By Angie Vickery
‘For we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror. Then we shall see face to face.’ (I Corinthians 13:12)
In I Corinthians 13:12, it’s made clear to us that we don’t see the things of God completely clearly nor do we know it all! And therefore we don’t walk in it all! So many times we don’t know which areas these are, but eventually we observe our own lifestyles and see where we are ‘blinded’ to His ways. Gazing upon the beauty of the Lord, His majesty, and learning more of His Word, we begin to see more and more clearly. Our final redemption will be on that day that He returns and we ‘know fully, just as we are fully known’. But until then? Polish up your mirror! Look for His face, His ways, and follow His patterns…observe…
‘Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall ‘see’ God’ (Matthew 5:8)
Ah! The love of God! What is it like? Think about how He has been to you. Has He forgiven you all your sins? Does He hold onto your sins after our acknowledgment of them? No, He says this to us, ‘I will never mention it again’ (Jeremiah 31:34). I John 1:9 says, ‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’
Wow. He is ‘just’ and therefore forgives us and cleanses us! Our precious Lord Jesus’ blood paid…our penalty… ‘It is finished,’ He said while dying on the cross. This full penalty payment from this gentle, meek Servant changes how God deals with you now. Now He sees us through these bleeding hands, feet, and brow. We are cleansed by this. Would you like this cleansing right now? Then call upon the name of the Lord! Yes, now…call upon Him…seek His face, even now.
You say, ‘Yes, but I have intentionally sinned. How can he forgive me again and again?’ Do you remember when the disciples asked Jesus the same type of question about forgiveness? ‘Lord how many times must I forgive my brother? Seven times a day?’ As if that were a lot of times and they were being very generous! Most of us tire of dealing with friends when they offend us once a day. But Jesus’ response was amazing…unbelievable to the disciples and also our minds. ‘Seventy times seven’ (Matthew 18:22). And this is His kindness towards you. He extends this to you, from His heart.
‘Do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world. But be transformed by the renewing of your mind.’ (Romans 12:2)
When we turn to Him and ask for His forgiveness, do you know what He does? He smiles, and says, ‘Neither do I condemn you. Now go and sin no more’ (John 8:11). But what if the sin is repeated seven times a day? And afterwards we are desperately sorry? What is the character of our Jesus? ‘Seventy times seven’. ‘Now go and sin no more’ (John 8:11) ~ unfailing and consistent love. Oh wow. And through His love, His ever constant love, we learn to love Him back.
‘We love because He first loved us’ (I John 4:19).
And we offer up ourselves, asking for discipline in order to overcome. ‘He who has been forgiven much, loves much’ (Luke 7:47), Jesus said. He picks up the little broken lamb, puts it on his shoulders, and keeps it closer than ever; teaching it to know and obey His voice more readily. Our Good Shepherd loves us and desires to be with us at all times!
Keep a clear conscience before Him…don’t run from Him when you have sinned. Run to Him. He holds the keys to our door of freedom. He Himself is the key. He Himself is our door~His behaviour of love teaches us. Bask in it. Dwell in it. Take time to consider this gift of forgiveness given from His kind and gracious heart…Doing this begins the process of the purification of our tainted hearts, and we can ‘see’ Him more clearly, as Matthew 5:8 states!
His heart is to pull us in…draw us up…Knowing this Kingdom reality ‘transforms’ us, as Romans 12:2 urges us. Reach up, open armed, let Him have you. Let Him forgive you. Let Him teach you how to grow. Bask in this very real truth. Let yourself cry before Him, ‘Holy, Holy is the Lord our God.’
Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (I Corinthians 13:12-13)
Wow! This is powerful Angie. Though we are all made aware of the reality of His response towards us, there are times the ways of the world, and the way the world sees Him affects us, and we tend to run away from the very Presence that is our solution. Thank God for truth that liberates us. Lets draw near to Him!
It is such a privilege to have Jesus, who has an unfailing and consistent love towards us. And yes, through His love, we indeed learn to love Him back. I think, this is something that we need to realize so much. Often, we fail, and tend to be weighed down by guilty consciousness, instead we should be those who run to Him. That is the only way to grow in Him. Thanks much.
This is the liberation that I pray for, to be so overwhelmed by His love that my WHOLE heart will respond in total submission to all that He is. This is the power of the gospel, the reality of KNOWING Him. But only then will we see face to face. Until then it is a slowly opening curtain. Thanks Angie, very encouraging
Very encouraging post, and knowing that every time I sin, the Lord forgives me and washes me clean, again and again!
Blessings
Thanks for your comments everyone. It’s so easy to be obsessed with perfection (in ourselves). We know we need to have faith, hope, and…to love–ourselves through His love for us. ‘But the greatest is love’, he says–to forgive as He does. To see His faith in me, His hope in me, and fully, His love in me. ‘Love is patient…always protects…never fails’. –currently polishing up my mirror to see that more clearly! Hope you are! Thanks again for reading and responding!