An example of faith was found on the wall of a concentration camp. On it a prisoner had carved the words:
I believe in the sun, even though it doesn’t shine,
I believe in love, even when it isn’t shown,
I believe in God, even when he doesn’t speak.
I try to imagine the person who etched those words. What hand could have cut such a conviction? What eyes could have seen good in such horror?
There is only one answer. Eyes that chose to see the unseen.
Seeing What Heaven Sees:
An example of faith was found on the wall of a concentration
camp. On it a prisoner had carved the words:
I believe in the sun, even though it doesn’t shine,
I believe in love, even when it isn’t shown,
I believe in God, even when he doesn’t speak.
I try to imagine the person who etched those words. What
hand could have cut such a conviction? What eyes could have seen good in such
horror?
There is only one answer. Eyes that chose to see the unseen.
Questions to consider.
1. Who has
inspired you to believe in the unseen?
2. Think of a time
when you wanted something so much that you were willing to beg for it. Describe
your feelings at that time.
3. What are the
complexities of “believing there is more to life than meets the eye”?
When Jesus went in the boat back to the other side of the
lake, a large crowd gathered around him there. 22A leader of the synagogue,
named Jairus, came there, saw Jesus, and fell at his feet. 23He begged Jesus,
saying again and again, “My daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands
on her so she will be healed and will live.” 24So Jesus went with him.
A large crowd followed Jesus and pushed very close around
him.
While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the
house of the synagogue leader. They said, “Your daughter is dead. There is no
need to bother the teacher anymore.”
36But Jesus paid no attention to what they said. He told the
synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
37Jesus let only Peter, James, and John the brother of James
go with him. 38When they came to the house of the synagogue leader, Jesus found
many people there making lots of noise and crying loudly. 39Jesus entered the
house and said to them, “Why are you crying and making so much noise? The child
is not dead, only asleep.” 40But they laughed at him. So, after throwing them
out of the house, Jesus took the child’s father and mother and his three
followers into the room where the child was. 41Taking hold of the girl’s hand,
he said to her, “Talitha, koum!” (This means, “Young girl, I tell you to stand
up!”) 42At once the girl stood right up and began walking. (She was twelve
years old.) Everyone was completely amazed. 43Jesus gave them strict orders not
to tell people about this. Then he told them to give the girl something to eat.
Mark
5:21–24; 35–43
The Jairus we see in this story is not the clear-sighted,
black-frocked, nicely groomed civic leader. He is instead a blind man begging
for a gift. He fell at Jesus’ feet, “saying again and again, ‘My daughter is
dying. Please come and put your hands on her so she will be healed and will
live.’ ” (Mark 5:23).
He doesn’t barter with Jesus. He doesn’t negotiate. He
doesn’t make excuses. He just pleads.
There are times in life when everything you have to offer is
nothing compared to what you are asking to receive. Jairus is at such a point.
What could a man offer in exchange for his child’s life? So there are no games.
No haggling. No masquerades. The situation is starkly simple: Jairus is blind
to the future and Jesus knows the future. So Jairus asks for his help.
And Jesus, who loves the honest heart, goes to give it.
Jesus compels Jairus to see the unseen. When Jesus says,
“Just believe … ,” He is imploring, “Don’t limit your possibilities to the
visible. Don’t listen only for the audible. Don’t be controlled by the logical.
Believe there is more to life than meets the eye!”
4. What lesson can
you learn from Jairus’ example?
5. When do the
words “Don’t be afraid, just believe” seem like not enough?
6. What would you
say is the single most difficult thing about putting your faith in God?
16So we do not give up. Our physical body is becoming older
and weaker, but our spirit inside us is made new every day. 17We have small
troubles for a while now, but they are helping us gain an eternal glory that is
much greater than the troubles. 18We set our eyes not on what we see but on
what we cannot see. What we see will last only a short time, but what we cannot
see will last forever.
1We know that our body—the tent we live in here on
earth—will be destroyed. But when that happens, God will have a house for us.
It will not be a house made by human hands; instead, it will be a home in
heaven that will last forever. 2But now we groan in this tent. We want God to
give us our heavenly home, 3because it will clothe us so we will not be naked.
4While we live in this body, we have burdens, and we groan. We do not want to
be naked, but we want to be clothed with our heavenly home. Then this body that
dies will be fully covered with life. 5This is what God made us for, and he has
given us the Spirit to be a guarantee for this new life.
6So we always have courage. We know that while we live in
this body, we are away from the Lord. 7We live by what we believe, not by what
we can see.
2 Corinthians 4:16–5:7
7. How is your life different when you live by
faith rather than sight?
8. What evidence
have you seen that there is a part of us that longs for heaven?
9. In what ways
does a heavenly perspective change the way we look at our earthly
circumstances?
Jesus is asking Jairus to see the unseen. To make a choice.
Either to live by the facts or to see by faith. When tragedy strikes we, too,
are left to choose what we see. We can see either the hurt or the Healer.
The choice is ours.
Mark it down—God knows living by faith and not by sight
doesn’t come naturally. And I think that’s one reason he raised Jairus’s
daughter from the dead. Not for her sake—she was better off in heaven. But for
our sake—to teach us that heaven sees when we trust.
How can I turn my eyes from the hurt in my life to the
Healer?
For Further Study
To study more about faith, read Matthew 8:8–10; Matthew
9:20–22; Luke 17:5–6; Romans 1:17; Romans 4:4–6; 2 Cor. 5:7; Galatians 2:16;
Galatians 3:14.
Additional Questions
10. What are the
unseen things that encourage your faith the most?
11. How can
believers help one another to live by faith?
12. What practical
steps can you take to strengthen your faith?
Feel free to print this out and share with you friends,
family, small group, and Church. Share the link and discuss You are welcome to message me of leave a
question or comment. Be Blessed
#givetheGospellegs
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