Three Verses

"One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple."  Psalm 27:4

 “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”  John 9:25

"Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,  I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 3:13-14

When doing some reading this week I ran into an article in an older publication that used the above three Bible texts together.  At first glance, my thoughts led me to believe these are all three good, solid verses of Bible truth, but they really have nothing to do with each other.  That is, until we take another look and notice each of the verses has these words, "one thing."   So let's see if there is something here for us.  "One thing I ask,"  "One thing I know,"  and  "One thing I do."

The desire of the Psalmist and the only thing he was asking for and seeking, was to meet God and come to know God in his temple.  He wanted to actually dwell in the place where God was. He was asking for the chance to worship God while experiencing the reality of God's presence.  Jesus came along to let us know God is not going to be isolated to a temple, or any other place, he is going to take up residence in our hearts.  Our assembly on Sunday is a dynamic place and time to seek and find God, and the association of other Christians, but even more intimate than that is the worship and honor we can come to know with God as we allow him to take up residence inside us.

The second of the verses above is from the story of a blind man who had his sight given to him in one of the miracles of Jesus. The Pharisees and other critics noticed the man could see and questioned him about the authority of his healer. The man simply told them the only thing he knew was that he was blind but now he could see.  It's like the comparison of our lives before we came to Jesus, with the new life he gives.  One thing we can know, at one time we were spiritually blind, but now we can see.

Then Paul brings us the final text by telling us the one thing he is going to do is to forget the past, and eagerly strain for the future as he strives to win the prize that is before him.  Our past, too, is behind us. Whatever the past consists of, can all be forgiven and forgotten. That places us in a position to only look ahead to a life of service and devotion to God and share in the eternal inheritance which God promises. 

Come to think of it, those three verses which had nothing to do with each other, give us a better picture of having everything to do with us. Think for a moment how you would describe the one thing you desire, the one thing you know, and the one thing you will do.  These three verses, written by three different biblical writers, can provide the answers for your life questions. 

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