What does a more abundant life look like? It is a life with:

More peace. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you” (14:27). Jesus can give more peace than any of us has yet received.

More love. “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (15:13). Jesus has more love to give than any of us has yet known.

More joy. “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (15:11). Jesus can give more joy than any of us have yet experienced.

More faith. “Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Heb. 12:2). Jesus can give more faith than any of us has yet exercised.

More repentance. Repentance is the means by which we become more like Jesus, saying “no” to worldly passions and “yes” to upright, self-controlled, and godly lives. Jesus can give a deeper repentance than any of us has yet discovered.

More strength. “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). Jesus can give more strength than any of us has yet enjoyed.

More hope. “This I call to mind and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lam. 3:21-23). Jesus can give us the hope that we need.

Which of these blessings do you feel you need more of right now?

Jesus came so that you may have life. If you are in Christ, you have it. Life is in Christ, and if Christ is in you, life is in you.

But Jesus does not stop there. He adds these four marvellous words: “and have it abundantly.” What does this mean? It would be easy to say, “Jesus wants you to have a life of total fulfilment, health, wealth, and satisfaction. He came so that everything you want could be yours.”

But that would be a complete misunderstanding of this verse. Believers get sick, experience loss, and know disappointment. Most of all, if we follow Jesus we must be ready to deny ourselves and take up our cross every day (Mat. 16:24). So, what does “and have it abundantly” mean? It means that Jesus Christ has more to give than any of us has received.

This life that Jesus gives makes it possible for us to face loss, difficulties, and disappointment. If you have suffered loss from thieves, these words are especially for you. Jesus came so that you would have all you need, for all that you face.

Don’t be satisfied with a small measure of life—a little faith, a little peace, a little joy. Jesus Christ has more to give than any of us has received!

How do you get more? The same way you got what you have in the first place—by coming to Jesus. “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Mat. 7:7-8).

What does it mean to you that Jesus came so that you would have all you need, for all you face?

Picture your life as a house. You are sitting in your living room, and there is a knock on the door. You pull back the curtain to see who is outside.

Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20).

If you fear that Jesus may be a thief and that your life will be less if you let Him in, you will bolt the door. “If I let Him in, He will take away my freedom to do what I want. He will kill off what I enjoy.”

But if you were to see that Jesus came to give you life, you would pull back the bolt and open the door. So, hear these words of Jesus: “I came that they may have life” (Jn. 10:10).

Now someone may say, “Well, I have life already. I have good friends. I am content. I am happy, and I don’t need Jesus.”

But here’s the thing: God gives us life, but we don’t hold it in our possession. Life can be taken from us in any number of ways—cancer, an accident, or an act of violence.

But for Jesus, it is different. John says, “In him was life, and the life was the light of men” (Jn. 1:4). Life is in Jesus. He holds it as His own possession.

Jesus knocks on the door of your life. He is not a thief. He has come so that you may have life, and when you believe that, you will open the door.

Have you opened the door of your life to Jesus? When you see what He can give, you will freely and gladly open the door and welcome Him in.