Dancing to Doctrine: The Life

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”—John 14:6

Jesus described Himself as “the life.” But what does that mean? How can Jesus be “the life”? He is not “a life” but “the life.” He uses the definite article indicating that He is life itself—the Creator and Sustainer of life and the only one that has life in and of Himself, “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son also to have life in Himself”—John 5:26. Peter called Jesus “the Author of life” (Acts 3:15), and as the Author of Life, He has the ability to give life to whomever He will (cf. John 5:21).

Jesus described His purpose to give life and give it abundantly (John 10:10), and sought to do it by giving Himself to man as a living sacrifice (John 10:11, 15). As the Divine Son of God, Jesus laid down His life in order to give us life. And John wrote,  

“For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father"—John 10:17-18.

In giving His life for us, He enabled us to enter into His resurrection life, as participants within the life of God,  

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"—John 11:25-26. 

Kevin Vanhoozer articulately elaborates,

“Life has to do with being in God’s gracious, live-giving presence. The supreme covenant blessing in ancient Israel was being with God, signified by the cloud that covered the tabernacle (Exod. 40:34, 38). Sin, by contrast, alienates us from God and thus from the source of life. To have ‘life’ in the theological sense is to be in a relationship of fellowship with God; to have life is to be included in the life of God”—Kevin J. Vanhoozer, The Drama of Doctrine, p. 15.

Doctrine enables us to know how to participate in the divine life by determining the contours of our dance with God. God is our partner in this dance, but doctrine helps us to know the steps. As Vanhoozer described—sin disrupts the dance by alienating us from God and the source of life. I hope that all of us may forsake the sin that disrupts the life God has given to us, and that we may continue to learn the steps of doctrine and our dance may continue on joyfully and passionately for the glory of God and our joy. Amen.