That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

1 John 1:1-4 (ESV)

God is so indescribable and beyond our comprehension that He had to take on tangible human form in order for us to understand Him better. The Apostle John describes Jesus as the Word of Life and Eternal Life itself. It is to say Jesus is the very message and source of finding life with God and fellowship with Him both now and forever.

Jesus did not begin as a baby. He existed before the creation and was the reason for it. However, in the fullness of time, Jesus fully manifested Himself through the incarnation, allowing us to fully enter into all the richness of life that God intends for us through our union with Christ.

We gain firsthand knowledge of God through fellowship with Him in Christ, just as the early Christians did when they heard Him, saw Him, touched Him, and were convinced of His divinity. His Spirit will guide us and reveal things to us so that we can experience the fullness of His life in us and be able to share the truth with others.

This life that we have in Christ is eternal.

Eternal life is not about the length of life, but its fullness. In other words, it is about our present standing in Christ as well as the blessed assurance of our eternal security with Him. Our salvation doesn’t depend upon our faithfulness to Christ, but rather it rests on His faithfulness to us.

When we have eternal life, we are no longer afraid of death or the consequences of sin that we all deserve. Furthermore, eternal life is not mystical—but rather practical, manifesting itself in deep and meaningful fellowship with God and others. Because we have experienced this divine life of love flowing and overflowing from the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit, we are empowered to live and act rightly in Jesus' name.