I knew from my last two eye tests that my reading vision was not improving. Because of a history of glaucoma in the family I have to get a test every year and I had been told that my vision was slightly worse each time but not enough to warrant a change of prescription. Today was different. As I went through the test I was aware myself that there was a big improvement that could be made. So those of you who are observant will notice their minister looking a little different at some point next week when my new glasses arrive.
As I walked home from the exam, squinting because of the pupil dilator drops in my eyes the words of Paul came to mind, “12 We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!” Whenever we read scripture we are always squinting at God, getting some idea of what he is like. But because some squint one way and someone else squints a different way we do see things differently. We build up a picture gradually and slowly as we feel God revealed to us. But that picture can be quite different for two different people. Can we really say that one is more legitimate than the other? I’m not sure we can. I think the important thing is to keep discussing how we see God in Christ, how our squinting is affecting the emphasis that we have while listening to how their squinting affects the emphasis that they have and maybe, just maybe, by so doing we can build a much more complete picture than we could on our own.