Bridging the Gap from Mind to Spirit
The fundamental issue of faith is bridging the gap between the seen and the unseen (2 Corinthians 4:18). The faithful live in a physical world but must think as spirits. The intellect must merge with the character. At the same time, the Spirit is patching up the damage we have done to both. How do we develop that vision of the unseen? God has provided several thought exercises to strengthen the right pathways. Stay tuned.
“…to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places…” (Ephesians 3:10) God’s plan is that the faithful teach angels. The angels who stuck with God reside with Him. So, they have no opportunity to experience trust without “sight.” They learn by observing faithful humans. Our commitment to the betterment of angels helps us bridge the gap between the seen and the unseen.
“Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God…” (Ephesians 4:30) The context supplies a number of examples of bad behaviors that disrupt the big picture of faith expressing itself through love. The behaviors themselves are not the main issue, but the loss of trust and concern which makes God sad. If we can visualize God’s grief over disruptions in faith, we can begin to bridge the gap between the seen and the unseen.
“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16 and 6:19) The Spirit dwells in the faithful. Wherever we go, we drag God along, a sometimes embarrassing thought. On the bright side, God is right there, available for questions, too. Plus, Paul’s illustrations emphasize the passion God has toward those temples. That picture can help us bridge the gap between the seen and the unseen.
“So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” (Revelation 3:16) Tepid Christians make God sick. To bridge the gap between the seen and the unseen, we should ask ourselves if we are as passionate about God as He is about us.
“To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. They profess to know God but in works they deny Him…” (Titus 1:15 – 16) As we survey the physical world, do we see the good things, or do we major in the defects? Focusing on the good enables the mind to bridge the gap between the seen and the unseen, because the unseen we are to contemplate is pure.
God “will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts” (1 Corinthians 4:5) God knows what we are thinking, our true intentions. Taken negatively, the concept is frightening. Taken positively, our physical flops don’t seem so drastic and we have an easier time bridging the gap between the seen and the unseen because the unseen is the important part.
When we fail, our response should not be to try harder, which is futile. Instead, we need to work on visualizing the true universe, the realm of spirits. Drop back to picturing the nature of God; then review His many promises of help to overcome ourselves. Do we believe that we get miraculous help to be conformed to the image of Jesus or not?
Thomas Theology Hub 