Seeing The Invisible

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2 Corinthians 4:7-18

Cast Down but Unconquered
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—
10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
11 For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
12 So then death is working in us, but life in you.
13 And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak,
14 knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you.
15 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.

Seeing the Invisible
16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,
18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

As the waves and storms in the seas will come and go, there will be unpleasant events in life that would occur even when we do not desire them. Wars, disasters, earthquakes, diseases, sicknesses, financial crises, and catastrophes etc. would happen without giving us prior warnings. When least expected, they would arrive.

But thanks be to God, we have this spiritual treasure from God. And we are like clay jars that hold this treasure. This shows that this great power is from God, not from us.

We have troubles all around us, but we are not defeated. We do not know what to do, but we do not give up. We are persecuted, but God does not leave us.

We are hurt sometimes, but we are not destroyed. We carry the death of Jesus in our own bodies, so that the life of Jesus can also be seen in our bodies.

We are alive, but we are always in danger of death. This is so that the life of Jesus can be seen in our bodies that die. So death is working in us, but life is also working in us.

It is written in the Scriptures, “I believed, so I spoke.” Our faith is like this, too. We believe, and so we speak.

God raised our Lord Jesus from death. And we know that God will also raise us with Jesus. God will bring us together, and we will stand before Him.

All these things are for us. And so the grace of God is being given to more and more people. This will abound, bringing more and more thanks to God for His glory. Therefore, with grateful hearts, we will give thanks to the Lord!

So we do not give up. Our physical body is becoming older and weaker, but our spirit inside us is made new every day. We have small troubles for a while now, but they are helping us gain an eternal glory. That glory is much greater than the troubles.

So we set our eyes not on what we see but on what we cannot see. What we see will last only a short time. But what we cannot see will last forever.

As we are living and walking by faith and not by sight, we need to learn how to see the invisible, day by day.

The storms and waves of life would come and go, but we will be able to stand still and praise the Lord!

If interested, please view: Be Still, My Soul

Written on:
5 April 2024