Devotion - Friday, March 27 - What is Eternal Life?

“And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” - John 17:3

What do you think of when you consider “eternal life”?  The tired archetype of clouds and cherubs?  Robes of white and streets of gold?  Learning the secrets of world events of the past?  Spending time with those who have passed away before us?  

Amazingly, Jesus actually tells us what eternal life is, and His description is beautifully simple.  He says that eternal life is knowing “the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom [God the Father] sent” (John 17:3).  Jesus defines eternal life as relationship.  While we are inclined to think of what we will do in the life to come, Jesus directs us to consider who we shall be—we will be those who know God in truth.  

In his latter years, the Apostle John wrote to the early church: “Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).  The Apostle Paul similarly wrote: “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Cor. 13:12).  

We do not yet know exactly what our future life with Jesus will be like, but we know that we will be known by Him, that we will know Him, and that we will be like Him.  And we know that it will be glorious (Col. 3:4)!

Questions:

1. What does it mean to you to consider eternal life as an endless relationship with God?
2. The New City Catechism, an excellent family devotional resource, begins with the question: “What is our only hope in life and in death?”  The answer: “That we are not our own but belong, body and soul, both in life and death, to God and to our Savior Jesus Christ.”  How does our relationship with God now give us hope for our future life with Him?
3. What can you do now to invest in your future life with Jesus?