Eternal Life

Eternal Life

Many say, “If we believe, we have eternal life.” What is this life we secure? It does point, to be sure, to future blessing. But what does eternal life mean for today? “And this is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent” (John 17.3). This life constitutes for the here and now a new ability to know God and the Lord Jesus. This is indeed true. Whoever believes in the Lord and enjoys eternal life has obtained an intuitive knowledge of God which he never possessed before. Having eternal life is not a slogan; it is a reality which can be demonstrated and exhibited in this present hour. Those without this life can rationalize about God but they enjoy no personal knowledge of Him. Only after one has received new life in regeneration does he intuitively and actually know God. People may understand the Bible, yet their spirit abides in death. They may be familiar with theology, still their spirit remains unquickened. They may even zealously serve in the name of the Lord, but no new life is engendered within their spirit. The Bible perceptively asks, “Canst thou by searching find out God? Canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?” (Job 11.7 ASV) No amount of mental laboring can equip us to know God. Apart from the quickened spirit within man no one is able to apprehend Him, not even with his brain. The Bible recognizes just one kind of knowledge, and that is the knowledge in the spirit’s intuition.