The Manifestation of Awe and Wonder

Open my eyes, that I may behold

wondrous things out of your law.

I am a sojourner on the earth;

hide not your commandments from me!

My soul is consumed with longing

for your rules at all times. Psalm 119:19,20

The Psalmist lived his life longing to see the wonderful things of God, but he sought them, not in the heavens, not in miracles, not in healings, but in God’s Word. He knew that experiencial revelation was for a moment, but God’s Word endures forever. 1 Peter says the heavens and the earth will melt away with a roar, but not one period or comma would disappear from God’s Word. So the psalmist’s soul was consumed with longing for a revelation of God, in God’s revelational Word.

But what if? What if the Psalmist experienced, 

“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us...” 1 John 1:1,2.

The phrase “looked upon” means to behold with awe and wonder. What the Psalmist longed for, the disciples experienced, but their “word of God” jumped off the page and into history. “The Word that was with God in the beginning, was God...and the Word became flesh.” John 1:1ff. No longer did God hide himself behind the veil, but for our sake manifested himself for his disciples to see, to hear, and to touch. They have become his faithful testimony, through whom we are consumed with longing to look upon with awe and wonder. One day, we will behold Him in all of His glory, and the living written word will again appear. What a glorious day. I’m just saying...