Seeing Each Other By the Spirit, Not the Surface
Seeing by the Spirit, the person comes into focus while the noise fades.
Devotional Credit: eManna, Witness Lee
Photo Credit: Unsplash
We rush through days full of faces, voices, accents, and opinions. It is easy to sort people by what meets the eye. Paul once did that with Jesus Himself, measuring the Lord by outward markers, and he missed the glory standing before him. Then the Damascus road happened, and everything shifted from flesh to Spirit.
Today’s reading reminds me that knowing Jesus according to natural categories always shrinks Him. Witness Lee helps us thank God for the moment the risen Jesus confronted Saul and made it plain, I am alive, and I am God’s fullness. From that day on, Paul stopped sizing people by their background and started recognizing the indwelling Lord.
That same change is offered to us. In Christ, we do not relate to one another as walking resumes. We look for the Life within. We notice the quiet joy that leaks out in ordinary words. We discern the patience that does not come from personality, but from Jesus living in a person.
I am grateful for how Witness Lee points us toward this lens. It is the lens of union, the abiding life, the new creation. We learn to say, I belong to a people in whom Jesus dwells. Then we meet our brother or sister, not by the surface, but by the Spirit who fills them.
Journal Entry - Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I dwell in you because you are in the Son. I have joined you to Jesus, and I have made you new. You once judged Him by what could be seen, and you once judged others the same way. Now I open your eyes to know Him as Lord in glory, and to recognize His life in those who belong to Him.
I lead you away from the sorting of the flesh. I teach you to regard no one by their accent, skill, education, strength, or weakness. I tune your attention to the presence of Jesus within His people. I shape your words so that grace may be heard. I form your listening so that love may be felt.
When you meet a believer who seems unimpressive, look again. I am there. Christ in them is the hope of glory. When you meet a weary saint, remember that the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you and in them. See with resurrection eyes. Speak with the mind of Christ. Walk as one who has died with Him and now lives to God.
I am the Spirit of adoption. I knit you into a Body. You participate in the life of the Son, and you share that life with all who are His. Set your mind on things above. Count yourself alive with Him. Yield your tongue, your posture, your attention. I will express Jesus through you, and I will help you honor Jesus in others.
Real-Life Analogy
Think about using your phone camera when the subject looks blurry. You tap the screen, the lens refocuses, and the person snaps into clarity while the background softens. Nothing in the scene changed, but your focus did, and now you can truly see.
That is what the indwelling Spirit does in daily conversations. A coworker’s grammar may be rough, or a friend’s style may be plain, yet Jesus is present. Instead of managing yourself with rules or forcing kindness, quietly turn inward to the Lord who lives in you and say, Lord, I lean on You to see as You see and to speak through me with Your kindness right now. Then respond. Ask a sincere question. Listen without rushing. Offer a simple word that builds up. This is not a checklist. This is Jesus expressing His life through you as you trust Him moment by moment.
Prayer of Confidence
Father, thank You that in Jesus I am a new creation. Thank You for placing Your Spirit within me and joining me to a people filled with Your life. Today I rest in what You have already given, eyes to see Jesus and hearts to honor Him in others. I receive Your provision, and I yield my attention, my words, and my judgments to You. Lord, I rely on You to look through my eyes, to think through my mind, and to speak through my mouth as I meet each person. I rejoice that this is already mine in Christ.
Scripture References for the Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture Section
2 Corinthians 5:16-17, Acts 9:1-5, Colossians 1:27, Romans 6:4-11, Romans 8:9-11, Galatians 2:20, Ephesians 2:18-22, Colossians 3:1-4, 1 Corinthians 2:12-16, Romans 8:14-17