ENCAPSULATE!
MERRY MONDAY! BY PARRIS BAILEY
en·cap·su·late /enˈkaps(y)əˌlāt/ Enclose (something) in or as if in a capsule.
“For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” I Cor.13:12
The word “darkly” in Greek means an enigma or ambiguous kind of life, or in other words when we can’t seem to “get the real picture” and our life seems like a riddle. The word encapsulate comes to mind when we feel as if we are closed in and become fixated on a certain event or weakness in our life. Or we can use the word encapsulate to become fixated on a certain event in time that literally launches us into a new level spiritually. In that case we have found ourselves with an enigma, looking through the eyeglass of our lives seeing darkly but really looking into the face of God.
Here are some interesting thoughts from the Interpreter Bible- “We will be able to dispense with interferences based on the effect and consequences of everyday life. Soon we will be living in perfect understanding and perfect knowledge of God in his presence. All limitations will be gone forever. Wars, suffering, famine, death and catastrophe all cast their shadows over our faith. Through the strange and varied pageant of human history man seeks for God. There is therefore a place for faith and hope, both of them enriched as they are illumined by the spirit of love in the individual and the church. It bids Christians believe that they are not aliens in the world, whose main and urgent purpose is to pass through and out of it until they reach the eternal heaven of light and peace and security. Christians are here to stay, to endure, to fight and to triumph, until all the ambiguity of the darkness is dissipated forever by the light and the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. We are to holdfast our imperfect faith. Let us be grateful for the dim reflections. We can celebrate a faith, though aware of its imperfection, which holds within it the inspiration of the highest service and the promise of fullness of life and knowledge and love to come. “Now I know in part, then I shall understand fully”.
It is way too soon to “call it” on your life. You couldn’t possibly have gotten the “full picture” on what God has for you. Sometimes our faith becomes dim or filled with shadows because our “looking glass” is earthy. He will come face to to face with you and will sort out your jumbled upside down life putting all your situations into a precious harmony of melodious music. Yes, we all need to become encapsulated with his presence and start living out our lives in the full enigma of his plan! Now that is some good preaching!