THE POWER OF A LOOK UNTO CHRIST
Often everything seems too heavy to carry and too tangled to unravel. The burden of sin presses hard; the memory accuses; the conscience trembles; and the heart whispers that there is no way back. Yet in such an hour, the Gospel does not command a mountain of labor, nor a ladder of merit—it simply bids the sinner look.
The Bible sets before us that ancient scene in the wilderness, where the people, bitten and dying, were given a strange yet gracious remedy: a bronze serpent lifted high upon a pole, and the promise that whoever looked upon it would live (Numbers 21:8-9). There was no delay, no condition of worthiness, no requirement of strength—only a look. So it is with Christ, who was lifted up upon the cross, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:14-15).
But what is this look? It is the turning of the soul away from self and toward the Savior. It is the abandoning of all confidence in works, feelings, or resolutions, and the resting of the heart upon the finished work of Christ. The eye of faith does not measure its own clarity; it fixes itself upon its object. Even a dim look, if it is truly directed to Christ, brings life.
Many stumble here, thinking they must first cleanse themselves, reform their ways, or stir up a certain depth of feeling before they may come. But this is to mistake the order of grace. We do not come because we are healed; we come to be healed. The invitation of the gospel is not to the worthy, but to the weary; not to the righteous, but to sinners (Matthew 11:28; Luke 5:32).
And consider how immediate the blessing is. The Israelite did not look and wait days for the poison to subside—he looked and lived. So the sinner who truly casts himself upon Christ is, in that very moment, justified, forgiven, and received. The one who believes has everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation, but has passed from death into life (John 5:24).
To the believer, this truth remains a continual refuge. We are not saved by one look and then left to live by our own strength; we live by looking still. When guilt returns, we look to His blood; when weakness oppresses, we look to His strength; when fear arises, we look to His promises. The Christian life is not a departure from Christ, but a deeper abiding in Him (Hebrews 12:2; Colossians 2:6).
Oh, that we might learn the simplicity of this grace! The world seeks complexity, the flesh demands effort, but God offers Christ—freely, fully, and forever. Look unto Him and be saved, all the ends of the earth, for He is God, and there is no other (Isaiah 45:22).
And when at last our eyes close in death, it will be but the final look of faith giving way to the first sight of glory. The One we have trusted, though unseen, we shall behold face to face—and we shall find that not one look was ever wasted.
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Gracious Savior, turn our eyes away from ourselves and fix them upon You. Teach us the simplicity of faith, the power of Your cross, and the sufficiency of Your grace. May we look and live, and continue looking until faith becomes sight. Amen.
BDD
