“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.”

Verses 11 and 12 are the climax to 1 John.  The Son of God is the “Word of Life.”  Possession of the Son of God is the possession of eternal life and vice versa. 

And this is the testimony:

John now gives the content of God’s testimony in this verse.  We cannot separate eternal life from the person of Christ.  False teachers tried to split the two in 2:25-26.  It is not the truth of eternal life at issue here but rather only those who know God’s Son possess it.  False teachers do not enjoy eternal life. 

1 Jn 1:1-2, ¹ “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life— ² the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—…”

that God has given us eternal life,

The result of God’s witness about Jesus Christ is that God gives the believer in Jesus Christ eternal life.  The words “eternal life” are emphatic.  The testimony is that God gave eternal life when He gave His Son.  Eternal life is the final testimony to God’s Son.  Eternal life is more than a quantity of life that lasts forever; it is a quality of life, the highest spiritual life irrespective of time (Jn 17:2-3; 3:15,16; 5:24-26; 6:40,47,68; 10:10,28; 11:25-26).  This life is the very life of God Himself. 

PRINCIPLE: 

Eternal life is as much qualitative life as much as quantitative life. 

APPLICATION: 

Eternal life is qualitative life because God is absolutely free from corruption.  He is pure holiness.  God is peace, so the eternal life He passes to us has symmetry.  Eternal life contains unconditional love, so we have the capacity for unconditional love.  God embodies eternal life in the person of the Son of God.  The person who embraces Jesus Christ as his or her Savior begins a new kind of life.  He or she will experience that life forever. 

Jn 11:25-26, ²⁵ “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. ²⁶ “And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’”