John 14:9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
Here they are again being told that they don’t know Jesus or what He came for. Philip, like Thomas, and the rest of the disciples had not come to know Jesus, but in this verse, everything changes. We all hit the pivot point together just as John planned through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Jesus and the Father are one. To see Jesus is the way to see the truth and the life of the Father in real time, in flesh and blood. The entire time the disciples had been with Jesus, they didn’t really know who they were watching. They were watching God, the Father, at work. They were watching His character revealed. They were experiencing the love of the Father, God. This is amazing! They didn’t recognize or understand what Jesus was doing. This should sober us. It is possible to see, but not see; and to hear, but not understand. Ok, let’s pivot right here and go back and read the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, but this time, when you read about what Jesus said and did, ponder this reality. You are reading about God, the Father. The life in Jesus is the life of the Father. Keep this pattern in mind when it comes to living to love with Jesus because it is another seismic shift of perspective. The life in those who believe in Jesus is the life of Jesus, Himself. That’s why I phrase the Christian life in this way: We are loving and glorifying God by living to love with Jesus. He is our Life. His Life is our Light, and that light is the love of God.
Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com
