As Christians, we have eternal life now. When we came to God through Christ Jesus our LORD and Savior, our souls and spirits were made alive in Him. Our bodies, unfortunately, are still subject to the results of rebellion and sin, but we have the promise that they too will one day be reborn into eternal life. That is something that as I age, I desire more and more.
Jesus, shortly before His death, prayed for His own. That prayer was not just for those who were gathered around Him at the time, that prayer was for all those who would come after them in faith believing.
“This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent—Jesus Christ.” [John 17:3 HCSB]
It is our great and wonderful privilege to know the “Only True God.” Jesus says that by knowing God we have eternal life. Knowing God means that eternal life is now … not just some promise for the distant future. We are made eternally alive right now! What a blessing to live in the realization of that truth.
But there is another truth that blesses my heart even more. Paul reminds us that not only do we know the “Only True God,” but the Only True God knows us!
“But if anyone loves God, he is known by Him.” [1 Corinthians 8:3 HCSB]
God knows us, our name, our weaknesses, our failures, our delights, our passions, our desires. He knows what we need. He knows what we are going through. In spite of all my faults, He not only knows me, He loves me.
What on earth can compare with that?
