But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
Hebrews 2:9
It didn’t happen all of a sudden. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even notice it. But one night while I was driving home, I had trouble seeing the road signs. And the glare of oncoming headlights was really bad.
As just like most men, when it comes to anything connected with our physical health and wellbeing, I just brushed it aside. I ignored it. I thought that it would get better all on its own. It was just an unusual night. Surely my eyesight would get better and return to the 20-20 vision I’d enjoyed all my life.
But it didn’t. As a matter of fact, it seemed like my eyesight was slowly but surely getting worse and worse. Driving at night wasn’t dangerous, but it was getting more and more difficult. Seeing streets and signs was getting trickier.
So, I turned to the one doctor that I trust with my life. I humbly went to the only source of true and faithful medical information and treatment. I searched the internet and it said that I had cataracts. It was what I was thinking, but cataracts are for old people and I’m certainly not that old.
And since I couldn’t fix my cataracts myself with an X-Acto knife, I was forced to go and see someone. I made an appointment with an eye surgeon, and they confirmed my diagnosis. The surgery was scheduled and performed without a hitch. I can see clearly now and am very thankful for the doctor and their staff for an excellent job well done.
But the cataracts weren’t caused by a sudden and unexpected blow to the head. No one threw acid into my face, scaring my eyes in an instant. No, the cataracts grew very slowly. Over time, they darkened my eyesight a little at a time.
This is exactly what’s happening with the Hebrews. They saw Jesus as God’s solution to their sin problem. They received his one-time sacrifice on the cross that paid for all their sins. Past, present, and future sins were all taken care of when Jesus died on the cross. He tasted death once-and-for-all to reunite people back to God.
And like the writer says, they saw Jesus! And while he’s the bright and shining savior of sinners, he’s oh so much more. He’s not just a guy or guru, but God himself come down. Jesus isn’t just pointing to a way; he IS the way.
I myself am the road,” replied Jesus, “and the truth and the life. No one approaches the Father except through me.
John 14:6 Phillips
Yes, they saw and received Jesus and his victory over sin, death, and the devil. He paid the price. He did the suffering so we can receive God’s payment and reunion with him. And for this, he was crowned with glory and honor. His name is above every name. He’s earned our bowing before him. He’s worthy of all our words of worship and praise[1].
And while all this is great, there’s a warning for all of us. Like cataracts, it’s easy to slowly start to lose sight of who Jesus really is. Over time, we can forget exactly how far we were from God and how great his sacrifice for us was.
Slowly but surely, how we see ourselves as lost sinners becomes dull and darkened. We begin to think of ourselves as not all that bad. After all, look at those people over there. They’re so much worse than I ever was. They’re still lost and I’m doing all these good things for God and the church. I’ve cleaned up my life enough so that God accepts me.
All we have to do is nothing and we’ll lose our first love. We’ll get to know so much in our heads but have lost it from our lives. Forgotten it from our memory. Stopped thanking God for himself with our voice.
But knowledge puffs up while love builds up.
1 Corinthians 8:1
Now there’s absolutely nothing wrong about learning more and more about God’s kindness and grace. As a matter of fact, there’s no way that we’ll ever fully understand it or him. But we need to always be on the lookout for pride in our lives. It will steal our joy. It will darken our view of God himself too.
Are we allowing our Christian cataracts to slowly blind us from ourselves? Are we losing the image of exactly how far and lost we are from God? We need to be actively and continuously looking to Jesus and our need of his forgiveness. If you suspect that your Christian cataracts are darkening your view of God and all he’s done, I’ve got really good news for you. It’s never too late to run to him. To humbly seek his forgiveness and restoration. God’s always looking for you and me to return to him[2]. If this is where you are, then today’s the day to take care of your spiritual cataracts with God through Jesus.
Noodling Questions
· Where are there hidden dark spots in your life? Share two.
· Describe how your coming to Christ was slow or fast?
· How can we keep our vision clear when it comes to following Jesus?
[1] Philippians 2:9-11
[2] Luke 15:20
Comments