Interpretation of the Bible / John 17:3
John 17:3 is a very short passage, but it contains a profound teaching and a glorious promise. In it, Jesus teaches us that eternal life is not only achieved by believing in God, but also by knowing Him on a personal level, and by knowing His Son, Jesus Christ, the messenger of God.
Eternal life
The first important point to note is that eternal life is more than just existing forever somewhere after death. Eternal life, as we understand from this verse, is a relationship with God that begins here on earth and continues throughout eternity. Eternal life is knowing God and continuing to know Him forever.
Knowing the one true God and Jesus Christ
However, we cannot know God without believing in Him. Believing in God is the first step to eternal life, but it is not the only one. We must truly seek Him, study His Word, and spend time in prayer with Him. Once we have come to believe in God, we must live a life in which our relationship with Him is the most important thing, and this is only achieved through prayer and reading the Bible.
This verse tells us that we must not only know God, but also Jesus Christ, who was sent by God. By knowing Jesus, we can more fully understand the character of God. Jesus is the perfect image of God, and observing His life and example helps us to tangibly understand God’s love, justice, and mercy.
This verse also mentions that God is the only true God. At a time when society promotes the idea that there are many paths to God, this verse reminds us that there is no other God but Him. We must be careful not to fall into the trap of believing in anything other than Him.