Believing and Seeing – or Not

Most, if not all, of us have seen examples of visual, or optical, illusions. These images can be fun and entertaining, or challenging, or annoying. But they all have this in common: they trick our senses into perceiving something differently than it actually exists. (The term illusion comes, after all, from an old Latin verb meaning “to mock.”) We “see” things that are not “there.” Or we “know” things are missing – there ought to be lines, color or other elements present – and as we continue our gaze, our brains “fill in” those pieces. And to complicate matters further, two people can look at the same image, or situation, and perceive completely different things. “Seeing” is not always believing.

On Credo Sunday (Year B 2015), the Sunday that begins the long, final season of the church year following the Day of Pentecost and continuing until the first Sunday of Advent, the revised common lectionary invites us to consider what we believe by contrasting things temporal and things eternal, and by contemplating what can and can’t be seen. And herein is the surprise within each of these texts. As we contemplate seeing and believing, what becomes apparent are huge and significant distinctions between God’s intentions for His creation, and human desires and ways of seeing.

Why do we humans see the way we do, with our eyes caught in space and time, fixed on what is temporal rather than what is eternal? The most foundational answer takes us back to the Fall, in the Garden of the long ago. Here’s the old story (see Genesis 3). Despite Adam and Eve’s life of fellowship with the God of creation, Eve listened to the beguiling words of the serpent and disobeyed God’s command, taking and eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and gave some to her husband who was with her, and he also ate. When God asked her why she had done this, she replied, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” How could this crafty serpent deceive these two, made in God’s image? He used what is always the enemy’s strategy: did God actually say, …? but surely He didn’t mean that; He would never mean to limit or restrict you, or thwart your desires and pleasures. “The serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise [lit., to give insight], she took of its fruit and ate… Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked.” (italics added) Through the serpent’s words and their own desires, they were deceived into seeing both more than and less than what was there. They expected to become like God. Instead, their innocence was destroyed and their fellowship with God was severed; they were fallen, and the whole of humanity with them.

In the text from 1 Samuel, we see another story of visual trickery, when the children of Israel are deceived by what they see around them and their desires are formed by that deception. Samuel, called by God as a child, who had been God’s prophet and Israel’s judge throughout his long life, “was old.” He appointed his two sons to take his place as judges, but they were corrupt. The elders of Israel would not have them, but instead demanded that Samuel appoint for them a king “that we may also be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” Their attitude – we like what we see over there, their kings do things for them – displeased Samuel, and saddened God. He told His prophet, “They have not rejected you, they have rejected Me from being king over them.” And God gave them what they wanted, but not without a stern warning. With their eyes they perceived glory and ease, but what they did not see were the heavy policies and exploitation that underlay the earthly neighboring kingdoms, burdens that would increase over time. Nevertheless, the Israelites persisted in their demand. Their choice? A disastrous one, as it turned out: Saul, taller  and more handsome than anyone else, but empty. (See 1 Sam 9:2 , 12:13) But God, in His grace and wisdom, had His choice already prepared. God had chosen David, because “the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” (1 Sam 16:7)

Finally, the Gospel reading contains what surely was a startling example that earthly human perception does not match God’s way of seeing. After a long day of ministry, teaching, and disputing with the scribes, Jesus is told that His mother, brothers and sisters had arrived and wished to see Him. To the astonishment of the crowd, Jesus replied, “Who are My mother and brothers and sisters?” And as He looked at those sitting around Him, He continued, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.” How blessed (and what an early revelation) that God sees those who follow Jesus as the family of God and the Body of Christ!

We see and perceive, with our human eyes, the way we do because of the Fall. But we are learning, increasingly, to walk by faith and not by sight. (2 Cor 5:7) One of the paradoxes of our faith is that we see things we cannot know, and know things we cannot see. Because, as Paul says, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Revised Common Lectionary, Proper 5B*:

1 Samuel 8:4-20,11:14-15

Psalm 138

Genesis 3:8-15

Psalm 130

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Mark 3:20-35

*In 2015 and 2021, Proper 5B is the second Sunday after Pentecost, which traditionally is known as Credo Sunday. In some years, such as 2018, the second Sunday after Pentecost falls on the previous week, Proper 4, because of the early date of Easter.

Copyright ©2016 Ellen Koehler.  All Rights Reserved.