What You Can't See

READ: 2 CORINTHIANS 4:18; 1 PETER 1:3-8

"AH-CHOO!” That sound is not usually good news. It could mean someone is coming down with a cold. Sneezes and other symptoms show us the effects of germs on our bodies. Even though we can’t see germs without the help of a microscope, they have a significant impact on our lives. When you think about it, there are lots of things that affect us that we can’t see—we only see evidence that they exist—things like wind, electricity, radio waves, Wi-Fi signals, etc.

This is kind of similar to how we don’t see God, but we see evidence of His existence all around us. Theologians use the term “general revelation” to describe how God reveals Himself to us through His creation. As we explore and study science, there are so many things we can know about God by observing how He designed the universe in ways that are beautiful and logical.

Theologians also use the term “special revelation” to describe how God reveals Himself to us through His Word, and specifically through His Son: Jesus. Like a microscope allows us to know things about germs we’d never be able to see with our eyes alone, the Bible reveals things about who God is and what He’s done that we’d never be able to know just by looking at the natural world. And the whole Bible points to Jesus—He is God in human flesh, the “image of the invisible God,” and He shows us the Father (John 1:1-18; 14:8-9; Colossians 1:15-20). Throughout Scripture, God reveals His love for us, shows us how we can have a relationship with Him through Jesus, and describes how one day Jesus will return and everyone will finally see Him.

We see evidence for the existence of invisible things like wind, electricity, radio waves, Wi-Fi signals, and more—and we rely on these things to be there when we need them. Similarly, we can see evidence of God’s existence all around us in the world He created, and we can search out the deep mysteries of God in the Bible. Through faith, we can know that God exists and He loves us. Because of what Jesus has done and promises to do, we can have confidence that God’s love is real—and it’s far more reliable than electricity and Wi-Fi and all these other things we can’t see. As 1 Peter 1:8 says, “You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy.” • A. W. Smith

• What questions do you have about God? Who are trusted Christians you could talk with about these questions? If no one comes to mind, you can ask God to reveal someone in the future. You can also learn more about the whole story of the Bible, and what it tells us about God, on our "Know Jesus" page.

…we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NLT)