The Nature of Divine Life
by T. Austin-Sparks

"I came that they might have life" (John 10:10).

When we come to the Gospel by John, we see that this is the Gospel of spiritual education. The others are largely a matter of history - the history of the earthly life, work, and teaching of the Lord Jesus, but the Gospel by John is the spiritual life and interpretation of Christ in Person.

Do you notice how the Gospel begins? It begins with these words: "In Him was life; and the life was the light of men" (John 1:4). The main part of the Gospel ends with these words: "Many other signs therefore did Jesus in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:30-31). (Notice that chapter 21 is something added afterward - it is quite clear that John intended to finish with what is chapter 20, and he really finished with these words.)

The Gospel begins with: "In Him was life." It ends with: "That you may have life." The main Gospel comprises 20 chapters, and halfway through 20 is ten. In chapter 10, verse 10, we have "I came that they might have life."

The beginning: "In Him was life;" the middle: "I came that they might have life;" the end: "Believing, you may have life." In that one word "life" we have the full answer to our question: "Why did Jesus Christ come into this world?"

Note one or two things: All the teaching and works of the Lord Jesus related to this thing that He called life. All His teaching and all His works were in relation to life.
The second thing to notice is this: Jesus demonstrated that to possess this life is a miracle, and He showed that it is impossible to have it without a miracle. To come to be possessed by this life is something supernatural.

The third thing we have to notice is: It is revealed by the Word of God that the possessing of this life is the basis of all God's works. He can do nothing in us until we have this life. He has to stand back and say: "I can do nothing until I have My life in you." His life in us is the basis of all His work.

So now we are going to look at this Gospel by John to instruct us in this matter of life.