(Be)Holding the Unseen
In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. – 1 Peter 1:6-9, ESV
“Peter thus shows simultaneous grief and joy to be normal in the Christian life. Grief arises because of many difficulties encountered in this fallen world, but faith looks to the unseen reality beyond this present brief existence and rejoices.” – Wayne Grudem
“…Heaven is not a state of mind. Heaven is reality itself. All that is fully real is Heavenly. For all that can be shaken will be shaken and only the unshakeable remains.”― C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce
In yesterday’s text (1 Peter 1:3-12), I did my best to share 3 immutable realities for those who are in Christ. Doing so put me face-to-face with the question of what I let shape my life most. Is it the case that these heavenly realities sink into my soul and change who I am? Or is it the case that the earthly realities which are far more easily discerned shaping me in unhelpful ways? If I believe that the realest realities are Heavenly ones, I should allow the immutable truth of that place inform my life more than it does. Unshakable realities are not the stuff of earth. Tragically, our senses are dull to this fact. We must ask God for help in sharpening our soul’s gaze and grasp of His truth. For if we can see and hold on to the unshakeable realities of Heaven, than earth and the Enemy of our souls will have far less sway over us. If we can, for instance, keep in mind that our inheritance is heavenly than earthly possessions will matter far less to us. If we can keep in mind that our salvation is an already not yet process which will not be finished until Jesus returns, it gives us hope and encouragement. If we can remind ourselves that we’ve been given the greatest advantage in our place in redemptive history, then it keeps us from daydreams full of wishes about being from a different era. But, for all of that to be true, we must see the unseen. We must behold what is now only visible to the eyes of faith. And someone might say, “Aren’t you simply asking us to pretend?” No. Pretending is just the opposite of what I am asking of us. Pretending is acting as if something that is not true is true. What I am encouraging of us is far more than mere pretend or make believe. I am urging you to lay hold of the truths of heaven in your heart and mind in such a way that the veracity of them sinks deep into your soul. I am asking for you to sharpen your spiritual senses so that, as the old song goes, “the things of earth will grow strangely dim.” If we can do this, if we can behold the unseen, then we can be held by the unseen One. I cannot see Jesus right now. But, I know He is real and the salvation He has offered is real. I know my salvation, my hope, my joy, my eternal inheritance and my time and place in redemptive history are in His hands. I know His love and love Him because He first loved me. You and I must discipline ourselves to look to the unseen realities as the most real. We must insist on gazing at them each day. We must refuse an earth-bound, shakable reality as our home. We are but pilgrims here. Exiles. Our homeland is beyond. We must keep on insisting on this fact for living a Christian life makes no sense unless we behold and are held by the unseen realties of Heaven and Him who calls it home.
A song came to mind as I finished this blog- the lyrics are posted below- even if you aren’t an old school Newsboys fan, it seemed to fit nicely with what I am trying to say here. Enjoy!
This field guide's got no soul
Digging for the sacred in a man-made hole
The soil gets harder, the shovel won't behave
I just dug myself into a six foot grave
I need a new dimension, got to supersize
A Jacobean ladder to a parallel prize
The walks by faith, the sight lines lie
How am I gonna tag along with one tin ear and one glass eye?
Well I, I can't get there from here when every sense is in mono
Walk by faith you appear, I wanna live in stereo
I can't get there from here without a God directed go
Walk by faith you appear, I've gotta live in stereo
I quit, I fold, I'm done trying to scale Everest
Sherpa-less ain't fun
The best-laid plans are in my other pants
The base camp's buried in an avalanche
I need a new dimension, got to supersize
A Jacobean ladder, to a parallel prize
The walks by faith, the lone wolf dies
How am I gonna follow you with blue man ears and snow blind eyes?
But I, I can't get there from here when every sense is in mono
Walk by faith you appear, I wanna live in stereo
I can't get there from here without a God-directed go
Walk by faith you appear, I've gotta live in stereo
Walk by faith from where you are
I can't get there from, I can't get there from
I can't get there from here when every sense is in mono
Walk by faith, you appear, I wanna live in stereo
I can't get there from here without a God directed go
Walk by faith you appear, I've gotta live in stereo
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Steven V. Taylor / Peter Furler
Live in Stereo lyrics © Ariose Music Group Inc.