“When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.'” Luke 5:8
Dear Ones:
It must have been a beautiful day by the lake of Gennesaret, that Jesus stood, giving to the people the word of God. As they pressed upon Him, He saw two fishing boats, with the fishermen washing their nets. He entered into one of the boats, and putting a little off shore, began teaching the people. Afterwards, he told Peter to launch out into deep water, and let down his nets for a catch. This he did in spite of his fatigue, as he and the other fishermen had worked all night and caught nothing. Upon enclosing a great multitude of fish, and seeing the miracle of it all, Peter falls at the knees of Jesus and says: “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” What does a catch of many fish have to do with conviction of one’s sins before God? The conviction came in the contrast between the Lord Jesus Himself, and Peter. The difference in grace and power were such, that Peter saw his own sin, as opposed to Christ’s righteousness and goodness. How then could Jesus even think of making this fisherman to be a pillar in the church of God, a dominant voice, heralding the gospel for the eternal blessing for thousands? The answer lies in how Jesus loved him, and the worth that He attributed to him. He saw Peter, not with the eyes of sinful men’s limitations, but with the possibilities that only God could realize. How then does God see the believer in Christ, even those who are not yet in Christ?
In one of Jesus’ parables, He sought to communicate to the religious zealots of his day, a basic understanding of how God sees the sinner. In that story, there is a Pharisee who seeks to justify himself before God because of what he does, whether fasting or giving offerings. Jesus singles out another individual, a Publican, who is standing afar off, not even looking up to heaven, but smiting his breast, crying: “God be merciful to me a sinner.” (Luke 18:13) Jesus would then say that the Publican is the one who is truly justified before God. Why? Because in the abasement of himself, i.e. seeing himself as he truly is, a sinner, in the sight of God, he elevates God in his heart to the position that He truly has. The point is that God perceives individuals differently than sinful man does.
It was Amy Carmichael, founder of the Dohnavur Fellowship in India, who said concerning the children that she rescued from temple prostitution and slavery, “All my geese are swans.” Why did she say this? Was it because of their condition, or what she, through the eyes of Christ, saw in them, and what they could be and become by the grace of God? Carmichael learned to look, and see others, with Christ’s eyes, the eyes of perfect love. When some of these rescued children were asked what drew them to Amy, they answered: “It was love. Amma (mother) love us.” So, how do we see the children of Another, the One who created them, and died on the cross to save them? First of all, in spite of their “faults, sins, and failures,” the Father sees them complete in His Son, perfect, accepted in the beloved. He sees them without a flaw, or blemish, for He sees them IN His perfect Son, clothed with His righteousness. Secondly, He sees them through the eyes of One who is not of this world, but is infinitely holy and good. He looks at them for what they can be, and become, by the grace of God. He sees them by virtue of what they are becoming, as Christ is formed in them.
Dear Father, You see us as Peter and the Publican so keenly felt, as sinners. But also, You greatly love us, having made us complete in Thy Son. Give us to see others through Your eyes, loving them in like manner. Then they too will know Your love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad