Eternal life – Our greatest treasure

The greatest gift that God could give a person – is quite simply, Himself.

Make sense? Probably not. Since it is simply not the natural way to think in our dually self-centred & gospel ignorant age – that one could give someone else not simply gifts, but their entire person, much less that person be the Lord of all creation. But this is what the Triune God has indeed done for sinful men and women like ourselves.

Come with me and ask yourself the following question whether you are a believer or not:

What is the greatest gift that God could give to somebody?

Is our conclusion based on size, value, eternality etc.? Yes! Of course it is based on all of these things and more! But here is the thing which I want us to glare into though it be as in a mirror, darkly. 

What, moreover who, is more valuable than God Himself?

What is of more virtue?

Who is worthy of more praise simply for inherent magnitude?

What love is loftier than that which the eternal Father contained within Himself to be parted from His own Son?

What love is loftier than that which the eternal Son contained within Himself than to be derided by the dust which he had once created that such dust might be eternally and irrevocably redeemed?

What love is loftier than that which the eternal Spirit contained within Himself that He should seek to enter into the heart of vile personalities who have committed non other than rank high treason against the Almighty One – seeking ever to lovingly mould a new heart in them that is of eternal value?

You see to answer the question, ‘What is the greatest gift that God could give to somebody?’ with anything other than God Himself is to limit your response to something that is not as big, that is not as valuable and that is not as eternal as God in his self-existent self manifestly is.

This is why the greatest gift that God could give to any person is His very person! It is not prosperity as some of the TV preachers either implicitly or explicitly convey. It is not even life itself, for when life is not there, God is there and whatever is, including life, is, as a result of that which Aquinas labelled his first cause – God Almighty Himself.

This is the reason why the Lord Jesus said in John chapter 17, verse 3 (ESV):

“And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

There is none higher, none greater, none more deserving and none more worth chasing down than God Himself who upholds all things! To know God truly is eternal life.

P

    Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
(Philippians 3:8 ESV)