Knowing God…

We, as humans, are all in a desperate search for the meaning of life. We seek for significance with the same intensity that we search for lost car keys and for the same reason: we can’t go anywhere without it.

Recently, I’ve been thinking about life and what the essence of life is. We have been promised eternal life through Jesus Christ but I find it very hard to believe that eternal life means nothing more than infinite existence. It must have more substance than simply “never dying”. And then I came across this marvelous statement by Jesus in John 17: “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

This verse opened my eyes to the essence of life. Fundamentally, it is  a relationship with God that colors our existence with the glory of life. To know God is to accomplish our purposes in life, find fulfillment for our longings in life and ultimately experience significance and satisfaction in life. In John 14:8, Phillip begs Jesus to “show us the Father, that would be enough.” The word for “enough” here is the same Greek word that Paul uses in 2 Corinthians 12 when he describes God’s grace as being “sufficient”. The use of the English word “sufficient” is…well, not sufficient, if you will, to express the grace of God or the experience of knowing God. Knowing God is not simply “satisfactory”; it is satisfying.

Life is full of struggles and recently I’ve faced struggles of my own. For one, I’ve faced feelings of loneliness and uncertainty about the future. I’ve found strength and peace in Scripture, knowing that my relationship with God is the ultimate source of satisfaction and the very essence of eternal life. Whatever else happens, whether other relationships thrive or not, the steady constance of knowing God is “enough”. It is where we can all find true contentment, peace, joy, satisfaction and significance. There is no need to keep searching.