Seeing and Hearing

Matt 13:16,17 "But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. "

I wonder if the disciples understood what was going on…who they were involved with…what it was that they were hearing and seeing? I am not sure. At the time it was all happening I think that they were following Jesus because He was a guy that they had pinned their hopes on. He was a guy who was going to usher Israel into a literal kingdom. And here Jesus is, teaching people about the kingdom of God in stories. The disciples didn't get it. They didn't understand. So they did what they should have done and they asked. "Why do You speak to them in parables?" v10 Jesus response is kind of startling. Basically: "These people are to hear but not understand. They are to see but not perceive. Their ears are hard of hearing and their eyes are closed. And this is the way it should be " V14,15 Wait. That doesn't sound fair. Why are some able to hear and see and others are not? That is a question that has plagued scholar's minds for ages. The thing that we know is that God is sovereign. He is just. He is right. What He does and how He does it we will not always understand and we have to leave it with Him. (Read Romans 9.)

The thing that gets me is that these guys were given the privilege of hearing and understanding, and seeing and getting it. These guys were given the privilege…the blessing of seeing and hearing what many prophets and righteous men in the past desired to see and hear but the time was not right. Now the time was right, and Jesus took the time to explain these stories to them. Jesus opened up the mystery of the kingdom of God to them.

Now, fast forward 2000 plus years. These same mysteries are made known to us. These same mysteries are made known to me…and I wonder if I am just like the disciples…do I get it? Do I understand? Do I really grasp what it is that God is doing…how God is ushering in His kingdom? I think that I have a glimpse, but I think that it is only a glimpse. I have been blessed, along with those in my family and many I know to be able to have the Holy Spirit live in me and to have His word in the palm of my hand. He is my Teacher. He is my Counselor. He is my Convicter. He guides me into all the truth. Even now, as I write this stuff, He brings things to my brain that I would never think about otherwise. And I can hear with the disciples: "Blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear." Do I see clearly? No. It is like what Paul said: "For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face." I Cor 13:12 The thing is, we still see. We still perceive. And someday everything…everything will be revealed. Wow.

I sat and watched a little of Louie Giglio's DVD: "Indescribable" last night. I have seen it before, but to see it again and to try to grasp the immeasurable greatness of God is beyond me. Sure, we see a little of it now. We hear things that the prophets and righteous men longed to hear. But some day, we will hear it all…we will see it all…and it will blow us away.

For now, however, I am blessed. Keep on the pursuit of seeing and hearing more.