Jesus promises everlasting life to the one who believes in Him. Yet He also teaches that following Him as a disciple can be costly, requiring obedience, sacrifice, endurance, and even taking up one’s cross.

So how do those teachings fit together?

The key is recognizing that receiving everlasting life and following Jesus as a disciple are not the same question. In John 6:47, Jesus says, “he who believes in Me has everlasting life.” But in Luke 14:27, He says, “whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.”

These passages are not giving two different answers to the same question. One concerns how a person receives everlasting life; the other concerns what it means to follow Christ faithfully after receiving it.

In this video, we examine passages including John 6, John 8, John 10, and Luke 14 to see why everlasting life is received freely through faith in Jesus, while discipleship involves ongoing obedience, faithfulness, and sacrifice.

Discipleship matters. Faithfulness matters. Obedience matters. But they are not additional conditions for receiving or keeping everlasting life.