On the topic of seeing Christ -- that faith is a miraculous work of God, and that we should be seeking to see more of Christ's glory:
Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 16:16-17 ESV)
"Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world." (John 17:24 ESV)
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.
Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.
(Dallan Forgaill, 8th Century)
“One of the greatest privileges of believers, both in this world and unto eternity, consists in their beholding the glory of Christ. This, therefore, Christ desires for them in this solemn intercession [John 17:24], as the complement of all his other requests in their behalf: ‘That they may behold my glory’… ‘that they may see, view, behold, or contemplate my glory.’ This glorious privilege is not only for the heavenly state, but also for believers living in this world.” (John Owen, Meditation on the Glory of Christ, 1684)
"There is such a thing as a spiritual and divine light immediately imparted to the soul by God, of a different nature from any that is obtained by natural means... it may be thus described: a true sense of the divine excellency [beauty] of the things revealed in the word of God, and a conviction of the truth and reality of them." (Jonathan Edwards, "A Divine and Supernatural Light", 1734)
If at any time you fall into doubts about the state of your soul, in dark and dull frames of mind, it is proper to review your past experience. But do not consume too much time and strength in this way. Rather, apply yourself with all your might to an earnest pursuit after renewed experience, new light and new lively acts of faith and love. One new discovery of the glory of Christ's face will do more toward scattering clouds of darkness in one minute, than examining the best past experiences through a whole year. (Written by Jonathan Edwards to Deborah Hatheway of Connecticut, 18, who came to Christ during the first Great Awakening.)
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
My chains are gone
I've been set free
(John Newton, "Amazing Grace", 1779)
Then I saw Your face
One glimpse of Your face, it's a whole new game
Then I saw Your face, and I was changed forever
Yours forever now
Change, rearranged 'cause I couldn't maintain
The heart it took to even stay in the game
One look in Your eyes even I realized
A fellow like me had been put down to size
To be built up in a better way, Your way
Yahweh ain't about to fade
Bombastic, ain't no way to mask it
I saw Your face, and my old way's blasted
I'm Yours forever now
(TobyMac, "Changed Forever", 2010)
And now look at us all out of Eden,
Wearing designer fig leaves by Louis Vuitton
Make-believing
But God sees through my foolish pride,
And how I'm weak like Adam, another victim of Lucifer's lies
But then, in steps Jesus...
They said you came for the lame,
I'm the lamest
I made a mess, but you say you'll erase it,
I'll take it...
They say you came for the lame,
I'm the lamest
I broke my life, but you say you'll replace it,
I'll take it.
(Lecrae, "Just Like You", 2010)
Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 16:16-17 ESV)
"Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world." (John 17:24 ESV)
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.
Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.
(Dallan Forgaill, 8th Century)
“One of the greatest privileges of believers, both in this world and unto eternity, consists in their beholding the glory of Christ. This, therefore, Christ desires for them in this solemn intercession [John 17:24], as the complement of all his other requests in their behalf: ‘That they may behold my glory’… ‘that they may see, view, behold, or contemplate my glory.’ This glorious privilege is not only for the heavenly state, but also for believers living in this world.” (John Owen, Meditation on the Glory of Christ, 1684)
"There is such a thing as a spiritual and divine light immediately imparted to the soul by God, of a different nature from any that is obtained by natural means... it may be thus described: a true sense of the divine excellency [beauty] of the things revealed in the word of God, and a conviction of the truth and reality of them." (Jonathan Edwards, "A Divine and Supernatural Light", 1734)
If at any time you fall into doubts about the state of your soul, in dark and dull frames of mind, it is proper to review your past experience. But do not consume too much time and strength in this way. Rather, apply yourself with all your might to an earnest pursuit after renewed experience, new light and new lively acts of faith and love. One new discovery of the glory of Christ's face will do more toward scattering clouds of darkness in one minute, than examining the best past experiences through a whole year. (Written by Jonathan Edwards to Deborah Hatheway of Connecticut, 18, who came to Christ during the first Great Awakening.)
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
My chains are gone
I've been set free
Then I saw Your face
One glimpse of Your face, it's a whole new game
Then I saw Your face, and I was changed forever
Yours forever now
Change, rearranged 'cause I couldn't maintain
The heart it took to even stay in the game
One look in Your eyes even I realized
A fellow like me had been put down to size
To be built up in a better way, Your way
Yahweh ain't about to fade
Bombastic, ain't no way to mask it
I saw Your face, and my old way's blasted
I'm Yours forever now
(TobyMac, "Changed Forever", 2010)
And now look at us all out of Eden,
Wearing designer fig leaves by Louis Vuitton
Make-believing
But God sees through my foolish pride,
And how I'm weak like Adam, another victim of Lucifer's lies
But then, in steps Jesus...
They said you came for the lame,
I'm the lamest
I made a mess, but you say you'll erase it,
I'll take it...
They say you came for the lame,
I'm the lamest
I broke my life, but you say you'll replace it,
I'll take it.
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