“For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,
and as a root out of a dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; and when
we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him.” Isaiah
53:2
Jesus is seen by
fallen mankind as offering nothing that would (to
them) make Him desirable. The beauty of Jesus is therefore within,
and is recognized only by spiritual perception through “regeneration” and Holy Spirit “enabling.”
The “tree of knowledge” relates to our “earthly” life that results from Adam’s
transgression in which he chose to become independent
from God. The fruit of this tree appears to us as being very pleasant to
our eyes, and desirable as food.
By divine intent,
the way of the flesh is appealing to every aspect of the fallen human makeup,
whereas spirituality is seemingly uninviting. It would seem that
spirituality should have been made attractive, and sin ugly. Therefore,
we might ask, “Lord, why did you make our
self-life attractive, rather than our spirituality?”
There is an
answer. This high calling of spirituality can be gained only by making
the right choices. And, the Lord has not made this easy.
For many are called, but few are chosen.” Matthew
22:14
Or, “Few will pay the price in order to be chosen.”
By divine design,
there is a price to our being chosen by
the Lord. Therefore, the Lord placed the beauty within, which can be seen
only by spiritual perception, and given only to those who truly desire Him (those who pressed upon Jesus to hear the Word).
Outwardly, the
tabernacle in the wilderness was covered with ugly badger skins, but within, it had a beautiful royal blue covering
and the Lord’s Shekinah presence. It contained a wondrous glory which
cannot be described, only experienced.
“But from the days of John the Baptist until now, the
kingdom of the heaven is taken by violence, and the violent seize on it.”
Matthew 11:12 Darby
By divine
arrangement, it takes a determined effort to press through to behold the beauty
of the Lord. Few will push past the hindrances to gain this prize.
Paul said:
“I press toward the mark for
the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians
3:14
This prize is not
heaven, which is included in our redemption. Rather, the prize is being
seated with Jesus in His throne, experiencing an active, cooperative
relationship with Him (as a son), while
we maintain our times of fellowship and communion with Him (as His bride).
