Beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

My wife and I visited dear friends, this afternoon.  Married for almost sixty years, they would be the first to admit that they are not going to win the Mr/Miss Universe contests. Time, and a not always easy life, have taken their toll. When I, as a man, look at the wife, I do not see anything that I would consider to be physically attractive to me. Yet her husband frequently describes her as "My lovely"! 

How can that be? Well, I love them both. I see, in each of them, a beauty that is much more important than mere physical form. But when he looks at her, he looks at her through the eyes of a love that has deepened for almost six decades. We each know that we love our respective wives more, now, than we did on our wedding days - even if, on those particular occasions, we could not have imagined loving our brides more than we did at that point in time.

As I pondered this, I realised that it provides us with an illustration of the Lord Jesus and His true church. The church is described, in the written Word, as His "Bride". But the church is composed of people like me! Forget my physical appearance - what am I like as a person? Sadly, I must be the first to admit that, when it comes to perfection, I fall far, far, short. I am a living example of the statement made by the apostle, Paul, that "... all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ..." (Rom.3:23). Indeed, as those words make clear, there is not one member of the church who is even close to being perfect!

However, although all that I deserve is the judgment, wrath, and punishment of Almighty God, He has already dealt with my sin, in the Persona* of the Son, who paid the penalty on the cross at Calvary. He paid a debt that He did not owe, because I owed a debt that I could not pay. He sees me, now, through the eyes of the love that was displayed there. As I come to the Father, covered by His blood and righteousness, I am accepted in Him. He looks at me  and sees, not the wrinkles of my sin, but His own perfection. I don't understand this - but I rejoice in it. The little "jingle" says:

That Thou shouldst love me as I am

And be the God Thou art,

is darkness to my intellect - 

But sunshine to my heart!

Just as my friend and I look at our respective wives, and see what others do not see, so the Lord looks at His true people and sees them as perfected in Him. And there is more! When this mortal body is finished with - either through physical death, or through the Rapture - then I will, at last, be perfect as I dwell in His nearer presence where sin cannot even exist! Hallelujah!

It is all of Him, and His grace. It has nothing to do with even the best of my works - indeed, the prophet Isaiah was inspired to write that "... all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags;" (64:6); and the expression "filthy rags" should really be translated "blood-stained rags", a reference to the rags that women of that time used during their menstruation! If that is how my good works may be described, how might my sins, and failures; my disobedience and rebellion; my self-centredness and hypocrisy, be described?!

When Almighty God looks at you, what does He see? You in all of your sinfulness and selfishness? Or does the Father see the Son - and accept you, in Him? May that latter be your experience, that you may spend eternity in His nearer presence, praising and magnifying His holy name.

*Not a 'typo'! See my book "Great Words of the Faith", the chapter on The Trinity. Link available at the top of the page. Remember that ALL royalties are sent, directly, to the bank account of Release International, in support of the persecuted church. The same is true of the other two books (vol.4: "Living the Faith" now in preparation!). Thank you, on their behalf. Please feel free to encourage others to purchase!