Seeing What we Want to See

Then he took the Twelve aside and told them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. Everything that is written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. For he will be handed over to the Gentiles, and he will be mocked, insulted, spit on; and after they flog him, they will kill him, and he will rise on the third day.”

They understood none of these things. The meaning of the saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said. Luke 18:31-3 (CSB)

The brain has a fascinating limit to how much it can process. While it is more biological than a computer and can adjust, it has working memory capacity, which limits how much brains can process data input. I’ll include a GIF as the image for this post (you might have to go to the website to see it) that shows off this interesting phenomenon, described as the troxler effect. If you stare the cross in the middle of the photo for longer than a minute, you will see what your brain does. In order to process the rapid image changes, the brain filters out data that it determines irrelevant and actually fills in the space with what it believes should be there. Similar limits happen every day. In order to operate in a world that overstimulates us, our brain has to take shortcuts regularly to survive. It means it assumes things and fills in the blank automatically. 

The brain does the same thing for thoughts or ideas. It comes up with an understanding of reality and intentionally shortcuts those things that disrupt the construct it has created. It would be too overwhelming for our cognition if we had to constantly adjust for the variables that conflict with its overwhelming determined course. We’d never be able to walk or make a decision! Not only that, but it’s why we fall so easily into ideological camps, and have such a hard time seeing outside these camps. It’s why we categorize and simplify to reduce the overall burden. The brain makes assumptions and ignores things which contradict those assumptions. Beyond ignore, it can actually create the illusion that there is coherency when there isn’t, especially by adding or taking away what it assumes is noise. The visual representation can be seen in the effect of the image posted. The brain just simply makes up what it thinks it should see as it focuses on simplifying for the sake of comprehension. 

We call this confirmation bias and cognitive dissonance. We see what we think we should see, and we adjust reality to make it fit. This quirky characteristic of the brain is one of the reasons I have no problem accepting miracles. Firstly, the fact that they are seen indicates something so extraordinarily different that it shocks the brain into seeing it (just look at some of the description of angels and God in the Old Testament). Secondly, Jesus walking through a wall, or suddenly appearing, or the coming of the Holy Spirit is the brain’s attempt to process a reality that is well beyond’s it’s comprehension or understanding. It’s going to sound weird or differently described, because the disciples literally couldn’t cognitively process what was happening fully. They didn’t have the ability.  

The bad side of this, like our ideological camps, is that once we think something to be true, short of shock, it takes a lot to convince us we’re wrong. And that’s where we clearly find ourselves. The disciples didn’t want to be convinced that Jesus was going to die, and this is the third time he is telling them. Despite all the miracles, despite the teaching, despite the repeated warnings, the text says, they still didn’t get it. They still wanted him to be a military hero who was coming to kick Rome out of Israel. 

In our own lives, being able to hear and understand the Lord is hard. Super hard. In fact, one of the few ways he ever gets through is through our emotional and physical suffering (Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:6-7). It is regularly only through the shock of pain or loss that we are finally able to hear what he is saying. Another, it turns out, is relationship. Deep, deep relationships. It is incredibly important to surround ourselves with others who are listening and following after Jesus and seeking him. It’s one of the reasons the church believes marriages are sacramental. The goal of a spouse isn’t merely companionship, but spiritual partnership. 

The good news is that God is faithful. He knows this about us. Look for him in the suffering, and look for him in the relationships he sends us. Attune yourself to those in your life who love Jesus, and thank God for bringing them there.