December 5th, 2023
Have you ever had a song stuck in your head? I’ll often have one I can’t escape. I’ll sing it from morning to evening and then it’ll be the soundtrack of dreams, until I never want to hear that song again. This week, I haven’t had a song I can’t get away from, but a prayer. Over and over again, I’ve asked God to open eyes to see. It has been my cry for myself and others, and I want to share what’s been on my heart about it from God’s word!
Spiritual “blindness” is a metaphor used throughout the word of God for the state of a heart that’s ignorant to truth. See, blindness isn’t reality, but a person’s perception of it. When a person is blind, they perceive that they are in darkness, when they aren’t. Though their eyes are unable to receive the signals that show them the world around them, it doesn’t make the world any less real. As 1 John 2:11 says,
“Whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”
The Bible also teaches about a “veil” over the mind of the unbeliever, keeping them from seeing truth. Paul compares this veil to the one that Moses used to cover his face when it shone after being in the glory of God on Mount Sinai. 2 Corinthians 3:12-15 says,
“Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.”
When one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. He goes on a few verses later saying,
“If our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:3-6)
There is so much truth in this scripture, but I want to point out just a couple of keys. First, the gospel is veiled, or concealed, from unbelievers. Second, it’s Jesus Himself that removes that veil. The verse says, “only through Christ is it taken away.” It’s the light of Jesus’ face, shining in the heart of an unbeliever, that removes the veil!
As believers, we should always ensure that our own spiritual vision is clear so we can clearly shine His light to others! Paul was physically blind after he encountered the glory of God on the road to Damascus. After 3 days, the Bible tells us that Ananias prayed for him and “scales” fell from his eyes (Acts 9:17-19). When those scales were removed, he regained his physical sight and I believe this paralleled his spiritual eyes being opened!
This week, as I was praying for eyes to be opened, I was thinking about the power of perspective. Just as blindness isn’t reality, but something preventing you from perceiving reality, so it is with everything that keeps us from seeing God clearly. There is no greater being in existence. There is nothing more powerful than He is. There is no brighter light in the universe. He Himself is truth. How is it then, that anyone could be blinded to His glory? It’s all about perspective.
In a solar eclipse, the moon obscures the sun from our view causing a shadow of darkness in its path. I’ve only seen one solar eclipse in my life, and it was unnerving as the moon passed in front of the sun and darkness fell in the middle of the day. However, it only lasted for a moment, because a solar eclipse only occurs when the moon perfectly lines up to block the sun from a very small portion of the earth. Truly, a solar “eclipse” just means you are sitting in the shadow of the moon for a moment. The sun is by no means eclipsed, but only blocked from your sight! The sun is 400 times as large as the moon and could not be eclipsed by it. It only appears that way because of the moon’s position, temporarily blocking the light from reaching your eyes.
It's exactly the same way with anything that keeps us from seeing truth clearly. It may seem dark, but the reality is that nothing can eclipse the light of heaven. You may be sitting in the shadow of something that seems big, but in comparison to the glory of God, it’s actually infinitely smaller. You may be temporarily blinded, but being in darkness doesn’t change the light or goodness of God. The answer is so simple and it’s just to have the veil removed! God longs to remove everything that blocks us from living in His light.
Jesus told a parable along these lines in Luke 6:41-42 saying,
“Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye.”
Have you ever had a speck of something stuck in your eye? When it floats in front of your line of vision, it looks huge, because it’s so close, but it’s actually tiny. 2 Peter 1:9 says,
“For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.”
Nearsightedness means we can only see what’s right in front of us. We can become so spiritually nearsighted that we can’t see past the speck or log in our eye. We can become so nearsighted that we see a “moon” blocking the “sun.” However, spiritual sight is easily restored by the truth of His Word! Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:16-19 is my prayer for us this week. He said,
“I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe.”
It's as simple as having the eyes of our hearts enlightened to the reality of Him! Our perception never changes truth. Our doubt or unbelief doesn’t alter who He is. He’s called us to unbounded hope. There is a glorious inheritance for His people. His great power can’t be measured for those He loves. However, we have to have our eyes enlightened to receive those truths! When the veil is removed and there is nothing blocking our sight, we will see the light of heaven everywhere we go. That light is in us. Darkness isn’t reality, but just a shadow of something insignificant keeping us from seeing His glory. If we shift our perception, turning to Him in every area, nothing can separate us from His truth! In Him, there is no veil between us and His glory. We can come near to the throne of grace! As it says in2 Corinthians 3:17-18,
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another!”
Spiritual “blindness” is a metaphor used throughout the word of God for the state of a heart that’s ignorant to truth. See, blindness isn’t reality, but a person’s perception of it. When a person is blind, they perceive that they are in darkness, when they aren’t. Though their eyes are unable to receive the signals that show them the world around them, it doesn’t make the world any less real. As 1 John 2:11 says,
“Whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”
The Bible also teaches about a “veil” over the mind of the unbeliever, keeping them from seeing truth. Paul compares this veil to the one that Moses used to cover his face when it shone after being in the glory of God on Mount Sinai. 2 Corinthians 3:12-15 says,
“Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.”
When one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. He goes on a few verses later saying,
“If our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:3-6)
There is so much truth in this scripture, but I want to point out just a couple of keys. First, the gospel is veiled, or concealed, from unbelievers. Second, it’s Jesus Himself that removes that veil. The verse says, “only through Christ is it taken away.” It’s the light of Jesus’ face, shining in the heart of an unbeliever, that removes the veil!
As believers, we should always ensure that our own spiritual vision is clear so we can clearly shine His light to others! Paul was physically blind after he encountered the glory of God on the road to Damascus. After 3 days, the Bible tells us that Ananias prayed for him and “scales” fell from his eyes (Acts 9:17-19). When those scales were removed, he regained his physical sight and I believe this paralleled his spiritual eyes being opened!
This week, as I was praying for eyes to be opened, I was thinking about the power of perspective. Just as blindness isn’t reality, but something preventing you from perceiving reality, so it is with everything that keeps us from seeing God clearly. There is no greater being in existence. There is nothing more powerful than He is. There is no brighter light in the universe. He Himself is truth. How is it then, that anyone could be blinded to His glory? It’s all about perspective.
In a solar eclipse, the moon obscures the sun from our view causing a shadow of darkness in its path. I’ve only seen one solar eclipse in my life, and it was unnerving as the moon passed in front of the sun and darkness fell in the middle of the day. However, it only lasted for a moment, because a solar eclipse only occurs when the moon perfectly lines up to block the sun from a very small portion of the earth. Truly, a solar “eclipse” just means you are sitting in the shadow of the moon for a moment. The sun is by no means eclipsed, but only blocked from your sight! The sun is 400 times as large as the moon and could not be eclipsed by it. It only appears that way because of the moon’s position, temporarily blocking the light from reaching your eyes.
It's exactly the same way with anything that keeps us from seeing truth clearly. It may seem dark, but the reality is that nothing can eclipse the light of heaven. You may be sitting in the shadow of something that seems big, but in comparison to the glory of God, it’s actually infinitely smaller. You may be temporarily blinded, but being in darkness doesn’t change the light or goodness of God. The answer is so simple and it’s just to have the veil removed! God longs to remove everything that blocks us from living in His light.
Jesus told a parable along these lines in Luke 6:41-42 saying,
“Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye.”
Have you ever had a speck of something stuck in your eye? When it floats in front of your line of vision, it looks huge, because it’s so close, but it’s actually tiny. 2 Peter 1:9 says,
“For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.”
Nearsightedness means we can only see what’s right in front of us. We can become so spiritually nearsighted that we can’t see past the speck or log in our eye. We can become so nearsighted that we see a “moon” blocking the “sun.” However, spiritual sight is easily restored by the truth of His Word! Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:16-19 is my prayer for us this week. He said,
“I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe.”
It's as simple as having the eyes of our hearts enlightened to the reality of Him! Our perception never changes truth. Our doubt or unbelief doesn’t alter who He is. He’s called us to unbounded hope. There is a glorious inheritance for His people. His great power can’t be measured for those He loves. However, we have to have our eyes enlightened to receive those truths! When the veil is removed and there is nothing blocking our sight, we will see the light of heaven everywhere we go. That light is in us. Darkness isn’t reality, but just a shadow of something insignificant keeping us from seeing His glory. If we shift our perception, turning to Him in every area, nothing can separate us from His truth! In Him, there is no veil between us and His glory. We can come near to the throne of grace! As it says in2 Corinthians 3:17-18,
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another!”
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