A consistent message of the New Testament apostles is that we obtain eternal life through Jesus Christ. In his letter to Christians in Rome, the apostle Paul expressed it this way: "If when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life" (Romans 5:10).

Some two decades after Paul's death the apostle John repeated this wonderful truth: "This is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life" (1 John 5:11-12).

John emphasized that it is through our belief in the name Jesus Christ that we have eternal life: "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life" (verse 13, NIV).

John, Paul and the apostle Peter all saw fulfillment of Joel's prophecy in the name Jesus Christ: "It shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Joel 2:32; cf. Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:9, 13).

In his testimony before the Jewish Sanhedrin Peter made it very clear that it is only through the name Jesus that we can obtain eternal life: "Nor is there salvation in any other [name], for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

How thankful are we that we have the Son?

With these thoughts I wish everyone a rewarding Sabbath!