtained apart from the Lord Jesus Christ for he clearly says this life is in his Son. If you ask to have eternal life without coming to Christ you are asking for an impossibility. His Son died on Calvary's cross to procure eternal life and you must get it by accepting him as your substitute. Some years ago Dr. Ironside was preaching in San Francisco on the subject of eternal life and after the service a lady approached him and said I agree with everything you said tonight except you said that if a person had eternal life he could never be lost. Dr. Ironside said Do you believe the words of the Lord Jesus? Let me show you what he said on this subject. She replied I know where you're going to turn. You're going to turn to John 10, 28. Dr. Ironside said Well, since you suggested those verses let's read them. And he read I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them me is greater than all and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. After reading he turned to the stubborn lady and said Do you believe that? She said Not in your way but I am not telling you in my way. I haven't explained it. I simply read it. Now let me read it to suit you. And I give unto them life that lasts for ten years and they shall never perish during those ten years. Lady if it read like that what would it mean? She admitted that it would mean that one thus said would be secure for ten years. Suppose that it read And I give unto them life as long as they are faithful as long as they hold on to it. That is exactly how some people read it. But that is adding or taking from God's precious word. Those who will not believe the doctrine of eternal life are willfully ignorant and stubborn. When you tell me that you once had eternal life but you lost it you are telling a lie. You may have had something similar to eternal life but whatever it was the very fact that you lost it is the proof that it was not eternal life. The burden of my message is you must confess that there is a tremendous difference between religious life and eternal life. Religious life will make you feel saved for a little while and then lost and then saved again. But eternal life can never be lost. The world of religion is offering to you religious life. The Lord Jesus Christ is offering to you eternal life. I trust that some of you who are still disturbed and not satisfied with whatever you have you may not give up your search until you come to the Lord Jesus. Take him at his word and confess I need something better than religious life. I need something that will fit me for heaven. Something that will make me secure. Something that will give me peace and joy. Take God at his word. This is what he says. I give unto them eternal life and when a gift is offered there is nothing you can do but take it. If you refuse it you are the loser. And I trust that if you want to be blessed tonight you will see the simplicity of simply opening your heart and saying I want this great offer of eternal life. I receive it in Christ. I believe he died for me. I will receive it from his hands. May God bless you as you do it.