Charles W. Holt
Community of Grace
An Assemblies of God Fellowship
NOW WE SEE THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY
"For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." 1 Cor. 13:12 (KJV)
Let’s focus on the first eight words of this Scripture: FOR NOW WE SEE THROUGH A GLASS, DARKLY.
To better understand what the Apostle is saying let’s read these words as:
· “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror” (NIV);
· “For now we are looking in a mirror that gives only a dim (blurred) reflection [of reality as [a]in a riddle or enigma]” (Amplified Bible);
· “Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity” (NLT);
· We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. (The Message)
When our natural eyes create a blurred image of whatever we are looking at it is called astigmatism. The word didn’t exist in Paul’s time but this is what he is describing when it comes to trying to understand or make sense of life’s circumstances. We suffer from mental astigmatism—our mental vision of what happens in our lives is often blurred.
I want to talk about our blurred vision. I want to point out some of the high and low points in our perception of the reality that we do not always understand. We know we are unable to explain with any degree of certainty why things happen when they happen or why they happen at all.
In other words, I want to talk about something that is obvious to everyone: LIFE IS A MYSTERY. We see it “through a glass darkly.”
The Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes is a kind of Reader’s Digest version on the many questions, even problems, which compose what we sometime choose to refer to as the mysteries of life. It focuses on what we know are life’s many riddles or puzzles which confront us as we go through life. I’m talking about the riddles and puzzles that give rise to the “why” questions. Why did this happen to me? Why is this happening to me now?
Solomon, known as the wisest man who ever lived, is the author of Ecclesiastes. This lends an awful lot of credibility to what we find in his writing. Again, following our Reader’s Digest analogy, we draw one inescapable conclusion from him about life. He makes it clear, “that we are to take life as it comes and not try to understand everything about it” (From a sermon by Ray Stedman). In other words, it is an exercise in futility when we try to find a solution to all our problems or try to find an answer for every question life throws at us.
Easy to say…. harder to do. We want answers. We want solutions. We want reasons. We want satisfactory explanations. And there is nothing wrong about asking questions, examining the evidence and trying to make sense of a difficult or perplexing problem. It’s a normal response.
An example of Solomon’s wise advice in found in Ecclesiastes 8:16,17 where we read: When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes) then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea farther; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.
Listen to these verses as told in THE MESSAGE by Eugene Peterson:
Ecclesiastes 8:16-17--When I determined to load up on wisdom and examine everything taking place on earth, I realized that if you keep your eyes open day and night without even blinking, you’ll still never figure out the meaning of what God is doing on this earth. Search as hard as you like, you’re not going to make sense of it. No matter how smart you are, you won’t get to the bottom of it.
Here is the Apostle Paul’s insight on this. He says, “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” (Rom. 11:33 KJV).
The New Living Translation reads: (vs.33) Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!
But, here’s the clincher: It is found in Ecclesiastes 9, verse 1: “For all this I considered in my heart even to declare all this, that the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God: no man knoweth either love or hatred by all that is before them.”
It’s as though the wise man Solomon is saying: "I have been meditating on this, observing, seeking and thinking about it and I have come to the conclusion that even though we may understand that we are in the hand of God, nevertheless it is difficult to know from the events that happen to us whether we have his approval or his disapproval." (From a sermon by Ray Stedman)
Let me state the obvious:
1. Prosperity is not always a sign that God is pleased with us. Sinners sometime seem to prosper more than saints.
2. Troubles, trials, hardship, and adversity are not necessarily a sign that God is punishing one. The book of Job puts a lie to that idea.
3. Suffering, personal problems, things that are difficult to deal with WILL COME. These things come to everyone. They are NOT an indication that God disapproves of our lives.
There is an old Gospel song written by Charles Tindley in 1905, which was frequently sung in my home church when I first became a Christian. I once could sing several verses by memory. It isn’t heard anymore but its point and significance is still valid today. The song is: We Will Understand It Better By and By. Let me cite a few lines of this song.
(1)We are often tossed and driven
On the restless sea of time.
Somber skies and howling tempests
Oft succeed a bright sunshine.
In that land of perfect day,
When the mists have rolled away,
We will understand it better by and by.
Chorus
By and by when the morning comes.
When the saints of God are gathered home.
We’ll tell the story how we’ve overcome,
For we’ll understand it better by and by.
(2)Trials dark on ev’ry hand
And we cannot understand
All the ways that God would lead us
To that blessed promised land.
But He guides us with His eye.
And we’ll follow till we die
For we’ll understand it better by and by.
(3)Temptations, hidden snares
Often take us unawares
And our hearts are made to bleed
For some tho’tless word or deed.
