When You Look, What Do You See?
When you listen, what do you hear? In his book, "Discipleship Begins With Beholding," Samuel Whitefield makes a powerful point. He says that whatever you truly behold is the image you will be shaped into.
He says discipleship is far more than acquiring information, embracing disciplines or changing our behavior for the better. At its heart, the purpose of discipleship is to be transformed into the image of Jesus by beholding Him and being changed into what we see. He concludes that we have taught people how to behave but not how to behold. If we learn to behold, we will not just behave like Him, we will become like Him.
Being on the worship team more recently has stirred a worship question in me. If our “acceptable worship” in Romans 12:1 is an offering of praise, thanks and our whole selves, should I not expect a reply? In days gone by, God accepted offerings with fire, word or His presence. Is that why, when people offer themselves fully to God, He replies with the fire of His cleansing, the wind of His life and the outpouring of the water of His Spirit?
Am I looking and listening for the reply of God as I offer up my worship? Do I offer up all my time so I can hear His reply, listening for and acting on what He says?
Alex and Hannah Absalom with Dandelion Resourcing recently spoke about the faith of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. Like many others, the Absaloms found that these generations are more impacted by experiences with God than by being taught spiritual truths about Him. Teaching them to see God at work—and patiently hear from Him—has created a doorway to kingdom faith for increasing numbers among these generations.
Seeing may not be believing, but beholding is the first stage to becoming. Give Jesus space to speak. Expect Him to reply when you worship and allow Him to transform you.
A passage I preached on recently contained this verse, “Though He was a son, He learned obedience by the things He suffered” Hebrews 5:8. As a few of the staff talked about the message later, this verse stood out for several of us.
When we think of Christ’s suffering, we perhaps think of the cross and His death. But someone made a powerful point. Christ’s suffering did not start there. In fact, by the time He went to the cross, He had little left to learn about obedience.
Born into poverty, with His legitimacy questioned. Threatened by death as a child—chased from His home by a murdering king. Misunderstood and maligned by His family. Homeless. Poor. Enduring hunger and attack by demonic powers. Rejected by His faith community and nearly stoned for sharing His call. Criticized, lied about and threatened by His religious leaders. Harassed continually to help and pray for people. Betrayed by one of His closest friends and yes, flogged, beaten, stripped, shamed and finally crucified. Christ knew suffering all His life, but through it He learned obedience.
What’s your learning style? Few of us would choose suffering, but I have personally found it to be a powerful teacher if we can learn it’s wisdom rather than run from its pain. Like most of us, I prefer learning by other ways. But I have seen that anything learned deeply enough to change me often came through suffering.
If you could have anything, what would it be? If I Could Have Anything by Housefire.
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Chris Jones is the Global Outreach Director at New Hope Church. He longs for the unreached people of the world to experience the life-changing love of God and for people at New Hope Church to find fullness of joy by obeying the Great Commission.