11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
This the most wonderful verse in Scripture and the most terrible verse, all at the same time. It is wonderful because it tells us that the Creator of the universe has given us eternal life. Think about that. We get to participate in something that will never end, the quality of which is present only in God’s presence. And we have it now, not just in the future. Often when I go out to eat in a really nice restaurant, I will order dessert before my salad and main course. I do it partly for fun and partly for practical reasons. I love desserts, and if I wait until the end of the meal I will not have room for it, since I will be full. But if I order it first, then I can take part of my main meal home in a to-go box. I won’t stuff myself and I get an extra meal out of the deal. We get to enjoy the dessert of life now. We get a taste of eternity as we live in fellowship with the Lord day by day. His presence enriches our life in innumerable ways and we get to enjoy that richness. We don’t have to wait until our life is over to enjoy all that eternity has to offer. If we have the Son, we start that meal now, and dessert is the first course! But at the same time, this is a terrible verse because it says this life is found ONLY in the Son. That means some are excluded from this life. There are billions who do not have this eternal life. Some of our neighbors don’t have this life. Our coworkers might not have this life. Members of our families are missing out. That is heartbreaking. So what can be done about it? We can introduce them to the Son. If they have the Son, they will have life. Problem solved. Are you open to talking about Jesus, the Son, today? There is plenty of dessert to go around, so offer it to someone who needs it.