Eternal Life Begins Now (John 17:1–11)

How might you be what you already are? Explore this week’s Gospel reading and consider what it means for us today.

Each week, we post a passage from Sunday’s Scriptures; share links to resources that give context and inspire new ideas; and offer a few questions to get you thinking about what we’ll read together in church.

The Gospel for May 17, 2026

John 17:1–11

Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.

“I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.”

Read all of Sunday’s Scriptures

Step Into the Story

3 Ways to Go Deeper

Commentary

“Abiding in Jesus is not biding our time until we can escape our life in the world,” writes Cody J. Sanders, professor at Luther Seminary. “When we preach ‘eternal life’ in [John’s] Gospel, we need not diminish our relationship to the present time, as that life begins now with a new identity and profound intimacy of relationship with God.”

Theater

Speaking of life that starts now: “If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it,” says poet Mary Oliver. “It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins.”

Theology

“We are already one,” writes theologian Thomas Merton. “But we imagine that we are not. And what we have to recover is our original unity. What we have to be is what we are.”

Reflection Questions

Take a Moment to Wonder

• What might change if eternal life starts today?
• Are you waiting for the perfect conditions or embracing your imperfect life now?
• How might you be what you already are?