In my bad old days (I would normally call this my B.C. days [Before Christ saved me]). I would often live my life in the very shallow worldview that if I cannot see it I won’t believe it.
We know in our modern-day world that plenty of things are there and very palpable albeit that we cannot see it.
Take, for example, oxygen. We are certain that it is there. Otherwise, me typing this newsletter and you reading this newsletter wouldn’t be happening as the ability to breathe would just not be there.
So, we know that there is more to this life than merely what we can see or touch.
Beloved, this is good news for us. Because, if we are completely honest, what we see in this life isn’t all that encouraging, is it?
Currently, in our country, we have seen the return of stage 6 load-shedding. Talk about not being able to see at night! With that, it brings an economic strain that we can see affects so many around us, coupled with a massive interest rate hike. These are real things that we see on a societal level.
But, it doesn’t remain there. In our personal lives, what do we see? Families are being broken apart. People struggling with severe illnesses and terrible grief. These are real, they are there we can see them and experience the reality of their all-too-real pain.
However, beloved, sight is not the only lens we have as believers in Jesus Christ of Nazareth and we praise God for that!
Hebrews:11:1 states, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”(NIV).
Family, this is not a blind trust in the dark that things will work out due to chance. Not at all. Biblical faith as per Hebrews, is a confident trust that despite the appearance of a situation, we can have hope in the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of the things not yet seen, because of the one in whom we place our trust! The Almighty God, Yahweh.
As the late Tim Keller states in His writings: “It is not the strength of our faith but the object of our faith that saves us.”
Therefore, if we have faith in only what we can see, we are not taking into account the boundless possibilities of what God can do in our situations. Why? Because throughout scripture God makes a habit of doing things that no one saw coming, that seemed to be impossible.
The Israelites in the Exodus seem to be on the cusp of destruction as Egypt charges towards them at the red sea, but what does God do? He splits the red sea for them to cross! David, a shepherd boy goes out to meet a giant and what does God do? The boy kills the giant by God’s power! Time and time again this truth of God doing something out of nothing to bring hope to a hopeless situation is found throughout scripture.
No more is this seen than in the life of the author and finisher of our Faith, Jesus. (Heb.12:2).
Just when Jesus’ ministry seemed to be taking off and as He was riding into Jerusalem to take what seemed to be political power on that first Palm Sunday, four days later, what happened? What people saw at that time changed. They saw the Messiah being tortured, beaten, betrayed, abandoned, and dying. That was a terrible sight!
But what they could not see was the redemption at work for all of us who would be in Christ and the Victorious Messiah that would rise on that first Resurrection Sunday.
Beloved, very often in life, what we are seeing and experiencing in our lives is painful and all too real. But I want to encourage you today, don’t just see what you can see in the natural. Look through the sight of Faith in what our Heavenly Father can do in our lives.
Have confidence in His promises about what He said He can do.
As per 1 Corinthians 2:9, “But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”(NKJV).
Family, we cannot even comprehend the beauty of what lies in wait for us in Christ. Not in the way that we think. But in the way that our Dad in Heaven ultimately knows what is best for us.
Beloved, don’t be shackled to what you can see. God knows it is painful, He understands that with all compassion and He does not condemn us when we battle through what we can see, trust me.
However, let us look forward with confidence to what our dad can do. How He can turn around situations in our lives. On the first Good Friday everyone thought all hope was lost. But three days later came and the world still has never been the same for all the right reasons.
Romans 8:18, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (NKJV).
Beloved, He has not given up on you despite how certain things might appear. There were things in my life I never thought I’d ever be healed from and yet by His grace, He has healed and continues to heal me in many ways because I haven’t arrived at full healing yet in all aspects.
Things might appear bad. But when we hope and trust in Jesus our lives become moulded after His. And as He lived His life by faith, pain was not the end of His story, it ended in God’s glory and so can it be for us in Him.
And I close with the words of the song from the 1998 animated classic the prince of Egypt.
“You can never see with your eyes on Earth
Look through Heaven’s eyes
Look at your life, look at your life
Look at your life through Heaven’s eyes.”
And of course, wherever Christ is. There is Heaven.
Therefore, look at your life and all things through Him, and His word.
I love you with the love of Jesus,
Andrew😊