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In Christianity, eternal life traditionally refers to continued life after death, as outlined in Christian eschatology. The Apostles' Creed testifies: "I believe... the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting." In this view, eternal life commences after the second coming of Jesus and the resurrection of the dead, although in the New Testament's Johannine literature there are references to eternal life commencing in the earthly life of the believer, possibly indicating an inaugurated eschatology. According to mainstream Christian theology, after death but before the Second Coming, the saved live with God in an intermediate state, but after the Second Coming, experience the physical resurrection of the dead and the physical recreation of a New Earth. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, "By death the soul is separated from the body, but in the resurrection God will give incorruptible life to our body, transformed by reunion with our soul. Just as Christ is risen and lives for ever, so all of us will rise at the last day." 〔()〕 N.T. Wright argues that "God's plan is not to abandon this world... Rather, he intends to remake it. And when he does, he will raise all people to new bodily life to live in it. That is the promise of the Christian gospel" 〔.〕 In the Synoptic Gospels and the Pauline Letters, eternal life is generally regarded as a future experience, but the Gospel of John differs from them in its emphasis on eternal life as a "present possession".〔〔''Images of Salvation in the New Testament'' by Brenda B. Colijn 2010 ISBN 0-8308-3872-4 pages 87-90 ()〕 Raymond E. Brown points out that in the synoptic gospels eternal life is something received at the final judgment, or a future age (Mark 10:30, Matthew 18:8-9) but the Gospel of John positions eternal life as a present possibility, as in John 5:24.〔''The Westminster theological wordbook of the Bible'' by Donald E. Gowan 2003 ISBN 0-664-22394-X pages 115-116 ()〕 Thus, unlike the synoptics, in the Gospel of John eternal life is not only futuristic, but also pertains to the present.〔〔〔 In John, those who accept Christ can possess life "here and now" as well as in eternity, for they have "passed from death to life", as in John 5:24: "He who hears my word, and believes him that sent me, has eternal life, and comes not into judgment, but has passed out of death into life."〔 In John, the purpose for the incarnation, death, resurrection and glorification of The Word was to provide eternal life to humanity.〔 ==In the New Testament== Scholars such as John H. Leith assert that eternal life is never described in detail in the New Testament, although assurances are provided that the faithful will receive it.〔''Basic Christian doctrine'' by John H. Leith 1993 ISBN 0-664-25192-7 page 296 ()〕〔(''Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible'' 2000 ISBN 90-5356-503-5 page 430 )〕 Other scholars such as D. A. Carson suggest that eternal life is explicitly defined in John 17:3, where Jesus says in his High Priestly Prayer, "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." Carson says of this verse that "Eternal life turns on nothing more and nothing less than knowledge of the true God" and that it is "not so much everlasting life as personal knowledge of the Everlasting One."〔D. A. Carson, ''The Gospel According to John'' (Apollos, 1991), p. 556.〕 The ''Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible'' on the other hand, contends that "the nature of eternal life is only sketched in its essential elements in the New Testament".〔 While the Synoptic Gospels are seen as focusing on the proclamation of the Kingdom of God, some scholars see eternal life as the central theme of Jesus' preaching in the Gospel of John,〔〔''A theology of the New Testament'' by George Eldon Ladd 1993 ISBN 0-8028-0680-5 (pages 290–293 )〕〔 where receiving eternal life is seen to be synonymous with entering the Kingdom.〔''A theology of the New Testament'' by George Eldon Ladd 1993 ISBN 0-8028-0680-5 (page 70 )〕 In Christian teachings, eternal life is not an inherent part of human existence, and is a unique gift from God, based on the model of the Resurrection of Jesus, viewed as a unique event through which death was conquered "once for all", permitting Christians to experience eternal life.〔 This eternal life is provided to believers, generally assumed to be at the resurrection of the dead.〔''Mercer dictionary of the Bible'' by Watson E. Mills, Roger Aubrey Bullard 2001 ISBN 0-86554-373-9 page 513 ()〕 In New Testament theology, in addition to "life" (zoe, i.e. ''ζωὴ'' in Greek), there is also a promised spiritual life sometimes described by the adjective ''eternal'' (aionios i.e. ''αἰώνιος'' in Greek) but other times simply referred to as "life".〔〔 In the New Testament, life is not an inherent part of human existence, but is a unique gift from God, based on the model of the Resurrection of Jesus. In Christian teachings, the Resurrection of Jesus is a unique event through which death was conquered "once for all". As a consequence of the death and Resurrection of Jesus, Christians can experience eternal life both at the present as well as the future.〔 In both John and Paul the possibility of attaining eternal life and avoiding the wrath of God is dependent on believing in Jesus, the Son of God. For John abiding in Christ involves love for one another, as in John 15:9-17, and John 5:24. The existence of divine love in believers, then facilitates the influence of the gospel on the world, and lead to widespread salvation.〔 1 John 3:14 then manifests "the already but not yet" acquisition of eternal life by referring to the acquisition of eternal life as a once for all (''ephapax'') event, and the role of love in attaining it: "We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death", somewhat reminiscent of the words of Jesus in John 5:24.〔''1-3 John'' by Robert W. Yarbrough 2008 ISBN 0801026873 page 200〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Eternal life (Christianity)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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