Saturday Morning Post #4: WHO WAS THAT MASKED MAN?

OF COURSE, Jesus wasn’t really wearing a mask to the Feast of Tabernacles, the subject of our #3 Post.  Nevertheless, I’m sure he left a few heads spinning after standing in the temple court and proclaiming, “I am the light of the world…”, as the festival drew to a close. Can’t you just hear the buzz as the Israelites packed up and headed for their homes in the Palestinian countryside? “Who was that guy?”

HE WAS, in fact, “the image of the invisible God!”* The Apostle Paul uncovered that truth and a great deal more a number of years later in his letter to the Colossians. He must have been enjoying one of those mountain top experiences the day he penned those words. Colossians stands as a sort of Pike’s Peak among the range of mountainous truths embodied in Paul's Epistles.

IN COLOSSIANS Paul reveals some of the “mysteries of God” – the purposes of God, unknown to man except by revelation. Christian mystery is not secret knowledge for a few, but rather a revelation of divine truth – once hidden but now openly proclaimed.  One such mystery unveiled in this letter is that “Christ (is the one) in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”**

COLOSSIANS ALSO discloses the astounding reality that the strange man at the Feast of Tabernacles claiming to be the light of the world is himself, Creator of that world. “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together!”***

JESUS CHRIST—

IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD!

IN WHOM ARE ALL WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE!

CREATOR OF ALL THINGS!

CAN YOU IMAGINE having stood in his presence that morning, the festival lights being extinguished while folks prepared to depart Jerusalem, never knowing the true identity of the man who had spoken those awesome words?  "I am the light of the world..." Verily, verily everything’s clearer in hindsight.

*Colossians 1:15

**Colossians 2:3

***Colossians 1:16-17

Saturday Morning Post #3: LIGHT OF THE WORLD

IMAGINE THE BUZZ permeating the air, which hung heavy over the bustling town of Jerusalem, as Israelites from every corner of the Palestinian countryside gathered for the "Fall Festival." Listen: “Where is that man?” Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.” Others replied, “No, he deceives the people.” But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the Jews.* 

THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES or as it is sometimes referred to, Feast of Booths, serves as one of Israel’s seven annual sacred seasons. In addition to furnishing the framework of worship for the people of Israel, these celebrations contain a symbolic or typical significance for the church today and find their fulfillment in the person of Christ.

IN CHRIST’S DAY pilgrims erected their booths, resembling modern day pup tents, on the flat roofs of Jerusalem homes or scattered throughout the fields. The booths served as a reminder of their forefathers’ days of wandering in the wilderness. Approaching Jerusalem the Israelites would find the town blanketed with the warm glow of burning candles and torches. A pair of imposing candlesticks was kept ablaze in the temple courtyard. Every detail of the festival had been prescribed by God and all were pregnant with meaning.

THE LIGHTS SHIMMERING in the dusky evening shadows represented the pillar of fire which guided the Israelites of long ago as they made their exodus from slavery in Egypt. A passage from the Book of Exodus makes clear the imperative of this pillar. “By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.”** The pillar of fire furnished the people with a visible symbol of God’s presence among them and his divine guidance.

AS MORNING DAWNED and the week of celebration became history, those who gathered for the fall festival disassembled their booths and packed up for the long journey home. It was only then that the light of candles and torches, which had been kept burning throughout the festival, was snuffed out. A new day was upon them and one by one the lights flickered and died. And, with the dimming of the fires -

JESUS STOOD in the temple court and proclaimed, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life!”***

CHRIST WAS THE FULFILLMENT of the light symbolically portrayed in the pillar of fire. He, himself, is God present among his people. He not only provides our salvation; he is for us the very light of life. He lightens the path for us so that we know how to live – he guides us on our way so that we can travel wisely by day or night!

*John 7:11-13

**Exodus 13:21

***John 8:12

Saturday Morning Post #2: SEEING THE UNSEEN

LAST WEEK in sharing about my experience with the Adjustment to Blindness support group, I made the point that, although for them the light has failed to make vision possible for their physical eyes; they may enjoy an advantage over those of us who are sighted when it comes to light reflected in the form of spiritual illumination. The reason being, the eyes of their spirits need not be distracted by all the “stuff” the rest of us look at daily.

