Seeing The Savior

"This is the will of him that sent me, that everyone which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life..." John 6:40

True faith is a spiritual act of the soul represented in various ways in the Bible. One act of faith is seeing the Savior. This is not a physical or visionary sight of Christ. It is a spiritual sigh of the glory and excellence of his person, the fullness of his grace and righteousness, and the completeness and suitableness of his salvation; It is looking to Jesus as the author and finisher of faith. It is seeing him as altogether lovely, the chiefest among ten thousand.

Faith is accomplished b the enlightening of the sinner's darkened heart. Though, at first, it may be only a glimmering light, man is made to see himself a sinner, miserable, helpless, and undone. Christ is held forth in the gospel, crucified, slain, risen, and exalted to save sinners. Like the brazen serpent set upon a pole, for the bitten Israelites to look at and live, Christ is set forth in the gospel as the hope of perishing sinners. When we see him, we have life!

It is the preacher's task to uphold Christ before men, and say, "Behold the Lamb of God". Thereby, we show men the way of salvation. It is looking to and believing on Christ. Our Lord himself calls poor sinners to look and believe. "Behold me! Behold me!… Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else." When God thus speaks to our hearts, we see the Savior.

This sight of Christ fills our hearts with desires after him, and interest in him. It gives us a hungering and thirsting for his righteousness. It causes us to pant after his salvation. We see Christ, not merely as the Savior of others, but as a Savior and Redeemer suitable for ourselves. When a man sees the altogether Lovely One, his soul is filled with love for him. May God give you eyes to see the Savior.

Don Fortner