Your name is already written in the Book of Life, or it never will be. This message is written so that you may know for sure whether it is or not. If your name is written in the Book of Life (eternal life), God wants you to know about it and enjoy living in fellowship with Himself. Now if your name is written in the Book of Life, do you know how you can know it?
First, by your response to the Gospel of Christ; that is, the message that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (I Corinthians 15:3,4). “But these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you might have life through His name” (John 20:31).
If, in view of these Scriptures, you have chosen and continue to choose to reject God’s pardon, you may be assured that your name is not written in the Book of Life. John 3:36 says, “He that believeth not the Son shall not see life.” I John 5:12 says, “He that hath not the Son hath not life.”
Secondly, you can know by your thoughts as to the Person of Christ. In the Gospel according to John we read that Jesus Christ is God revealed in the flesh. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth” (John 1:1,14). Jesus Christ, the Son of God, before coming into this world, was eternally with the Father and the Holy Spirit (John 1:1-3). And these are the Persons of the Godhead (Romans 1:20). God the Son became flesh and came into this world at Bethlehem, lived a sinless life, and did countless miracles, such as healing leprosy, opening blind eyes, walking on the water as if it were solid earth, stilling the waves and wind in the middle of a raging storm, raising the dead, and many more (John 20:30,31). All these He did without charge proving He was truly God. The Old Testament was written by holy men of God (II Peter 1:19-21). It told all these truths about Christ hundreds of years before He came, again to prove that He came from God to save sinners. As Christ told His followers, He must go to the cross (John 3:14,15) and there die as the Lamb of God (John 1:29). He died in our place, shedding His blood, so we might be cleansed of all our sins. He was buried, and the third day He rose from among the dead, and after 40 days He showed Himself openly to those who had believed in Him. Then Jesus, in the presence of His disciples, ascended bodily into heaven, where He sat down at the right hand of God (Hebrews 10:12). Jesus said, “If you believe not that I am He, you shall die in your sins” (John 8:24). You may be sure that the name of those who die in their sins will not be in the Book of Life.
You can also know by your attitude toward the finished work of Christ on the cross. “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief” (I Timothy 1:15; Luke 19:10). He is a seeking Savior (I Peter 2:24). Before Christ died, He said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). God’s Word states that “The preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness.” Be assured that those who perish will not have their names written in the Book of Life.
Today if you will receive Christ as your Lord (Master) and Savior, by this very fact that you can know that your name is in the Book of Life. God knows those who will believe and receive His Son, Jesus Christ, as Lord and Savior, and He has written those names in His Book of Life. In Revelation 17:8 we see that each saved person has his name in the Book from the foundation of the world. The Lord Jesus told those who believed in Him, “Rejoice because your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20). If you really believe in Christ and receive Christ personally, the Holy Spirit will reveal to you the truth of I John 5:12: “You that have the Son have life; you that have not the Son of God have not life”, also, “If you shall confess Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead you shall be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9,10; Philippians 4:3). You can know that your name is not in the Book of Life if you have not and will not receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. You are lost, and judgment awaits you (Revelation 20:15; 21:8; John 3:36). “And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15). My prayer for you is that you may believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, who created you and came to redeem you. “There is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). “Come” is the Lord’s invitation to you, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37). Anyone, even you, can have this great salvation if you will come and thereby know that your name is written in the Book of Life.