We would like to see Jesus
How the world would like to see Jesus in the flesh, even as He
lived on earth. Not as the baby but as our Savior. For this reason, He is often depicted
in today’s media as a tall fair-haired Anglo Saxon. But in reality, we have no clear
description of Him let alone a picture. But all through His ministry crowds sought Him.
John 12:20-21 says: “now
there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. They came to
Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. Sir, they said, "we would like to see Jesus."
His fame had spread afar and they wanted to see the Son of Man!! What a
privilege many of them shared; they had seen and heard the Son of God! Matt 13:16 “But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because
they hear”. What a tremendous privilege they had.
We see Jesus now by faith
I have never walked in His homeland; visited the cities of His birth; seen His
first miracle; sailed on the sea where He stilled the tempest; prayed in the garden where
He prayed; seen the pool of Siloam where the blind man was healed; explored the ground
where the temple stood; gone through the many places He frequented; or seen the hill of
Golgotha -except through the eyes of the New Testament writers. But this cannot compare to
actually seeing Jesus our Redeemer and Savior. Though this is not possible for us, still
we are told -"These have come so that your faith-- of
greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-- may be proved
genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though
you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe
in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy" (I Pet. 1:7-8). Discipleship is no less worth when we say we
love Him even though we have not seen Him. 2 Cor 5: 7
tells us "We live by faith, not by sight."
Remember Thomas? He wouldn't believe until he had seen Jesus personally.
We see God revealed in Him
Man has always sought to picture God the Father in some way. I am sure that each of
us has a mental picture of God, even if it is not done consciously. Really what we know of
God, the Son has told us. It is through Jesus that God is revealed unto man. He told His
disciples in John 14:7-9 “If you really
knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen
him." Philip said, "Lord, show us
the Father and that will be enough for US." Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a
long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the
Father”? So, the only way we can see God the Father is through the
Son; and the only way we can see Jesus is through His word.
We would see Jesus in His life
People wonder why we don't know any
more about the childhood of Jesus, I can tell you that: it has no true bearing on our
salvation. We need to know about His life as our great example. We need to know His love
for the lost; see Him preaching to the poor, healing the sick, mending broken hearts,
feeding the hungry, raising the dead. He did all these things to prove His claim as
Savior. His epitaph still reads "He went around doing
good" Acts 10:38." We need to see how we can serve as He has.”
We would see Him as our example
Not only in washing the disciples feet but also in every act of service, He could
say, "For I have given you an example, that ye should
do as I have done unto you" (John 13:15).
We must see Him as He leads the way. John 14:6: Jesus
said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the
life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me." We must therefore see Him as our access to God.
Not just an access, but our only access. In the world today we have many telling us that
there are a multitude of ways to find him, but in John 10:9
we are told "I am the gate; whoever enters through me
will be saved." He is not only the only way, but He is the essential
way. We have to go through Him as there is no other one who can help us. Acts 4:12: "Salvation is
found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we
must be saved." He told us He was the good shepherd and that He was
constantly laying down His life for us. This is the example we must follow. Paul's view of
Christ changed his whole life, for he said in 2 Tim 2:10
"Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the
elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal
glory."
We would see Jesus Glorified
Isaiah caught a vision of the Lord and in chapter 6 gave a glorious description of the heavenly view. We today need to see Jesus glorified as it is revealed to us in the scriptures. Matthew and Mark give the scenes of His transfiguration and tell of His glory. John in Revelation gives us more scenes. His majesty, power and dominion must be seen that we may humbly serve Him. To fully accept His exaltation, we need to see Him as Stephen did at his martyrdom and Paul did on the road to Damascus. Phil 2:9-11 "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." God has exalted Him to reign over all as head over all things to the church. He is our Savior and Redeemer.
We would see Him coming again
Before He left the earth, Jesus spoke very plainly of His return. Matt 16:27: "For the Son
of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward
each person according to what he has done. " We need to see Him coming
again, for all shall see Him on that day. Matt 25:31: "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels
with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory." Yes, Christ is
coming again, and every eye shall see Him. The real question for us is -Are we ready to
meet him.
Are you ready to see HIM?
We must ask ourselves, “am I ready to see
Him?” Even though we cannot now see Jesus with the natural eye, we
must be looking to Him as the author and finisher of our faith. Since we know that he will
come and execute judgment, we must do everything in our power to be ready. We must be
prepared for His coming. The suddenness of His coming is summed up in these words of Luke 17:24: "For the Son
of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one
end to the other." While we have the time and the opportunity, we must
make sure that we are ready to meet Him when He comes again. It may be in the next moment,
it may be in the next century but He is coming and we must be ready to meet Him. Ask yourself, am I ready to meet Him?
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Page last updated: March 03, 2003