PEOPLE, SIGHTED OR BLIND, gifted with the ability to behold things unseen possess a vision which is truly unsurpassed. Physical sight affords us a view of things which are merely temporary while spiritual sight unlocks our horizons to that which is eternal – to things unseen!

 THE QUESTION is, “How does one see what is unseen?” Simply, with the eyes of faith. The Living Bible puts it so plainly. “What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.”* Every person exercises faith. A down-to-earth example is the flip of that tiny switch on the wall which is expected to light up the room.

THE REAL QUESTION then becomes, “What (or who) is the object of your faith?” Faith must have an object and when it comes to seeing that which is unseen, spiritual and eternal, the object of genuine faith is God. The 11th chapter of Hebrews vividly recounts story after story of men and women in ancient times who were commended for their faith in God. Names, common to all, come to life on the page – Able, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. The list goes on and on.

AND THEN, it says this about Moses (you remember Old Mo, the guy who went up against Pharaoh in an effort to rescue the Hebrews from slavery to the king of Egypt – he finally led them through the Red Sea on dry ground), well it says, “By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible!”**

DID YOU GET THAT? “…he saw him who is invisible!” I love the way the Living Bible puts it, “Moses kept right on going; it seemed as though he could see God right there with him!” Can’t you just picture him hustling across the Red Sea, never a backward glance, his eyes focused straight ahead on God, the invisible one? Moses’ faith opened up the realm of things unseen for him. Because he had faith he was given light in the form of spiritual illumination.

WHAT ABOUT US? The Book of Hebrews gives a clue.  It says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus…”*** Focusing on him we receive light to see that which is unseen.

*Hebrews 11:1
**Hebrews 11:27
***Hebrews 12:2

Saturday Morning Post #1: SEEING

IT’S MY PLEASURE TO SERVE on the Board of Directors at the center for Visually Impaired Persons of Southwest Florida. The VIP is a non-profit rehabilitation center committed to ensuring blind and visually impaired persons have the tools, support and opportunities necessary to successfully achieve their desired level of independence. My position there has afforded me the privilege of speaking with the Adjustment to Blindness support group about my belief that life’s losses can ultimately turn out to be gains.

THE LOSS of their physical sight is traumatic. It is quite natural and normal that they experience the “grief of loss” much like I did when my husband, Michael, died. Life as they knew it is irreversibly changed – they can’t go back in time. They can’t somehow recapture the life they had before the loss of their vision. I seek to identify with them on the elements of grief which are common to all who have suffered the loss of a way of life they were enjoying. We share the need for acceptance of our new circumstances and the challenge of responding in positive ways. Through coping with my own loss I’ve discovered that, despite the inescapable psychological and emotional pain, loss can be a valuable life experience and may actually serve to enrich our lives.

NEVERTHELESS, I can’t help feeling that my ability to identify falls pitifully short when considering that these individuals are expected to press on in a world of darkness while I enjoy the advantage of making all my adjustments in the light.

 BUT THEN, there’s more to living in the light than being blessed with 20/20 vision. On the Welcome Page you’ll find various definitions of “light” as well as “darkness” and the contrast between the two. The first and most basic description is that light is something which makes vision possible. This aspect of light is, of course, what our clients at the center are lacking; but we who are sighted in the physical sense have no advantage over them when it comes to any of the other facets of light. 

 TAKE FOR INSTANCE the reference to light as being something that enlightens or informs. My friends at the center are every bit as enlightened and often better informed than I.

WHEN IT COMES TO SPIRITUAL ILLUMINATION the only thing which blinds is an unwillingness to see. In fact, I would venture to say the visually impaired just might have the advantage here; for the sighted are inclined to have their vision of “things unseen” blurred by the numerous distractions of the “things our eyes witness.” Whether sighted or blind, those whose eyes behold things unseen possess a vision which is truly unsurpassed. Scripture puts it this way, “For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal!”*

HOW CLEARLY do the eyes of your heart see?

ON LITTLE FARM ROAD our hearts see that:  "God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."**

*2 Corinthians 4:18
**2 Corinthians 4:6