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More real...

By: Terry Dashner, Fri Dec 9th, 2005 08:26:48 PM

“More Real”

Terry Dashner……Faith Fellowship Church PO Box 1586 Broken Arrow, OK 74013

I hold before you the palm of my right hand. For the sake of illustration, let it represent that which can be seen with the human eye. In your field of vision is the earth with “everything therein.” That which is physical, tangible, or natural can be seen, thus, there is a real possibility that it can be grasped and held, right?

May I ask you a question? As I turn my palm around, displaying the back of my hand to you, may I ask you—do you ever think about what’s on the other side this life? If there is a natural world, is there a supernatural world?

The Bible says, “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (II Corinthians 4:18) Note the extreme antithesis of this verse—seeing that which can’t be seen with the eye. How can something that isn’t visible to the naked eye be seen? And what is the difference between the “temporal” and the “eternal”?

Do you dream at night? Of course you do. You may not remember what you dream, but—according to psychologists—you dream or you hallucinate during your waking hours. The question I raise is this: if your eyes are closed in sleep, how do you “see” your dreams? Every human being has internal eyes that see the non-physical. God gave us these eyes because they are more reliable than physical eyes.

On the other hand if you never consider what lies beyond the physical world, you probably trust in only what you see—seeing is believing, right? May I share with you the limitations of seeing only that which is tangible? Limitations include “living for today,” “trusting only what is real or seen,” “denying the existence of angels and demons” and so on and so forth. How does one establish belief in God if one doesn’t believe in the supernatural? God is Spirit. He is Supernatural.

I’ll leave you with this story. The British novelist and playwright David Lodge was watching one of his own creations, a satirical revue, the evening of November 22, 1963. The theater audience chuckled as an actor in the play showed up for a job interview with a transistor radio clutched to his ear, demonstrating his character’s blasé indifference. The actor then set down the radio and tuned to a station, letting its news, music, or commercials play in the background while the play went on. This night, however, a voice came on the radio with a live news bulletin: “Today, the American President John F. Kennedy was assassinated…”

The audience gasped and the actor immediately switched off the radio, but too late. In one sentence, the reality of the outside world had shattered the artificial world of the theater production. Suddenly, whatever action took place onstage seemed superficial and irrelevant. Once you “see” eternity, you’ll never again be satisfied with the “temporal.”

About the author: Pastors a small church in Broken Arrow, OK. U.S. Navy veteran, retired police officer, and father of three grown children.

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