January 3

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw everyone to Myself. — John 12:32 BSB

Wherever Jesus is graciously and personally revealed to the soul, made known by any sweet revelation of His glorious person, atoning blood, and finished work, a secret yet sacred power draws us to Him, and every grace of the Spirit flows toward Him as its center of attraction. Jeremiah describes the saints of God as coming and singing in the heights of Zion, flowing together to the goodness of the Lord (Jeremiah 31:12). Isaiah speaks to the church, “Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart shall tremble and be enlarged” (Isaiah 60:5).

This view of Christ by faith is what Paul speaks of to the Galatians when he says Jesus was clearly portrayed before their eyes (Galatians 3:1). As He is set before our eyes, He becomes the object of our faith to gaze upon (“Look to me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth”), the “altogether lovely” one, to whom our love flows, and the intercessor within the veil in whom our hope is anchored. As the Lord is revealed to the soul by the power of God, His glorious person is shown to our spiritual understanding, His blood and righteousness to our conscience, and His suitability to all our needs and woes is personally experienced. The Holy Spirit stirs up a living faith, and through this faith, we look to Him, lay hold of Him, and He becomes precious to all who believe in His name.