“THIS IS ETERNAL LIFE”

3 “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” 

John 17:3

The Bible says that if we put our faith in Christ, we have eternal life. What is eternal life, to begin with?

John chapter 17 is a heartfelt prayer known as Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer.” After delivering His Farewell Discourse, Jesus now prays for Himself, the disciples, and future believers. This moment is also the start of Jesus’ “time.”

In verse 3, the Lord says eternal life means knowing the Father and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. The original Greek word for “eternal” is “aionios,” meaning, “without beginning and end, that which always has been and always will be.” Rather than referring to duration, it refers to the supernatural nature of life that comes from knowing God and the Lord Jesus Christ. Simply put, eternal life is not necessarily "never-ending life" but having an active, intimate relationship with God.

In the Gospel of John, the word “know” doesn’t only mean having knowledge about something. Instead, it refers to having a personal experience or relationship with a person or a thing. Therefore, eternal life is knowing God personally. This knowledge includes proper intellectual understanding, obedience as proof of faith, and an intimate union with God. In other words, it is a shared life—the life of God shared with those who trust in Jesus. 

From a human perspective, eternal life starts when an individual believes in Jesus Christ. But from God’s perspective, it is a truth that began when God chose His people before time began. This means we cannot think of eternal life only in terms of how long this life is. It’s not just about living forever and ever. Instead, it is an all-encompassing truth that includes fellowship and communion with God as well as submission to Him. Quantity is just one aspect of the concept of eternal life; quality of life is another.

How do we foster a healthy personal relationship with God? A simple way to grow deeper in our walk with Him is getting to know Him in His revealed Word. We must move past knowing about Him through church attendance and focus on talking to Him as a loving Father and friend. We must treat prayer as a quiet moment to experience God's peace, rather than as a task to be ticked off our list. More importantly, we must stop trying to impress Him with our performance, and instead live a life of repentance and sensitivity to His leading.

Pursue the Savior today!

Photo by Daniel Loyd Blunk-Fernández on Unsplash