He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time. (1 Cor. 15:6)
REMEMBER THE DRESS THAT WENT VIRAL? It was a snapshot of a White House intern wearing a striped party dress. Some felt certain it was black and blue. Others looked at the same photo and insisted it was gold and white. The first time I saw the picture, I saw black and blue. I saw those colors so clearly that I was convinced the whole thing was a hoax. But then, from the corner of my eye, the dress suddenly appeared white and gold; in fact, the more I looked, the more certain I became that it wasn’t black and blue after all. I could hardly believe this was the same image.
Although the debate about the dress got a bit out of hand (I mean, really, what does it matter?), it does serve as a metaphor for faith. After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to many, many people—individuals, small groups, and large groups. Some saw Him and believed; others saw Him and didn’t believe; others didn’t see Him and still believed.
Why doesn’t everyone see the same thing? For those of us who know Christ and have experienced His beauty and power, we just can’t understand why others don’t see what we see. It’s so clear to us. But their eyes are closed. Perhaps God has prevented them from seeing Him, or perhaps they have chosen to resist Him; all we can do is pray that their perspective may change and they too may experience our beloved Savior.
Pray for a specific person who does not know Christ.
Heather Gemmen Wilson is the author of the Global Warning Series, a fiction series for preteens, and she inspires young minds as a professor of creative writing.
© 2018 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission.