Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Rambling Thoughts

I ran into a neat little verse that I thought I would share, it goes like this: "My knowledge of this life is small, the eye of faith is dim, tis enough that Christ knows all and I shall be with Him." I do not know who wrote or said this, so list it as Anonymous for now, but it says a lot in few words.

Our knowledge of this life is small, we think we know so much, however, in the larger picture we are very limited. Our knowledge is in the physical and though we know a lot, yet we go to the specialists of medicine to cure our ills and find that they just 'practice' their profession with what they know. What they or we know is not always sufficient for a cure or to bring relief to what is plaguing us physically. With all our learning, the knowledge of how we are made will still cause us to wonder as the Psalamist, "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well." Ps. 139:14. Our Creator made us and knows us from the time of our beginning; for example, we have to learn everything from birth, how to walk, talk, take care of our personal daily needs, and think for ourselves. The beauty here is that God knew us then and now,yet loves us, because He made us, "My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth." Ps. 139:15. The Psalamist goes on to say, "How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee." Ps. 139:17-18.

We are familiar with the saying, 'Read the manufacturer's instructions before use.' or 'Read the operating instructions before use.' That is what we are doing as we read the Word of God; simply put they are His 'operating instructions' to us His creation. When parents study and know the Bible's warnings and admonitions they can better train and instruct their children and themselves in life. As we grow up and start living on our own, we can continue the process in maintaining the same approach in knowing God's Word, thereby knowing God.

What about the 'spiritual' side of life? How well do we understand the spiritual side of life? Without Christ we can only thrash about striving to understand the 'why' of life, and its purpose of even existing. Once again God knows us, because he made us. In the creation history left to us by Moses, we know that we are spiritual beings as well as physical ones, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth." Ge. 1:26. Along with this Jesus said, "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." John 4:24. We are made in the image of God, after the likeness of God and Jesus said that God is a Spirit and that we must use the spiritual nature we have to worship Him and by extention to know Him as we study God's Word. This is why I put so much emphasis on reading the Bible, that we might know Him, and then know ourselves as He knows us! Remember, the Bible is God's love letter to us to restore our spiritual connection with Him through the finished work of Christ, the sacrifice once given for man's salvation.

That our 'eye of faith' is dim I think we all can understand. Faith is a gift from God as well as an operation by a believer on the gospel of Christ. Hebrews defines faith, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." He. 11:1&3 The believer is saved by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ; grace is God's unmerited favor of mercy extended toward us when we believe in the sacrifice Christ made on the cross for our sins. We exercise saving faith when we believe in this act of mercy on God's part of offering His Son. However, sometimes our faith is dim on this side of heaven, so we stumble about as we take our eyes off Jesus and look at the waves as Peter did when Jesus walked on the water. Even when we use our eye of faith it is clouded by the flesh and its care of life that blinds us.

As our high priest, Jesus knows us. He lived the life we live; He understands us and our self inflicted wounds. He also suffered and died for us, and God raised Him from the dead, that we might live with Him forever. He knows our frame that we are dust. Another wonderful thing is that He knows time from beginning to end! All things are known to Him; time is a scroll that He sees constantly. All things are in His power. We can trust Him with the future for it is in His hands. To be with Him will be to know as He knows, everything, since the beginning of time!

OK, I did say that my little saying said a lot! Well so can I when I get started. I hope this has been helpful and thought provoking. Trust in Christ, He is the way, the truth, and the life; the only door to God. Open that door through faith and know Christ as He knows you.

God bless all those that seek Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. Until next time as God permits, keep reading, praying and sharing. Truthseeker
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