“The things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal…”
There are people who say that they will not believe in anything that they cannot see. This means, according to our text, that they are putting their belief in that which is temporary. Things are not meant to exist forever. “Here today and gone tomorrow” is true of people and things. According to Paul we need to put our faith in that which is unseen, but not just anything that is unseen. Let me point out what I mean: Let’s begin at the top – God cannot be seen, yet He really exists, and has existed for eternity. The psalmists often referred to God as being “from everlasting to everlasting.” This is another way of saying that God has always existed, though He is unseen? Simon Peter understood the importance of this, when writing about people who were undergoing trials because of their faith in Christ in 1 Peter 1:8: “Whom having not seen, you love; in whom though now you see Him not, yet believing, you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.” Paul addressed this in 1 Timothy 6:15-16: “Which in His times He shall show, who is the blessed and only potentate (king), the King of kings and Lord of lords: 16. Who only has immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man has seen, nor can see: to whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen” Another important aspect of the Christian faith that is unseen is faith. In Hebrews 11:6, the writer reminds us that: “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” This is another way of saying “believing is seeing.” There are a lot of things that we cannot see, yet we believe. Take the wind for example. We cannot see the wind, but we can certainly see the effects of the wind. Ask anyone who has ever lived through a hurricane. I’ve never heard anybody say that they didn’t believe in the wind because they could not see it. All they have ever seen is the effects of the wind. An unbeliever might argue that he or she has not seen the effects of God. This is only because he or she does not want to see the effects of God. The Bible points out in more than one place that nature reveals the effects of God. The orderliness of the universe speaks of His existence. But the greatest effect of God that we can see is what He has done in the lives of individuals. What does your life reveal about God? We who believe and see can take comfort in what Jesus said to “doubting Thomas” when Thomas saw Him: “Thomas, because you have seen me, you have believed: blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have believed.” This includes all of us – rejoice. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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September 2021
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