In an age of endless self-help guides and relentless pursuit of success, the question of life’s purpose echoes louder than ever. What are we here for? To accumulate wealth? To achieve fame? To leave a legacy? While these pursuits are not inherently evil, they are inherently temporary. They are like building a magnificent sandcastle, knowing the tide will eventually claim it. The human heart, as St. Augustine famously observed, is restless until it finds its rest in something eternal. The Bible presents a breathtakingly beautiful and definitive answer to this universal search: our ultimate purpose is eternal fellowship with Jesus Christ.

This is not a vague spiritual concept but the central promise of the Gospel, a thread woven from the beginning of Scripture to its glorious end. It is the fulfillment of a divine desire, the antidote to our deepest sorrows, and the final destination for every seeking soul.

The Heart of the Father: A Desire for Our Presence (John 17:24)

The longing for eternal fellowship did not originate with us; it originated in the heart of God. In His high-priestly prayer, just hours before His crucifixion, Jesus pulls back the curtain of eternity to reveal the deepest desire of the Trinity. He prays to the Father, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24).

This is a stunning revelation. The purpose of our salvation is not merely forgiveness, nor simply a ticket to escape hell. It is an invitation into the very presence of God to behold and share in the glory of the Son. Before the world was formed, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit existed in perfect, loving fellowship. The grand narrative of creation and redemption is the story of God inviting us into that eternal circle of love.

Jesus’s death on the cross was the necessary, agonizing path to remove the barrier of sin that separated us from this fellowship. His resurrection was the victory that secured it. His prayer in John 17:24 is the ultimate goal: that we would be with Him. Our purpose, therefore, is rooted in the pre-historic, loving desire of God. We are wanted. We are desired. Our eternal home is not a place we merely get to go, but a Person we get to be with.

The Contrast of a Wasted Life: Sorrows of Those Who Run Elsewhere (Psalm 16:4)

To understand the value of this fellowship, the Bible also shows us the tragic alternative. In Psalm 16, David celebrates the joys of a life lived in God’s presence, declaring, “The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup” (Psalm 16:5). But he begins with a stark warning: “The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply” (Psalm 16:4).

An “idol” or “another god” is anything we pursue as our ultimate source of purpose, identity, and satisfaction apart from the true God. This could be career, relationships, pleasure, wealth, or even religious performance. The promise for those who chase these substitutes is not fulfillment, but multiplied sorrows. The pursuit is exhausting, the rewards are fleeting, and the end is emptiness. It’s a life spent chasing echoes in a canyon, never finding the source of the voice.

This verse serves as a sobering diagnostic. Where are we seeking our “portion”? Is our primary pursuit a successful life on earth, or a deep fellowship with Christ that transcends this life? The multiplied sorrows are not necessarily a punishment from a vengeful God, but the natural consequence of a soul trying to drink from wells that can never hold water. Our purpose cannot be found in the created world; it can only be found in the Creator.

The Consummation of Fellowship: An End to All That Separates (Revelation 21:4)

The promise of eternal fellowship reaches its breathtaking climax in the final chapters of Revelation. After the culmination of human history and the establishment of a new heaven and a new earth, John hears a loud voice from the throne declaring the final state of the redeemed: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).

This verse is the ultimate fulfillment of the desire expressed in John 17:24 and the final answer to the sorrows described in Psalm 16:4. Eternal fellowship with Christ is not a sterile, church-service-like existence. It is the restoration of all things to their intended wholeness.

• “He will wipe away every tear”: This is an image of profound, personal intimacy. God Himself, like a loving parent comforting a hurt child, will personally remove the last vestiges of our grief, shame, and regret. Every cause for sorrow—every loss, every betrayal, every failure—will be healed in His presence.
• “Death shall be no more”: The ultimate enemy and the final consequence of sin is abolished. The great separator is itself separated from us forever.
• “No more mourning, crying, or pain”: All the “sorrows” that multiplied from our idolatries and from a broken world are eradicated. The former order of things, characterized by sin and its devastating effects, has passed away.

Fellowship with God is, therefore, the environment in which we are made whole. It is the context where our deepest wounds are healed and our most profound longings are satisfied.

Living with Purpose Today

If our eternal purpose is fellowship with Christ, then our present purpose is to cultivate that fellowship now. This eternal reality is not just a future hope; it is a present source of identity, comfort, and direction.

1. It Reorients Our Pursuits: Knowing we are destined for an eternal relationship with Jesus allows us to hold the things of this world lightly. We can work, love, and create with excellence, but we are no longer enslaved by the need for these things to give us ultimate meaning. Our “portion” is secure in Christ.
2. It Transforms Our Suffering: In the midst of pain, we have the hope of Revelation 21:4. Our tears are not permanent. Our pain is not the final word. This hope is an anchor for the soul, providing a fortitude that those without Christ cannot comprehend.
3. It Fuels Our Worship and Mission: Understanding God’s desire for us (John 17:24) fuels a loving response. Our worship becomes the joyful answer to His invitation. Our mission becomes an extension of that desire, as we invite others to share in this eternal fellowship.

In the end, the search for purpose is not a puzzle to be solved, but a Person to be known. It is the call to come home—to a home we were made for, desired by the Father, purchased by the Son, and promised forever. Our purpose is not a destination on a map, but a relationship that begins now and finds its perfect, unending fulfillment in the day when we are, at last, truly and completely, with Him.

“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psalm 16:11)