When we view ourselves through the lens of God’s Word, we better understand God’s love for us and the worth we have in His eyes.
Elizabeth George, Loving God with All Your Mind
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
1 Corinthians 13:12
Through a Glass Darkly
Have you ever had trouble seeing because of dim lighting? The lights in the front of the shop where I work are tied to a dimmer switch. One day I was working on a knitting project and found myself squinting to see the stitches. I held them up to the light and still couldn’t see. It occurred to me to check the light switch only to find the dimmer at the halfway point. When I pushed it all the way up, the room was illuminated. I could see clearly. I had been looking through a glass darkly.
The Christian life is a work in progress. When I am knitting a project, first I have to cast on the right number of stitches. As I work on the pattern, sometimes I realize ten rows in that I misread the pattern and have to tink (knit spelled backwards) back and do it again. As new Christians we follow the pattern God set out in the Bible, but as we grow, God shows us that we need to go back and adjust something, like our attitude. The more we study God’s Word, the more the Holy Spirit will open our understanding and then we can apply what we learn to our daily lives.
Sitting in the Dark
And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.
(John 9:7)
The blind man knew he couldn’t see, but he didn’t know the depths of his need at first. His focus was on his physical needs, so Jesus opened his physical eyes. It had to be a shock even if it was a wonderful gift. I am sure that after being blind since birth it took a moment for him to process what had happened.
The first step in the Christian life is realizing you are lost and that you have a need only God can answer. When we accept Him as Lord of our lives, he opens our blind eyes to the light. We start reading the Bible and following His example as best we know how. Then, God sheds a beam of light and we see something we have never seen before.
See the Light
And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.
(John 9:38)
After being questioned by the religious leaders, the blind man returned to Jesus. When Jesus explained who He was, the blind man saw more clearly. He saw that Jesus was Lord, and he worshipped him.
As we grow in the faith, we learn more about who Jesus is and he opens our eyes to the truth in new ways. We make adjustments to our behaviors and beliefs which works itself into our actions. We change as we grow, and we grow as the light becomes clearer. Our lenses are being cleared so that we can see the world as God sees it: through the eyes of love.
Turn Up the Dimmer Switch
Dr. Tony Evans in Discerning the Voice of God (Priscilla Shirer, p. 69) says the Holy Spirit works like “a dimmer switch—progressively increasing our accurate comprehension of God’s written Word, while enabling us to make relevant application of the Word to our personal lives and decisions.”
The more we know about the God and the more we grow in the faith, the greater the light of illumination. Just like that day in the shop, things that were hidden in shadows become crystal clear in the light of His Presence. The Holy Spirit shines in the darkest corners and reveals the Truth.
Set to High
I don’t know how many times a scripture I have read dozens of times suddenly has an added meaning I hadn’t seen before. When the light is set to high, we can see things in a new way and in greater detail. So, let the Holy Spirit clean your lenses so that you can continue to grow in spiritual sight and understanding so that we can see the world through the eyes of God:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16
The light of the world came to take our place, and when he rose again to the Father, He sent the Holy Spirit to live in us so that we could shed the light to the world. Holy Spirit clean my lens so that Your Light might shine brighter in an increasingly dark world.
What has the Holy Spirit shed light on in your life?
As someone who has tinked perhaps much more than I should have, I can sure appreciate the lessons found here Ms. Linda. Thank you ma’am.