Eternal Life

Definition and Meaning

The Korean term yeongsaeng (eternal life) translates the New Testament Greek zōē aiōnios ("eternal life"). In Christianity it does not refer merely to living endlessly; it denotes a new life enjoyed in right relationship with God. Many denominations understand eternal life as both the result and the substance of salvation. The Apostles' Creed, widely used across denominational lines, likewise confesses belief in "the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting."

Biblical and Historical Background

In the Old Testament, Daniel 12:2 distinguishes between those who will awake at the end time "to everlasting life" and those who will awake "to shame and everlasting contempt." In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), eternal life appears chiefly as a life to be received in the future (Mark 10:17; Matthew 25:46). The Gospel of John emphasizes its present dimension, stating that those who believe already have eternal life (John 3:16; John 5:24). John 17:3 defines eternal life as knowing God and Jesus Christ, whom he has sent: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." Paul describes eternal life as a gift that God bestows freely (Romans 6:23).

In contrast to the Greek philosophical notion of the immortality of the soul, according to which the soul alone survives death, the early church understood eternal life in connection with the resurrection of the body. This understanding found expression in the confession of "the life of the world to come" in the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed.

Practice in the Korean Church

In the Korean church, eternal life is a central theme of evangelism and consolation. The evangelistic slogan "Believe in Jesus and receive eternal life" is widely used, and at funeral services and memorial services the hope of eternal life and resurrection stands at the center of preaching and hymnody.

The principal differences among denominations concern whether eternal life, once received, can be lost.

• Presbyterian churches and other Reformed churches, following the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, hold that true believers do not lose eternal life because God preserves them to the end.
• The Wesleyan tradition, including Methodist and Holiness churches, holds that a person may fall from grace by willfully abandoning faith, and it emphasizes eternal life in connection with sanctification (the life of growing in holiness). Pentecostal churches generally hold a position close to this one.
• Baptist churches, given their strong emphasis on the autonomy of the local church, have no single fixed position. Nevertheless, among Korean Baptist churches influenced by the Southern Baptist Convention of the United States, the view that "salvation once received cannot be lost" is reportedly widespread.

These differences bear on how assurance of salvation is taught and are also connected to the debate over predestination and free will.