“Then Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.'” John 6:68
Dear Ones:
Every individual on the face of this earth is called to one of two rendezvous. The first is that which we confront every day in this world, where sin takes its toll, and the final effect of it is physical death. The second “meeting,” or rendezvous is with a Person, the fundamental contradiction and remedy to death, both physical because of sin, and spiritual, because of unbelief in God. This Person carries with Him, not only a knowledge of the truth concerning what the Bible calls “Life,” but He is the very essence of it. When Moses spent a great deal of time in the presence of the Lord on the top of Mount Sinai, he returned to the valley and the people with a glow on his face, which reflected a meeting, the meeting with the glorified Christ. The glory of Christ, that unveiling of His person and nature, was so reflected on the skin of Moses’ face, that the people were afraid to look on him. The glory of God, revealed on the face of Moses, was just a small indication of what Life is, not only a truth concerning the person of God who gives physical life, but the power of God to reveal Himself to the heart of the individual who is willing to worship Him in Spirit and truth.
When Peter uttered the words to Jesus, “…You have the words of eternal life,” he did not fully realize what he was saying. If we take the two words, “eternal” and “life” separately, we are confronted with two concepts that are distinct, and yet Divinely complimentary. “Eternal” reveals to us the quality of something which will not change, decay, diminish, or be altered by any event, power, or authority. With regard to God, it speaks of that which is timeless, changeless, forever fresh and new, knowing nothing of decay or diminishing in any manner. It will be as Scripture declares the Lord Jesus to be, “…the same yesterday, today, and forever.” When we come to the word, “Life,” we step into another world or sphere of understanding. The word brings us into contact with that which is not primarily physical, but spiritual, that which is “not of this world,” and yet it is OF God. The Life of which Jesus speaks is His own, a life revealed to man through creation, but also, and primarily through Christ’s work of redemption. The “Life” is characterized by the way, and manner, in which it is revealed. Paul writes to the Galatian believers: “…But the fruit of the Spirit (the Spirit of God) is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” (5:23) This life of Christ is revealed to man by the fruit of its manifestation. Primary, and being the very pinnacle of this revelation, is the love of God. When the Lord Jesus speaks of “Life,” with the quality of being ever-lasting, He is speaking of the knowledge and experience of His Person, His Life. It is not only the revelation of the truth concerning this life, but the very power given to every man, woman, boy and girl, to know the Person of Christ, and thus, to know His life. There will certainly be the influence of the power of this Life of Christ upon the individual, but there will also be the the testimony of this life in the heart, revealing the Life. Christ’s love, joy, and peace, becomes more than truth. It becomes experience.
What then is this rendezvous with Life? It is that meeting of the solitary soul with the Almighty Savior. It is not only that consciousness where the soul becomes aware of the existence of the Life, but where, in all honesty and sincerity, he or she calls upon God for the miracle in the heart, whereby sin is rejected, and the life is surrendered to God. That moment of the new birth, the “”point of contact,” is also the moment of an eternal union established. Life eternal has begun.
Dear Father, Grant us grace to KNOW thy Son, our very Life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad