Devotion: Helping the World See the Unseen

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.” (1 John 4:7 ESV)

Did you scan the headlines today? A quick check was enough for me to be confronted with sexual harassment cases, wildfires in California, unrest in the Middle East, debate over the integrity of our leaders, military posturing from North Korea, and more. Any day’s news is guaranteed to raise your blood pressure a tick or two, and it’s likely to make you wish Jesus would come back and solve it all. We forget he has a plan to insert himself into the melee while we wait.

It seems the early Christians had the same longing for Jesus’s presence. Like ours, their political situation was dramatic and high blood pressure inducing. I imagine their longing was exacerbated by knowing they had just missed Jesus. People they knew had experienced his physical presence, and they must have felt the keen sting of missing out.

John’s letter to these early Christians spoke to their longing for the unseen God. He began with his experience as an apostle:

“From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in—we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes; we saw it happen! And now we’re telling you in most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The infinite Life of God himself took shape before us. We saw it, we heard it, and now we’re telling you so you can experience it along with us, this experience of communion with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!” (1 John 1:1–4 MSG, emphasis mine).

John longed for the people to experience the presence of the unseen God like he did! And in chapter 4 he shared the mysterious solution that makes it possible:

“No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love! This is how we know we’re living steadily and deeply in him, and he in us: He’s given us life from his life, from his very own Spirit. Also, we’ve seen for ourselves and continue to state openly that the Father sent his Son as Savior of the world” (1 John 4:12–14 MSG, emphasis mine).

God’s presence is here in the world all around us, all the time. The picture is there. We know he’s working, but his work is invisible to the rest of the world. When fires blaze out of control, when the secret sins of authority figures become known, when chaos rules, it’s impossible for the world to see God.

Yet we’re like the pen in those children’s invisible ink books. God remains invisible only until we run the pen of our love for one another over the pages of our lives. If we want God to become visible, we must show his love when catastrophe strikes. We must speak love when others speak hate. We must be generous with our time, money, and most importantly, our grace. When Christ’s followers love well, the picture of God working slowly materializes. Not only will the love be a salve to the wounds of the world, but it will make God’s presence credible. That the true solution to the needs of the world is a living, breathing God who loves seems much more likely. But the good news of the gospel remains hidden until our love makes it appear before a watching world’s eyes.

Dear Jesus, the whole world is hurting. Please let my life be a balm to those around me. Let my family and neighbors feel safety and hope because of my loving presence. Give me the courage to be loving when fear and hate are in the air. Your presence is what we all need, so help my presence to make yours more obvious. Amen.

Scripture for Reflection

“Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.” (John 13:34–35 MSG)

Reach for More

So much hangs on our ability to love well. Our ability to experience the presence of God depends on it. The world’s ability to see God and believe the message of the gospel depends on it. But loving well doesn’t come naturally; it’s a muscle that needs exercise. Expect this to be work and don’t shrink back. Start with social media. Scroll through your posts and tweets and comments. Do your words spread love over the invisible ink of God’s presence? Do you make the good news of the gospel more believable by the way you speak? You have the power to make the unseen God seen by your love. Spread it thick!

Lori Florida lives a life that is all about her people. She’s convinced that being Mrs. to one and Mommy to eight will be her most significant way to serve Jesus. She wants to use her life to cheer on and coach the women around her. She is on staff with Project Hopeful working to give a hand up to moms in poverty in Ethiopia. You can find her at loriflorida.com.

Photograph © Jon Tyson, used with permission