DISTRACTION, NUMBNESS AND THE CARES OF THIS LIFE • PART II•OUR EYES
In part one of this series we saw how our normal daily living, with the distractions and worries that come with it, can pose a serious threat to our spirituality in these Last Days, and how Jesus clearly warned us to PRAY so we could stand before the Son of Man at His coming.[1]
Today we will talk about something connected to prayer, that has a very practical application in our lives and may draw us toward God or away from Him in these Last Days. It affects us both for good and for bad, both in our prayer life and in our daily living. And that is our eyes—what we look upon, our beholding!
DESIRES AND ANXIETIES COME FROM WHAT WE BEHOLD
In Matthew, Jesus tells us that “The eye is the lamp of the body.” He says this right after warning us “not to lay up treasures on earth but in heaven,” and right before saying we “cannot serve God and money.”[2] Is there a direct connection between what we set our eyes on and what becomes our desire, attracts us, and eventually becomes our drive in life? I would contend there is!
It is no wonder marketing drives capitalism. So much money and effort is put into creating advertisement that captures the eye. The more our eyes are exposed to something, the greater the chance we will start thinking that “object” is important and that we really need it in our lives. We will eventually start actively seeking that “object”.
This is why, right after this passage, Jesus starts speaking about anxiety and instructing us to trust the Father for our earthly needs. If we don’t understand that the eye is the lamp of the body and insist on setting our eyes on material things, we will eventually be serving Mammon (even if we call ourselves Christians), and this will most certainly lead us to anxiety over material things.
This doesn’t apply only to covetous desires though. Any worry, anxiety, or preoccupation will have its root in our eyes being drawn to something that is not the Lord. If we keep looking at world news and meditating constantly on all the terrible wars and suffering around the world, this will surely be translated into anxiety about the future and preoccupation with our own security. And so we can apply this principle to any number of preoccupations that flood our minds in these modern days.
WHAT WE BEHOLD WILL SHAPE WHO WE ARE
What we behold not only affects what we desire and what we worry about, but eventually it will affect who we are. In Psalm 115 the psalmist is talking about idol worshipers. He says:
Idols are silver and gold; they have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see; they have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell; hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat.[3]
And then comes the big punch:
Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.[4]
As these people beheld their idols, admired and were in awe of their characteristics, they became like them. Studying history, we might think that different people groups made up their idols based on their own characteristics and what was important to them. There might be truth in that, but could it be that these people groups became more and more like the “gods” (read: demons) they worshiped?
HOW DO WE BEHOLD OUR INVISIBLE GOD?
I find that at this point, we are in big trouble. If we become what we behold—if what we see and keep looking at affects us so much—and at the same time our God is invisible and has forbidden us to make ANY image of Him… how can we behold the Lord and become more like Him?[5] Where should we set our eyes?
Humans are fascinated with images. From early times mankind made idols to worship. The idea of an invisible God was absurd for those who could see, touch, and carry their gods. And even now, in our times, images are exploited the most. We are conditioned from a young age to rely on fast-paced, colorful, engaging, immediate-reward imagery. Our brains resist hard work, and as a generation we are not trained to focus, to strain mentally, or to meditate deeply. So, just as during the times of idol worship, developing a relationship with an invisible God seems unattainable.
WE BEHOLD GOD THROUGH HIS WORD
Even so, He showed us a path for connecting with Him. He sent His Word. He wrote a story with beginning, middle, and end. He revealed His characteristics, His likes and dislikes, His ways through true stories played out through centuries between Him and actual men and women, in a way we can comprehend, be captivated by, meditate upon—and in doing these things… behold Him!
As we read His Word and meditate on what He has done, what He has spoken, what He has promised, we are beholding God. As we stop everything else and set our hearts on worshipping our invisible God, our spirits are beholding Him. So much is happening inside us. We are not in control of it; we may not even be aware of it… but we are being transformed into the image of Him whom we adore.
And 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. For this comes from the Lord who is Spirit.[6]
If we continue Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 6:25–34, we can see He paints a picture with words! He guides our eyes to contemplate creation (part of how God reveals Himself to us) and shows us how to grow in trust in our Father as we see His care for the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. He is showing how we can let our eyes be light, as we behold what God wants us to see and meditate on.
ENCOURAGING ONE ANOTHER TO SET OUR EYES ON GOD
Not only in reading the Bible by ourselves, but also as we talk with one another when we gather together, our purpose should be—just as Jesus did in the Sermon on the Mount—to encourage each other to turn our eyes to our Lord, to our Creator, to meditate on His wonderful works, to remember His unchanging character, and behold His glory, lest we become discouraged in these Last Days.[7]
SALVATION WILL ENTER THROUGH OUR EYES
There will be a day when salvation will be completed in us. And do you know how that will happen? Salvation will enter through our eyes!
Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.[8]
As we behold Him today—through reading the Scriptures, meditating on what He says, encouraging one another to keep looking at Him, and praying—we are being sanctified; we are being transformed more and more into His likeness. But there will be a day when that work will be completed with the full transformation, not only of our spirit and soul, but also of our bodies. And this will happen in the blink of an eye, as we behold Him at His coming! We shall be as He is when we see Him!
Let us guard our eyes for that day!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
How has this generation been attacked more than before in what we are exposed to, in what we see?
How can we guard our eyes in this day and age?
How can we encourage one another in beholding the Lord?
Susana serves with her husband and children in the Muslim world.