And we wonder why the test
When we try to do our best
But we’ll understand it better by and by.
Certainly the Apostle Paul agrees with the line in the song which says, “But we’ll understand it better by and by.”
Even though now we have a blurred vision of what is happening in our lives and we only know a small part of what it’s all about the day is coming when we will know.
The Bible offers several examples of this principle. An example I want to use is found in the story of one of the most important old Patriarchs of the Old Testament by the name of Jacob.
We are all familiar with the story of Joseph the favorite son of Jacob. His life story is also a classic example of what this message is all about but we want to focus on old Jacob. However, It is what happened to his favorite son, Joseph, which makes Jacob’s story so interesting and instructive to us.
Let’s begin with the part of the story where Jacob’s big boys show up at the tent one afternoon with a bloody garment and announce to their Dad that his favorite son is now dead. It’s a lie of course because they have sold him to a caravan on its way to Egypt where he eventually winds up being a slave in the house of Potiphar.
Years pass but Jacob’s heartache does not cease. Even though another baby comes into the family and begins to grow into young manhood. His name is Benjamin.
A severe famine drives Jacob to send his oldest sons into Egypt to buy grain. On one of their trips the man who is in charge of distributing the grain demands that they leave their brother Simeon in Egypt until they can return with their youngest brother Benjamin.
It is as this point where Jacob has just received the worst news since the death of Joseph that we read of his reaction to what he considers to be the greatest calamity of this entire life.
Ge 42:36 -- And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me.
“ALL THESE THINGS ARE AGAINST ME!” Have you ever thought or perhaps even said something to the same effect? “All these things are against me.”
And yes, the feeling is genuine. There is no denying it.
Recall the words we read earlier. Solomon says, “When I determined to load up on wisdom and examine everything taking place on earth, I realized that if you keep your eyes open day and night without even blinking, you’ll still never figure out the meaning of what God is doing on this earth. Search as hard as you like, you’re not going to make sense of it. No matter how smart you are, you won’t get to the bottom of it.”( Ecclesiastes 8:16-17)
If you don’t understand, remember, you are looking through a fog, you are looking into a fuzzy mirror. “Now we see through a glass, darkly.”
Let the words of Scripture provide guidance and hope.
1. For we walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Cor. 5:7)
2. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. (Ps 34:19)
3. Fear thou not; for I am with thee; be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. . . . For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not: I will help thee. (Isa 41:10,13)
4. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. . . . . What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? (Ro 8:28,31)
5. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Co 10:13)
6. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temprol; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Cor. 4:17-18 KJV)
THE REST OF THE STORY.
We all know that the story of Joseph, Jacob and the brothers ends happily. And this is the point that is worth noting. For years Jacob saw his situation through a foggy, distorted, misunderstanding. We don’t condemn him for this. Here is the happy ending part that we may be encouraged by.
And they went up out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father, and told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob’s heart fainted, for he believed them not. And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived: and Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die.” (Gen. 45:25-28 KJV)
There is something even more exciting and faith-building. Here is the hope we find in spite of our misunderstandings, misinterpretations of our circumstances, of our heartaches and heart-brakes. Because, out of our pain, our grief, and disappointment God has a way of making it right. He did for Jacob. Listen to it:
· Gen. 47:12 – And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father’s household, with bread, according to their families.
* Joseph had been Jacob’s heartache.
* Joseph was the source of Jacob’s tears.
*Joseph was the cause of Jacob’s sleepless nights.
But the day came when “Joseph nourished his father . . . and his brothers . . . and all his father’s household.”
We return for a final word found in the wisdom of Solomon from the book of Ecclesiastes 7:8-10, Listen to this sage advice and counsel: – “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient is spirit is better than the proud in spirit. Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? For thou doest no inquire wisely concerning this.”
When things are not making sense; when we have more questions than answers; when we are confused and anger rises and causes us to lash out, we can say and do some dumb things. The verse says, “slow down. Don’t get in a hurry to blame, criticize, find fault or get mad at God or anyone else. “Anger rests in the bosom of fools.” Don’t become a fool. Trust in the Lord and lean not to your own understanding. Remember the words of our text: “Now, we see through a glass darkly.”
The Bible doesn’t say “chill out,” I think it should. However, it does say, “Be careful for nothing” (Phil. 4:6 KJV), i.e., “don’t be anxious.” Jesus is even more emphatic: “Take no thought for your life” (Mt. 6:25 KJV).
When anxious thoughts assail
Let faith’s strong confession prevail.
Rise up as on eagle’s wing
And your songs of victory sing. (CWH)
(Your comments invited: cholt@gt.rr.com)
