John 17

3 Now eternal life is this: that they may know You,*I take it that the reference here is to experiential knowledge. ‘Eternal life’ refers mainly to a quality of life (more than longevity), and that quality is defined by relationship with the Father. The person who conceives of God as a distant, detached authority figure doesn’t really know Him. the only true God, and the One whom You sent—Jesus Christ.*This is the first recorded time that the Lord used this title, ‘Jesus Christ’ (in Matthew 16:20 there is ‘Jesus, the Christ’—as in over 95% of the Greek manuscripts). He did so when He could also say, "I have finished the work that You have given me to do" (next verse) (He still had a few hours to go, but is declaring His victory). In Acts and the epistles the title is very frequent—it affirms that Jesus is the Messiah. Also, what happens to those who only ‘know’ the Father, but not the Son?