So…
The Unseen…
I’m welcoming you today to consider and remember for a moment that the very faith that we are a part of is unseen. The Kingdom we are a part of … unseen. Faith, hope, love, God… all unseen. Sure they manifest in physical ways one way or another, but we can’t go past the fact that it is in the unseen the greater reality found.
Yet, us humans, in all our human-ness, can tend to focus so much only on the seen that the unseen (which is the true greater reality of things), pales to insignificance. When in fact, it is the most significant.
Take a moment to reflect on just a few of the scriptures that speak to this (emphasis added):
2 Corinthians 5:7 says
“for we walk by faith not by sight…”
Hebrews 11:1
“Faith is the confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”
2 Corinthians 10: 3-5
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (in other words, not seen.. but unseen!)
And in John 20:9 Jesus says
“Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen, and have believed”
There is a sight and a seeing, my friends… beyond our natural seeing.
We as believers…
WE CLOSE OUR EYES TO SEE
My short encouragement here today is twofold…
First:
Let’s be a people who continuously close our eyes to see. That way, we will see as He sees and as we should see. Not with physical eyes, but spiritual eyes. Then, in doing so we won’t do as Samuel did in 1 Samuel 16 where God had to remind him when it came to the anointing the next king of Israel: “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
He’s a God of the unseen realm. And He cares for what is unseen more than what is seen. Heart motives, heart postures, faith… it matter. A lot.
And the second is this …
don’t believe the lie that just because whatever it is you’re doing is ‘unseen’, that it is insignificant. Because the truth of the fact is, it’s most likely the the exact opposite.
You see, again, us in our human-ness even in a church context can tend to glorify and esteem those spiritual gifts that are ‘seen’, as if they are somehow higher than, more important than, or more powerful than.
But friend… Power is not measured by degree of visibility!!
VISIBILITY DOES NOT EQUAL IMPORTANCE
VISIBILITY DOES NOT EQUAL VALUE.. and
VISIBILITY DOES NOT EQUAL POWER
Just because the preaching, the teaching, the singing, the pastoring, are gifts that are more ‘seen’, in that they often are seen on a platform or in your face on your screens, does not mean they are more important, significant or more powerful than your gifts and outworkings.
That’s not my opinion either… Check out 1 Corinthians 12. It’s long, but it’s oh so worth the read. It says:
“1 Now concerning spiritual gifts … 4 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. 12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.
15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? 18 But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. 19 And if they were all one member, where would the body be?
20 But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. 23 And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty, 24 but our presentable parts have no need. But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it, 25 that there should be no schism (divide) in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.”
Pretty clear, huh?… just because it may be an unseen part of the body, it is no less important or valuable. We know this physically to be true when an unseen organ of our body stops working or is having a hard time don’t we? Yet, it is no different in regards to the unseen body that is the body of Christ. And your part to play, unseen or seen, is important and for the profit of all.
That unseen intercessory prayer…
That unseen, constant, sometimes mundane parenting (um, hello!)..
That unseen act of generosity…
That unseen word of encouragement or prophecy you gave to that person..
All important… all powerful… all valuable… and all NEEDED.
So … stop believing the lie that seen = important… because that’s just not the truth.
There is true joy and freedom in seeing as Christ does, and knowing that He sees even if and when nobody else sees (equally petrifying depending on the state of our hearts hey?)… Which - side note, Jesus constantly rebuked the Pharisees for doing things with the heart motive ‘to be seen’ (see Matthew 23, Matthew 6). And not only that, He refers to them as BLIND LEADERS (Matthew 15:14)…. And they certainly weren’t physically blind (!!!!). I don’t know about you but I don’t want to be a Pharisee.. blind in seeing because i see only with physical eyes… and fixated on the seen.
My constant prayer is - “open the eyes of my heart, Lord”… Let my spiritual eyes become more important to me than my physical.
I pray He helps us all turn our eyes again to the unseen, to have our seeing change to how He sees…
Closing our eyes to see..
With Love,
1 comment
Omg this is so true!!! Such an essential revelation in SO many ways which we need continual reminding of !!!