Earthly Eyes or
Heavenly Vision?

As we talk about who God is, it is challenging to focus on just one of His attributes because His different attributes work together perfectly. In fact, we can miss something important when we look at each attribute in isolation.

Take the statement “God is Love” as an example. To appreciate what that means, we also need to understand that God is Omniscient—He knows everything. God knows what will happen next week, next year, etc. He knows our thoughts, our motivations, our weaknesses, and how our actions impact others. He knows what will ultimately bring us true joy, peace, and comfort.

 

Now take that knowledge and combine it with the truth that God is love. WOW! We have a God who knows absolutely everything about us—and yet He loves us perfectly. He doesn't love us because He doesn't know our faults. He loves us knowing everything about us. How blessed are we to be called His children!

 

This short video clip, John Piper - The Love of God, is a good reminder of the importance of how we define love – whether through earthly eyes or heavenly vision. It is so easy for us to evaluate whether God is loving based on our own standards and our limited understanding. It’s interesting that we can struggle with trusting that God’s love is perfect, but we understand that a young child should not be given everything they want but instead needs guidance. Do we think too highly of ourselves and fail to understand God’s greatness? Or do we not understand what a perfect Father’s love looks like?

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When we talk about God's love, we often describe it as unconditional love contrasted
with the love we experience from people. We emphasize that God continues to show
love toward us even when we fail. And that is absolutely true.

However, in 1 John 4:8 and 1 John 4:16, John doesn't simply say that God loves. He says: “God is love.” That is a profound statement. Love isn't simply something God does. Love is part of who God is. This means God's love isn't something that gets turned on and off based on our behavior. His love doesn't depend on whether we had a good day or a bad day, whether we succeeded or failed, or whether we feel worthy of being loved. God loves because God is love. And there is something incredibly comforting about putting God's attributes together.

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God knows everything about me.
God knows everything that lies ahead of me on earth and eternity.
God knows what is ultimately best for me.
And the God who knows all of that… loves me perfectly.

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That brings us back to the idea of earthly eyes or heavenly vision. From our earthly perspective, we see only a small piece of the story but God sees the whole picture. And our Father who sees the whole picture is not distant or indifferent—He is love. I like the way A.W. Tozer captures this thought:
 

“We are often tempted to wonder how God could love us, but honest as this feeling is, it is nevertheless

the result of a wrong way of looking at things. God does not love us because we are hard or easy to

love; He loves us because He is God, not because we are good or bad or more attractive or less so.

God’s love is not drawn out of Him by its object; it flows out from God in a steady stream because He is love.” — A.W. Tozer

 

Personal Reflection – Take time to contemplate God’s love and the questions below.
• Do I find it tempting to think of God’s love in relationship to whether He acts the way I think is ‘right’?
• Am I trying to earn God’s love?