seeing Jesus

09122014.mmitm.mjb

“We wish to see Jesus.” John 12:21 NKJV

We cannot love a God who is no more than a deduction from a text. We must know God with a vital awareness that goes beyond words and to live in the intimacy of personal communion. -A.W. Tozer

There are different ways to see something. I can look at a map of Italy and say, “I have seen Italy.” I can also fly over Italy in a plane and be able to say, “I have seen Italy.” On occasion, my wife and I enjoy watching House Hunters International. Certain shows will focus on a city in Italy, such as Rome or Venice. At the end of the show my wife and I will jokingly say, “Well, we have seen Italy, I guess we don’t need to go there.” Yes, I have “seen” Italy and I have seen some of its most famous cities. All that I have seen about Italy is true, and yet, I have only seen it from afar.

To fully “see” Italy, I must go there. My seeing needs to go from second hand to first hand. I need to be in Italy to smell its smells, eat its food, see its sights, walk its roads, climb its hills, ford its rivers, feel its climate, explore its history, visit its people and go to their homes. I could spend a lifetime seeing Italy and discovering something new every day.

Many people have only seen Jesus in the same way that I have seen Italy…from afar. They have “seen” Him in books, in movies, in church, through the testimonies of others, and through the pages of Scripture. All that they have seen about Jesus can be true, but yet, what they know of Him is only second hand.

To fully “see” Jesus, we must go to Him, live in Him, and have His Spirit live in us. We need to know His heart, learn His voice, take His yoke, follow His footsteps, yield to His will, surrender to His Lordship, kneel at His feet, be immersed in His love, and behold His glory.

Father, I want to see Jesus. Holy Spirit, You have been sent so that I may see Him. Open the eyes of my spirit to see Him as I have never seen Him before…not only historically, but help me to see Him resurrected, ascended, and exalted. Help me to see the compassion upon His face as He looks upon me, and the strength of His hand as He daily upholds me. Help me to see Him as my intercessor, my healer, my keeper, and my everlasting friend.