Through the Glass

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. (1 Corinthians 13:12)

Paul continued his thought from the preceding verses and gave us one of the most honest statements in all of Scripture about the condition of the believer this side of eternity. "For now we see through a glass, darkly." Think about a car with dark-tinted windows. Police officers have a real problem with heavily tinted windows, and it is not hard to understand why. They can see the car. They can see there is a person inside. They can make out a shape, a form, a silhouette. But they cannot see clearly enough to know what that person is holding. They cannot tell if there is a weapon. That lack of clarity is dangerous, and it is exactly why certain states do not allow windows with tints beyond a certain level.

Visibility matters. That is precisely the picture Paul was painting here. We are not driving blind. We can see. We have some light, some understanding, and some sense of what God is doing. But what we are seeing is coming through tinted glass. The form is there, but the full details are not. You know enough to move. You know enough to trust. But you do not yet have the unobstructed view. Then Paul continued his thought by writing, "but then face to face." A day is coming when the tint comes off entirely.

When you stand before God, there will be no obstruction, no partial picture, and no wondering what is beyond what you can make out. You will see clearly because you will be in His presence without the limitations of this earthly life between you and Him. 

Paul reached back to that word meros, meaning a piece, or portion, which he used in verse 9: "Now I know in part." God knows you completely right now—every detail, every corner, every motive, every wound. Nothing about you is hidden from Him. And one day, that same quality of knowledge—full, complete, and unobstructed—will be yours toward Him. Until that day, the assignment is to walk faithfully with what you can see. The tinted glass does not excuse you from moving. It just means you walk by faith and not by sight, trusting the One who already sees everything clearly, even when you cannot.

Practical Application

What part of your life is frustrated because you cannot see the full picture? Bring that frustration to God today. Thank Him that He sees completely even when you do not, and ask Him for the grace to trust what you cannot yet fully see.

Numbers 2:8; 2 Corinthians 5:7