_FIRST-HAND KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST_
"_Last of all He was seen of me also._"
--1 CORINTHIANS xv. 1-11.
And by that vision Saul of Tarsus was transformed. And so, by the ministry
of a risen Lord we have received the gift of a transfigured Paul. The
resurrection glory fell upon him, and he was glorified. In that
superlative light he discovered his sin, his error, his need, but he also
found the dynamic of the immortal hope.
"Seen of me also!" Can I, too, calmly and confidently claim the
experience? Or am I altogether depending upon another man's sight, and are
my own eyes unillumined? In these realms the witness of "hear-says" counts
for nothing; he only speaks with arresting power who has "seen for
himself." "Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee
of Me?" That is the question which is asked, not only by the Master, but
by all who hear us tell the story of the risen Lord. "Has He been seen of
thee also?"
My Saviour, I humbly pray Thee to give me first-hand knowledge of Thee.
Let me be a witness who can say, "I know that my Redeemer liveth!" Before
all the doubts and hesitancies of man enable me to answer, "Have I not
seen Jesus Christ our Lord?"