Seeing God 2
Over a year ago I wrote a short post on the subject of seeing God. Here. Now here is another angle on this subject.
In the first post I mentioned how it can be an uncomfortable thing to think about seeing God in Heaven because that kind of feels like seeing a supreme authority figure, or being in the presence continually of an authority figure. It even feels a bit silly. Like a Muslim staring at their black rock after journeying a thousand miles to get there. I.e. what is the point of just merely looking at something? This is not mocking something like the beatific vision; this is practical thinking. Anyway, I answered that part of it in the first post linked above.
In this part two I want to mention another aspect of seeing God that doesn't get talked about. I believe it has to do with the subject of our level of being.
You have to have something in you before you can see it outside of you. Think of this in terms of language. You can't see why one musical composition is more interesting than another unless you have some of the language of music in you. If that involves just having heard different kinds and levels of music rather than having any musical theory in you it still applies because you heard that music which is audible language. I.e. you have *something* in you that gives you ability to discern the difference between the two musical works.
To see God you have to have something of God in you. Obviously the Holy Spirit applies here. At the level, though, of being in the Kingdom of God (seeing God - Jesus - directly) your level of being has to be higher than it is right now.
Forget the question of how your level of being gets to where it has to be to be in Heaven. Monergism, synergism regarding sanctification, etc. Let's just say you are *there* now. This means 'seeing God' is a measure of your new level of being. I.e. it is too simple to see it as you standing before Jesus gawking at Him and thinking that is the goal, to see Jesus. That's kind of silly.
When it's said the angels always face God that is talking about how they are arranged in their internal being. They are not always, literally - physically - facing God.
It's the same with glorified human beings in the presence of God which is to say in the Kingdom of God, the new heavens and earth.
The subject is level of being; not climbing up to the summit to view the old man in the cave.
2 Comments:
Alienation and distance are both words that describe well that empty desolate state that tends to define our inner lives before regeneration. It represents humanity at a very low level-of-being, where we believe and live in the world and everything it has to offer.
Beyond that, the fruits of a truly regenerate person provide some indication of a Christian’s level of being - i.e do they see and act more from their worldly or spiritually (God centered) will.
So to an extent we can experience and live in our sanctification with more or less order even before entering heaven. The word ‘order’ describes it well because it’s our inner life that gets ordered which allows us to commune more closely with God.
The relationship between a Christian’s level of being and inner order is interesting as is contemplating what they both actually refer too along with how they develop or don’t. As you said ‘seeing God’ is more a matter of coming into a godly spiritual order where our inner lives are remoulded according to his will unto the Kingdom of Heaven.
Great comment, W. 😊
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