God is a Spirit. When used in reference to God, the word zao is not associated with a human body - except when the word is referring to Christ - and when it was used by Jesus in reference to Himself, He was associating the word with His resurrected, glorified human body:
-- "I am the First and the Last, and the Living [zao] One,
and I became dead [nekros], and behold, I am alive [zao] to the ages of the ages, Amen.
And I have the keys of hades and of death." (Revelation 1:17-18).
Jesus has eternal zoe | life in Himself; and Jesus is zao | alive forevermore, possessing His immortality:
"He (Christ) alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no human has ever seen or is able to see. To him be honor and eternal power! Amen." (1 Timothy 6:15-16).
- In Christ we have eternal life (1 John 5:11-12). "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory." (Colossians 3:4).
The source of immortality is the continual supply of life. The continual supply of life is eternal life. The only source of the continual supply of life, is God.
The analogy Jesus and biblical scripture gives us of this, is living [zao] water (water that is alive). (John 4:10-11; John 7:38), fountains of living waters (Revelation 7:17), a river of water of life [zoe]; the tree of life:
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"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life [zoe] - water as clear as crystal - pouring out from the throne of God and of the Lamb. On each side of the river is the tree of life [zoe] producing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month of the year. Its leaves are for the healing of the nations." (Revelation 22:1-2).
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The water of life [zoe] flows continually. This implies that created human beings need to continually drink of the living [zao] water, because unlike Jesus, we do not have life [zoe] within ourselves - it is given to us in Christ.
--- I am the vine, ye are the branches. Abide in me, and I in you, because if a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned, and as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. --- (John 15:4-6, verses rearranged).
Jesus said, "The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life [zoe]." (John 6:63).
In the Word of God is life [zoe] (John 1:4).
Paul said, "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of the LORD: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:14).
Abiding in Christ and continually drinking of the water of life that is freely given to us in Christ is not the same as working for our salvation from eternal death. Our salvation from sin and eternal death is not dependent upon ourselves. Death cannot give itself life. Sinful flesh cannot put sin in the flesh to death - it is through the Spirit of Christ that we are able to put to death the deeds of the body - through His death for our sin and His death to sin:
"For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." (Romans 8:13).
"For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth [zao], he liveth [zao] unto God." (Romans 6:10) - also see this statement He made:
"Fear not; I am the first and the last:
I am he that is alive / that liveth [zao], and was dead; and, behold,
I am alive [zao] to the Ages of the ages [Greek the aeons of the aeons], Amen;
and I have the keys of hades and of death."
(Revelation 1:17-18).
"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Romans 8:3-4).
Jesus condemned sin in the flesh on the cross, through His death (Colossians 2:10-14; 1 Peter 2:24; Romans 6:2-11).
Our salvation and our sanctification is the work of God in His grace through Jesus Christ, and it comes to us through our faith (believing) in Jesus Christ, who said:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned. (John 3:16-18a).
Genesis Chapter 2 tells us about the living [zao] God, who has life [zoe] in Himself, creating human beings and breathing life [zoe] into them in order that they may become living [zao] souls [psyche], so that they may live | may be alive [zao], each one in his own created body on the created earth.
Adam and Eve represent all created human beings because they were the first created human beings, all other human beings (except Christ) having been procreated from the same genetic seed, by a human father.
After creating Adam, God commanded him: "Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof dying you will die." (Genesis 2:17),
but "the serpent said to the woman, 'You shall NOT surely die.'" (Genesis 3:4).
Adam evidently did not possess (his own) immortality, or have eternal life IN HIMSELF, because the moment he disobeyed the commandment, his body began to slowly die. He was prevented from eating of the tree of life [zoe] and living [zao] forever in his fallen sinful state. (Genesis 3:22-24).
In Romans 5:12 Paul explains that "sin entered the world through one man (Adam), and death through sin, and so death spread to all people because all sinned" (not only did all sin in Adam, but all have also sinned);
and in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 Paul tells us that "since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also came through a man. For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be quickened [zoopoieo: made alive]" - and it's the quickening of the dead body that Paul is referring to.
In the last chapter of the Bible the tree of life is seen as having been made available to created human beings again (Revelation 22:1-22).
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Uniquely among human beings, the Logos who became a human being, i.e Jesus the Son of God, possesses eternal life in Himself and possesses immortality of Himself. As for created human beings, "IN HIM (God) we live | are alive [zao], and move, and have our being; For we are also his offspring." (Acts 17:28):
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EVERLASTING LIFE OWNED
-- "In the beginning was the Word, the Word existed with God, and the Word was fully God. The Word was with God in the beginning. All things were created by him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. In him life [zōḗ] exists, and the life is the light of mankind." (John 1:1-4).
-- "For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has given to the Son to have life within Himself" -- John 5:26
EVERLASTING LIFE GIVEN
-- "And this is the record, that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that has the Son has life; and he that has not the Son of God has not life." -- 1 John 5:11-12.
RIGHTEOUSNESS OWNED
-- "My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One. -- 1 John 2:1
RIGHTEOUSNESS GIVEN
-- "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death. -- Philippians 3:9-10
RESURRECTION OWNED
-- "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:" -- John 11:25
-- "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." -- John 14:6
RESURRECTION GIVEN
-- "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming." -- 1 Corinthians 15:20-23
IMMORTALITY OWNED
-- "He (Christ) alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no human has ever seen or is able to see. To him be honor and eternal power! Amen." -- 1 Timothy 6:15-16
IMMORTALITY GIVEN
-- "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory." -- 1 Corinthians 15:52-54.
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