Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said, "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them." Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. And Jesus cried out and said, "Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me."
I love how Jesus always honors the Father when he speaks. Instead of pointing people to himself our Lord shines, as a magnificent beacon of light, to heaven. That kind of humility is what endears so many of us to Jesus. Yet he does not mince words and tells us plainly that if you see him you have seen the Father. If you believe in him you are believing in God.
The Apostle Paul says that Jesus is :the image of the invisible God and the writer of Hebrews says that He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature. Since the very early days Christians have believed that Jesus was more than a man. While some hold him to be a great teacher Christians have always believed him to be more.
The reactions to Christ in this passage are interesting - some openly believed, some secretly and some did not believe at all. Some might read the words quoted from Isaiah and deduce that some can actually not believe. I think that is not true at all. Yet I do find Christ to be a polarizing figure - some are drawn to his glory while others are blinded by it.
Help me Lord to be a reflection of your glory today.
No comments:
Post a Comment
I love to get comments and usually respond. So come back to see my reply.
You can click here to see my comment policy.