What Is Real Is Not Always Seen
What if the greatest reality in your life is something your eyes cannot see? Discover why Stephen saw what others couldn’t—and why we still follow Jesus today.
Have you ever seen or understood something that was hidden from those around you?
In my case, when driving along the steeply sloped, scenic Kluane Lake in the Yukon Territory of Canada, family members would spot Dahl sheep clinging to the sides of the mountains.
“Look, look!” They would say.
But I couldn’t see them, and I couldn’t pull over on the narrow, winding road. But did my lack of ability to see the majestic animals negate their existence?
No. The sheep existed. Others saw what I couldn’t because they were not distracted by the requirements of driving safely. Sometimes our inability to see something says more about where our attention is focused than about whether it is real.
The same is true spiritually. When our attention is consumed by the worries, ambitions, and controversies of this world, we can miss the greatest reality of all—that Jesus Christ is alive, reigning, and completely in control.
Jesus, during his three years of open ministry, had claimed to be the promised Christ, the Son of God. So, on the night he was betrayed, seeking to accuse Jesus of blasphemy “the high priest asked him, ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?’ And Jesus said, ‘I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.’” (Mark 14:61-62 ESV).
Several years after Jesus’s death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven, the Deacon Stephen was on trial for his faith in Jesus. Stephen saw the risen and exalted Christ—though no one else around him did. While others were distracted by their anger and hatred, Stephen, “full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him.” (Acts 7:55-58).
Jesus promised, “You will see.” Several years later Stephen declared, “I see… the Son of Man.” Stephen recognized exactly what Daniel had foretold centuries earlier: Jesus is the Son of Man to whom God has given everlasting dominion, glory, and an eternal kingdom (Daniel 7:13–14).
Faith isn’t pretending something is true that isn’t. Faith is confidently trusting the One who is real, even when others don’t yet see Him.
That’s why it matters today.
We don’t follow a memory or merely a set of teachings. We follow the living Christ who still reigns and still reveals Himself through His Word.
The same Jesus who revealed Himself to Stephen still makes Himself known to those who seek Him through His Word.
Today, take time to open the Bible and look for Jesus. The distractions of life may be loud, but Christ still reveals Himself to those who seek Him with attentive hearts.
