“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” (NIV)
Do you ever dream about the moment something was created? Imagine how incredible it was when the first light bulb flashed light into a dark room. Imagine the moment when the radio was invented and people could be entertained in their homes in a brand-new way they could never have dreamed of. These small creations changed the world forever!
In my spiritual journey, my light-bulb moment that changed me forever happened the moment I read and studied John 17:3. Jesus is praying to the Father, and he starts with an immediate attention-grabber “Now this is eternal life.” Stop, pause, read it again! Jesus is about to tell us what eternal life is! Then He continues “that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”
So how do we get eternal life? It’s not by following a list of rules, it’s not based on your deeds, it’s not based on traditions. Jesus tells us clearly here that Eternal Life = Knowing God. When you study this verse, you’ll see the small word “know” is powerful. Jesus is referring to a deep, intimate, personal relationship — one greater than any relationship you will have with anyone here on earth. Eternal life isn’t just about the future. We can have it now!
In the book, Eternity is Now in Session, John Ortberg wrote, “To know God is to live in a rich, moment-by-moment, gratitude-soaked, participatory life together. To know God means to know myself as His beloved friend as a gift of grace. To know God means to know what Paul called “the power of His resurrection” (Philippians 3:10) in the details and tasks and challenges of my daily, ordinary life.”
We can all experience freedom in Christ through the freedom of the gospel.
Jesus had just previously said “Father, the time has come.” This is a very real moment where He stops to pray for the Disciples and those who follow him today. I love that He wants us to know that we can have a daily relationship with the one who is about to lay down his life for us. We were created for a relationship with Him … that we are fully loved and known by Him forever!
Jesus moves on to say to the Father, “I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.” His mission was close to ending on earth. The message paraphrased is: “I glorified you on earth by completing down to the last detail what you assigned me to do.” Jesus has done everything necessary for our salvation!
“And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” Jesus was asking his Father to restore Him to His original place of honor and authority. Would He be missed? Absolutely! Would He leave us? NEVER! Jesus told His Disciples during the evening before His death that He would be going away from them for a time. He also reassured them that He was not abandoning them. His leaving meant he could be present to the whole world through the Holy Spirit.
I’m reminded of Psalm 145:5-7: “I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, and on your wondrous works. Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts, and I will declare your greatness. They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, and shall sing of your righteousness.”
The light bulb and the radio were created long ago, changed the world and are still at work today in more ways than their creators could have imagined. Imagine if we viewed ourselves as being created to do the same. Paul reminds us that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! Every interaction we have throughout the day is an opportunity to show God’s light to the world. And I’m so thankful Jesus told us, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Read the following questions and record your thoughts in your journal:
Michael and Emily Merrill in Southeast AsiaBACK TO WEEKLY DEVOTIONS