Joyful Envy
I have a strange title to the last devotion of this week. I've called it 'joyful envy', which really doesn't make much sense, at least until you hear my explanation.
You see, in Luke 10 we have read all about joy this week - the disciples' joy, Jesus' joy, the Father's joy, and how praise leads to joy. Now let's read how this interaction between Jesus and the disciples ends in verse 23: "Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it."
This is the envy I am talking about today! Many prophets and kings wanted to be the ones who witnessed the Messiah come to earth, and experience the wonder of God in the flesh through Jesus Christ. It was such a blessing to the disciples to see what they saw through their very own eyes - and I suppose we too envy them in a way, since I'm sure all of us Christians have thought about how wonderful it would have been to stand in that crowd and see Jesus in person!
Standing on Their Shoulders
But it's envy not in the sinful sense. Not in the sense of despising the disciples for having seen it. In fact, we rejoice for them, and with them, because what they saw and captured changed the world and we're so grateful to them for that.
Here's a thought: whenever we read the Bible, we can look back with a sort of a joyful envy! We wish we could have been there to see it all in real time. But we open our Bibles and read in our air-conditioned homes with modern medical care and clothes and internet and food and blessings abounding. We're joyful, because through God's grace those who saw Jesus in action built the Christian faith, and built the church, and we stand on their shoulders, as the saying goes.
Grateful for Their Testimony
Are you joyful, and thankful today, for what our Christian ancestors in the original disciples did? Do we read their stories with a tremendous sense of joyful gratitude, for how we reap the benefits of what those who went before us built for us?
Blessed are their eyes, indeed, for seeing what they saw. But blessed are they too, for taking what they saw to the world! Yes I wish I could have seen what they saw, but I read their stories with joy because my life is so deeply enriched by their ministry and mission.
So read your Bible with a joyful envy! (If we can call it that). And know how blessed you are, because those who saw Jesus with their own eyes never kept Him to themselves, but shared Him with the world.
