Jn 3:31-36
31The one who comes from above is above all. The one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things. But the one who comes from heaven [is above all]. 32He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33Whoever does accept his testimony certifies that God is trustworthy. 34For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He does not ration his gift of the Spirit. 35The Father loves the Son and has given everything over to him. 36Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.
Eternal Life: Among the ancient Hebrews, there is no distinction between “life” as a principle of vitality and life as a living, concrete expression of that vitality. Life is an animated body with its power to function, and its capacity for pleasure. Life itself is the basic good. “Fullness” of life is the experience that a person desires on this earth: length of days, possessions (especially of land), offspring, peace, and deliverance from enemies. Life is diminished with the loss of these, and death marks the end of life. Israel knew of no vital activity which survived death.
Much later, primarily due to the influence of Greek thought, there grew a belief in life after death. When Antiochus IV Epiphanes introduced Hellenism upon the people and forced them to give up religious practices, Israelite martyrs gave up their lives in the hope of receiving them back from God. By the time of Jesus, most people believed in the other life, in the resurrection from the dead on the last day. The fullness of life—or eternal life—is obtained after death.
Eternal life (Greek aionios zoe) appears frequently in John. It means that death is not the final word; eternal life awaits people beyond this earthly life. It is a life of happiness with God. But with Jesus, eternal life begins to be a reality in this life. What is in store for the last days already enters in with Jesus. This is what theologians call realized or incipient eschatology. Jesus has the words of eternal life; one possesses eternal life through faith in him (Jn 20:31). One obtains eternal life by keeping the commandment of God. One must be ready to lose one’s natural life to preserve one’s soul for eternal life (Jn 12:25).
In today’s Gospel, Jesus says that a person who believes in him has eternal life. One does not have to wait to pass on to the other life to experience the divine life that Jesus brings.