Jesus talks a lot about having eyes that see and ears that hear, as if we sometimes have blinders on or something in our ears that keeps us from hearing.  Kay Johnson was telling a group something she heard from a man one time.  The man was saying, "Even if the stars were to spell out:  ‘I AM GOD, AND YOU SHOULD WORSHIP ME' people would be amazed at first.  But then they would get used to it and go back to their regular lives wondering why God hasn't been seen for awhile."

Just because we look does not mean we see.  Beloved, seeing God requires eyes that see.  Perhaps all along, right in front of our eyes, has been the abundance presence of God.  

Eyes That See

The problem is that we envision God up there (or over there) somewhere, and we see ourselves down here.  Somehow to get to God we have to cross a chasm.  And that imagery shows that we already see ourselves separated from God rather than seeing the truth that God is within us.  More accurately, we are in God, awash in an abundant presence.  We only need to see it:  "Holy, holy, holy...the whole earth is full of his glory."

As Paul says, I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor demons, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation can separate us from the love of God.

Paul was convinced - convinced because he had seen the Lord.  The risen Lord.  In I Corinthians, Paul gets worked up about seeing the resurrection.  Later in this chapter (and we'll continue reading this chapter over the next few Sundays) Paul will basically say that unless Jesus was raised from the dead our faith is in vain (I Cor. 15:14).

This summer I asked our Bible study group what they thought about the resurrection, and I was struck by how different the answers were, ranging from a traditional belief to objection that Jesus' body was anywhere but in the ground on Easter morning.  All thoughts came from very faithful people.  But, in thinking about Paul's letter here, let me offer a few thoughts that may be challenging to some of us, but know that I offer them in humility and love.