Divine Perspective

(A word about the month of August: I'm going to continue sending out random thoughts through the summer and then in September, we'll start the book We Would See Jesus by Roy Hession.)

Psalm 73:17 "...I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned..."

If ever God's people needed perspective and discernment, it is today. And the need for this will increase as the pressures of the end of the age increase. I find this true in my own life, and it is underscored by hearing from many others as they struggle to flourish in the midst of the increasing chaos, anger, and pressures of this age.

There is no other place to get divine, heavenly perspective apart from the real presence of the Lord.

Psalm 73 is about eternal perspective; the psalmist openly makes his complaint in the first part of this writing and admits his anger and pain over what he observes in this life, which is that those who don't care about God seem to have life easier than those who are intent on walking in the ways of the Lord.

Although the Scriptures leave no doubt about the reality of suffering in this life for God's people, there's something in us that wants to have it all now - the fulfillment of everything now. I think the Church in America is particularly conditioned in this way because of our worldview that seeks for "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" now in this land; because we don't have an eternal perspective on fulfillment in the next age, we are surprised and offended with God when things don't go well in this age.

The New Testament saints lived for another age. (II Cor. 4:16-18) They studied and believed all that Jesus taught about a future and a hope beyond the present and arranged their lives around that reality. This empowered them to rejoice in difficulties. In the average American church our sermons and programs are mostly given to working at and ensuring that we have a good marriage, a good family, a good job, a good ministry in this life, with no vision for the countless years we have ahead of us and what God has for us to be and do forever.

Obviously, our focus in the Church on improving things in this life has not produced strong families and ministries but rather broken homes and self-absorbed ministries. C.S.Lewis once said (in response to the idea that to be heavenly minded is to be of no earthly good), that it's actually the reverse. He said that it's for lack of focus on eternity that we live such miserable lives now and contribute so little to this age.

And so the psalmist found his way into the presence and heart of God and there he gained eternal perspective. The "sanctuary" of God speaks of God's manifest presence; there we, like the psalmist and all children of God in all ages, touch reality; first of all, we encounter the reality of the one real God, transcendent and sovereign in His leadership of human history. Then we touch the reality of what matters above all else in this life: intimacy with this transcendent One - "Whom have I in heaven and there is none on earth that I desire besides You...for me it is good to be near God."

In that place of intimate communion and union with the sovereign King and Lover of my soul, I gain perspective on all that is happening around me. There I "discern" what's real and what the final outcome will be; to keep perspective I must have a lifestyle of continual seeking His presence and hearing His viewpoint.

As I have shared before and will continue to share, I believe the worldwide prayer movement is clearing the way for the Bride to desire and cry out for the return of the Bridegroom and is one of the key means by which the Holy Spirit is breaking open the heavens so that His people can experience more of His manifest presence, and in that place, we gain eternal perspective.

Spirit of God, awaken hunger within us to be with You, close to You, to experience Your real presence and to live seeking You so that we may be a people living for another age, empowered to know in You what is really happening around us; save us from being subtly sucked into the mind of this age and from evaluating what's real through worldly eyes so that we can rejoice in suffering and bear witness in our joy of a transcendent life in God through Christ Jesus.

God is with you!