1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, 2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. 4 I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.
When Jesus starts praying here, He is still sitting at the table at the last supper. So far they have grieved about Jesus being betrayed, they have talked about Jesus and the Father being equal, and they have talked about Jesus ‘going away’. There were numerous times that Jesus talked about ‘eternal life’ and this one is no different.
Have you ever known someone that by just knowing them, your life was different? Like the middle school teacher that was the first adult that genuinely cared about how you felt about your life? Or that rich uncle that is always happy to buy you the shrimp and lobster platter without any guilt? Or that friend that is going to make you laugh so hard that your face will hurt the rest of the day?
To have eternal life is to know God and to know that He sent Jesus. To know Jesus transcends every situation, struggle, and confusing trial. To know Jesus and the Father sees through every hardship (like a friend’s betrayal) and difficulty (like an unjust murder) to continue on with confidence. It isn’t confidence in a general sense that you can grunt and muster up perseverance. Eternal life is confidence that God loves you and is taking care of everything that involves you.
When we realize this is true, we want to realize it in new ways over and over again. That’s where God’s glory really shows off. He isn’t just for you during this or that event. He is with you and loves you through every event. He is working on your salvation and redemption more than you are! That is the eternal life that Jesus gives, that He wants to know you. That’s what made Him break out into this exclamation at the last supper, and it’s what makes Him break out into your life today.