How do you “see” God?
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Do you “see” the true God? How do you know? He is invisible and spirit, so what we “see” and experience is actually our understanding of His nature. We see His reflection, in our lives and in creation, and that reflection is based on our particular and individual understanding. Our understanding makes up our image of Him. Our image in turn defines what we see. Do you see the circular effect of this and the problem it holds? Our image determines what we see, thus how we believe Him to be, which comes from our original understanding. And the question is where did that original understanding come from? So, how do we know we have the right understanding, thus the right image? Especially in a world of many people holding many different images?
The pure in heart will see God. Matthew 5:8 The pure in heart have the right understanding of the nature of God because their path to purity taught them to “see” Him correctly. Understanding and obtaining true purity only comes from One more pure.
This truth that the pure in heart will see God is why religions and religious people seek to portray an outward pure or holy persona. Many dress up the outward to fool others and even themselves of their piety, but it’s the purity of the heart that allows us to “see” God. If we are drawing near to the true God, we are growing more and more pure from the inside out.
The pure in heart is one who seeks, practices, abides and gives divine love. God is perfect love. Only by living by and for divine love do we know what it is. Thus it must be lived, not just talked about. When we start living it we start “seeing” the true nature of God, for God is love.
Becoming Pure in Heart
We come to this purity through grace and wisdom by being faithful disciples of Truth, the Word, our internal counselor, shepherd, and overseer of our soul. To become pure in heart is a very personal journey, this is why we can’t learn about God from another. If we do, we will hold a false image instead of a true image. We learn about love from within. Someone can describe love, but to truly know love, we have to become an expression of it in truth and sincerity. Within our soul is where we learn about divine love and how to live in it. The only Teacher who can penetrate those depths is the spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit. Love is only known when it is lived.
The path of purification is a long, winding and arduous road, because this world is corrupt and we are born with corrupt natures. Matthew 7:14 If we truly hunger for the true God and truth, His spirit of truth takes us on an intense schooling through our life situations that purify, purge, and change us in many ways before we can give anything close to this divine love. In this love there is no resentment, bitterness, envy, jealously, contentions, pride, backbiting, judging, self-pity, lusts, vengeance, cares for this world’s ways, or temptations counter to the nature of divine love. It’s full of mercy, forgiveness, beauty, true wisdom, understanding, long suffering, patience, compassion, care, kindness, gentleness, humility, meekness, peace, which extends far beyond our personal cares to the care of others. To go through this exchange in our soul is becoming a new creation altogether. Nothing stays the same. We have to be remade and re-born of a different spirit. Until, we are no longer an offspring of corruption, but an offspring of purity.
If we start to seek and engage this divine love, we learn it requires a great purity of mind, heart, soul and life, for it’s of holy ground, for it’s the nature of the heavenly Father. This is why few find this path; it’s a very pure path, thus contrary to most of the world’s ways. As we journey this purification path, the understanding that comes from growing in this love creates the right understanding thus “image” of God, His nature and ways.
Along this narrow path of ever-increasing purity through purging and renewing, we are brought to a point of having sold all (all that is contrary to divine love) in order to obtain the pearl of infinite worth, entrance into the kingdom of God. We sell (abandon) all the lusts, cares, and temptations of the world as we learn the superiority, beauty and perfection of the ways of God and the absolute joy they bring. The pure words of our Teacher and High Priest, Christ, replace the lies that once governed our beliefs, thoughts and actions, and we are now governed by the truths of God. Thus, our minds and spirits are cleansed exuding the likeness of a beautiful pearl. John 17:17 This purity allows us to slip through the very narrow gate to the realm of the divine. Purity opens the gate at the end of the narrow path to “see” God. And it is through this gate that prayers ascend to the ears of God and are most powerful. 1 Peter 3:12
The pure in heart are the ones who “see” God. These, who once lived as children of disobedience as all of mankind, are the ones who are purified by the fire (the truth). They are free from corrupt desire, sin, and guilt. 1 John 3:9 They are blameless and holy in conduct. Ephesians 1:4-5 Above all they abide in divine love. 1 John 4:7
Suppose you learn and start to live according to this divine love. What you realize is that God is not here in the earth, because if He was this would be a very pure and holy place. There would be no suffering, cruelty, pain or sorrow. There would be healing, beauty, and eternal life. God not being here is why so many images of God exist in the minds of people. There is nothing to tell the masses what He is or isn’t. We individually can know His divine love, but having an understanding versus abiding in His fullness thus power are two very different realties. Though I believe the former precedes the latter.
This is why we yearn for the coming of His spirit. Divine love is real, we can taste its goodness in our lives by understanding. This is a love not of our own making, but something much higher and pure than mere human nature. It goes against our basic primal nature we are born with, yet it is the supreme desire of our soul. It’s our desire, because we are made with a desire for our Creator, for love wants to abide in love with all of His creation. His love beckons us to draw near to be a part of His nature, and if we answer the call then our spirits ascend to places we never knew we could go, and eventually unto eternal life. If we were all pure, we would hold one image, and the right one. This is the work that Christ came to do and will finish; it is His glory to behold, and gift to the Father of All. Hebrews 12:2