Jesus Sees Us: A Personal Relationship
By Elizabeth Prata
SYNOPSIS
In this essay, I discuss the fact of God’s transcendence and relational nature of Jesus. While He possesses incommunicable attributes making Him totally ‘other’, Jesus also intimately connects with individuals, as shown in Mark 6:48. He sees and cares for His sheep, offering comfort and encouragement, reminding believers of His personal presence and compassion for each person.
God is totally other. When we think of Him we think of his transcendence, infiniteness, exaltedness, eternality. These incommunicable attributes are hard for us to wrap our mind around, because they are attributes only God possesses.
We might also think of the God-Man Jesus who is prophet, priest, king, attributes with which we are familiar from history, but not intimately acquainted.
Yet Jesus is also relational. He is friend, brother, shepherd. Our minds may accept this fact, but it is an awe and a wonder to us.
But to show HOW intimate Jesus is with us, let’s turn to Mark 6:48.
Seeing them straining at the oars—for the wind was against them—at about the fourth watch of the night, He came to them, walking on the sea; and He intended to pass by them. (Mark 6:48).
Here’s the scene. After a long day of teaching, healing, and feeding, Jesus sent the disciples on to cross the Sea of Galilee and He went up the mountain to pray. It was night. It was dark. There was heavy wind and waves. Jesus was on a mountain far away and the disciples were on a small boat in the middle of the sea of Galilee. (Mark 6:47).
Can a human see in the dark a small dot during a storm 8 miles away with no lights to aid him? No.
The NASB says “Seeing that.” The NIV, KJV say “He saw.” I’m fascinated with these moments in the Bible where Jesus “saw”. He found Hagar by the bush. She said “You are a God who sees”. (Genesis 16:13). He saw Nathanael under the fig tree. (John 1:48).
Jesus is a relational God. He sees all, His eyes are everywhere all the time upon the earth and under the earth. But He sees US, the individual. The personal. He not only sees, but as a compassionate yet powerful God, He CAN and He DOES something about it. No silent Dagon. No mercurial Allah. No milquetoast to Mary, He is GOD. He lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25) individually and by our name.
I know that being a housewife can feel isolating. Teens can feel invisible or misunderstood, so can older ladies as we fade into the cultural background that idolizes youth. But we are not invisible or unknown to Jesus! He SEES! What encouragement that He is a personal, relational God. There is no God like Him.
Jesus is with us and will be forever more. He knows our name. He sees us, the person, and He cares. Appeal to Him today. Be with Him. Talk to Him, ponder both His majestic greatness and transcendence as well as His personal compassion and love for the individual sheep He came to save.
