“…that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple.” Psalm 27:4
Dear Ones:
Not long ago I saw a beautiful photo that an acquaintance had taken of a male woodduck. The brilliant colors and the order revealed in the color scheme was such that I remarked, “If anyone does not believe in God, he or she, has only to look at this woodduck to believe.” What was so overwhelming by the photo was the beauty and design revealed in it. If such a coloration and forethought of the Creator resulted in such miraculous beauty, how much more is He beautiful, overwhelmingly wonderful to behold?
David wrote Psalm 27, and in that song he expresses the first, and greatest pursuit of his life…”to behold the beauty of the Lord.” Why? Because nothing compares with it. We are so accustomed to seeing the results and effects of the sin of men, that we do not raise our eyes to see this beautiful perfection that is the glorified Christ, with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Where does one begin in this pursuit of “seeing the glory of God?” There are three places where we are to look. The first is creation. Paul tells us that “…the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are CLEARLY seen, being understood by the things that are made.” (Romans 1:20) We have only to take the time and look at His creation, from the intrinsic beauty of a flower, to the vast beauty of the sky, ocean, and heavens, to begin to grasp something of this beauty. The second place where we are to SEE His beauty is in His word, the Bible. It is as we trust HIM, the Spirit of God, to open our eyes to see Him, that we discover the absolute beauty and perfection of our Creator and Redeemer. We begin to grasp something of the love of God, as well as His justice. An example of this is found in the book of Jonah, where we find the prophet angry that God had spared the Assyrians from destruction. He wrote: “…for I knew that You are a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, who turns away judgement.” (4:2) What did Jonah see in God? His beauty. Lastly, the beauty of Christ is revealed in the believer. Paul again writes: “You are our epistle (the epistle, or letter, of Christ), written by the Spirit of God…known and read by all men.” (2 Corinthians 3:2,3) The day of Pentecost, God the Father gave the Spirit of God to the disciples in a very special way. The living church, or body of Christ, had its beginning. By virtue of the Spirit of Christ coming to reside in the heart of the believer, the testimony or witness of the Life (beauty) of Christ is revealed, to be “read by all men.” Thus, every day, the beauty of God, especially and most perfectly expressed and revealed in the person and work of Jesus Christ, is revealed for all to see. To truly SEE the glory, or beauty, of Christ, is to fall at His feet in worship and adoration, for there is no one, nor anything, that can compare with him. It is for this reason that Moses would pray: “And let the beauty of the Lord our God BE upon us.” (Psalm 90:17)
Dear Father, beautiful God and Lord, open our eyes to see Thy glory, Thy beauty. Enable us to see Thee in creation, in Thy word, and in the Lord Jesus. May the vision be so overwhelming that we too will pray so very sincerely, with our whole heart, “And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,” for Jesus’ sake and Thy glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad