Beyond Sight

As Christians we are believers in things that are beyond what we see with our eyes.  We believe in faith, "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see" (Hebrews 11:1).  We transcend the obvious to see people with the eyes of Jesus, seeing past their flaws and into their possibilities (Jesus told the woman caught in adultery that He didn't come to condemn her).  We believe that God can forgive and change us, claiming God's designation of us as new creations.  And, we believe that God wants us to find Him, though that search is sometimes clouded by daily events or our idols and priorities.

John (Revelation 1:10) is worshiping "in the Spirit" on the Lord's Day (Sunday for these new Christians).  John hears a voice commanding him to "Write in a book everything you see."  The vision that John experiences is vivid, textured and difficult to describe (note that John uses the term "like" often because he does not have words that adequately describe what he sees).  This vision has appeared out of a normal worship time and a normal worship experience.  But sometimes we forget something beyond our sight happens every time we gather for worship.  God is present, active and available in the context of worship.

I wonder ... what would happen to this people called Christians if we grasped this truth and lived accordingly?   What if we really believe and are really open to the God who is truly present in our daily lives and especially in our times of worship?  Would this knowledge allow us to see visions and dream dreams (Joel 2)?  Would it bring us to our knees, shunning the pride that keeps us "appropriately dignified" in our worship?  Would we or could we describe the experience?  Would we fall at the feet of this God who has come to us, emerging from the fog of this world into what we might call reality?  Or ... has He been there waiting for us to emerge from the unreality of the daily grind into His glorious presence?  I hope this is a good and piercing question for all of us.  Randy