November 2001

Part Thirty-eight

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory (C)

“Jesus asked the blind man, ‘What is it that you want from Me?” The man said, ‘Lord, I want to receive my sight!” Jesus said, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has saved you! And immediately the man received his sight and followed Jesus glorifying God!! When all the people saw this they praised God!” (Lk 18:35-43)

     People love to speculate on the three wishes they would ask the genie of Aladdin’s Lamp; and usually money, fame, romance, and perfect health top the list. In the above verse, a blind man is asked what he would like to receive from the Son of God and he asked only “to receive his sight”! Without hesitation or ceremony, the Lord responded, “Receive your sight!” But that wasn’t all; He went on to explain how that miracle came about. Note He did not say “Your faith has healed you”, but “Your faith has saved you!” Jesus equates healing of blindness with salvation! The process is: one blind man’s faith asks for renewed sight which produces immediate healing and salvation which causes him to follow Christ and glorify God; which results in other people praising God! What a wonderful chain reaction: from faith to sight to immediate healing to salvation, to following and glorifying God- and all who witness this miracle praise God!
      We never know who may be watching us as we go about our daily lives! When people learn someone who was spiritually “blind” has “received his sight” and sees heavenly things, they are quite apt to observe them more closely than we even suspect! In the present dark days, people are desperately looking for any insight into what events may unfold next. That is why fearful folks are flocking to the soothsayers and prognosticators of this world. Their hysteria has broken down all religious and social barriers that once prohibited, or at least deterred, public promotion of astrology, palm reading and psychic babble. Not only that, but our children are openly being fed a diet of sorcery and satanism through some rock music, and video games like dungeons and dragons, and the horrific “Harry Potter” series of books. Just the preview of a newly released movie based on this damnable series are enough to make a spiritually-sighted person cover their eyes and run away!
      Yet droves of innocent children are ingesting this corruption- not only without restraint, but with full support and sanction of parents and teachers alike! In many schools this book is actually part of the recommended reading! This is an important sign of our times that cannot be ignored! Surely God is not disregarded it! He has already set in motion His corrective Judgments!

“He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored!
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible, swift sword!
H I S....T R U T H.....I S.....M A R C H I N G....O N!!

      Consider Pr 29:18 that says, “Where there is no (spiritual) vision, the people PERISH!” Heb 6544 defines perish: “being made NAKED” (as in the sight of God)! None can stand before Jehovah without his sin nature being clothed in a Garment of Salvation or Robe of Righteousness! Such garments provide us with “eagle-eyes” that discern good and evil in ourselves and others. This anointed vision comes only from God as we are “made alive in Christ”! Then after our faith has healed and clothed us, we are able to “Open blind eyes” (Isa 42:7) of others!
      The veil of unbelief covering men’s heart makes them perceive God’s Royal Law of Love as a taskmaster that demands the impossible! With the vile image of the human condition all around (especially in our mirror); God’s Law tells mankind to “LOVE your neighbor as yourself”! But He knows that, without Christ, the only love we can offer either to our neighbor, or to ourselves, is limited, conditional and selfish! Through darkened eyes men appear as lowly earthbound creatures; but God says, “LOOK UP! LIFT UP YOUR HEAD! YOUR REDEMPTION DRAWS NEAR!” (Lu 21:28) He says this because He knows that “CHRIST IS THE HEAD OF EVERY MAN!” (1 Co 11:3) But that sovereign “Head” must be extremely heavy with all the thoughts of Holiness contained in the Eternal Mind of God! Who could lift up such a weighty thing? David said, “YOU, O Lord, are a Shield about me, and You are my Glory, and also the LIFTER OF MY HEAD!” (Ps 3:3) Only Christ, our Shield and Glory, can lift up His own Anointed “Headship” in our lives which enables us to “SEE” the “Redemption of the Lord”! How does that “lifting” take place? Jas 4:10 says, “HUMBLE YOURSELF in the sight of the Lord; and HE WILL LIFT YOU UP!”
       Isa 40:26 says, “Lift up your eyes (from the natural way of viewing things) and SEE (with spiritual eyes)”; and Lam 3:41 adds, “Let us lift up our hearts with hands to God in heaven!” But let us also beware our hearts being lifted up in pride as in Lk 18:9-14.

           “Directing His Words to certain ones who trusted in themselves, who believed they were righteous and so they despised other sinners, Jesus spoke this parable, ‘There were 2 men, a Pharisee and a publican, who went up to the temple to pray. The Pharisee stood (on the steps) and prayed loudly to himself, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men who are extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this publican here! I fast twice a week and I give a tenth of all that I possess. Now the publican (tax collector) stood a distance from the temple (feeling too unworthy to approach the House of God) and would not lift up even his eyes to heaven, but rather he struck his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner!’
        I tell you, this man went down to his house more justified than the other: for he that exalts himself will be abased; and he that humbles himself will be exalted!”

Jesus Christ, the Last spiritual Adam, the Lord from Heaven, said of the first natural Adam who is made of the earth, “IF I BE LIFTED UP FROM THE EARTH (signifying the way He would die- to self) I WILL DRAW A-L-L MEN TO ME!” This is the Good News! Hallelujah!

[TO BE CONTINUED]

Notice: this ministry will be in LONDON, ENGLAND the week of Dec 9-16

[except 2 one-day trips to Dublin, Ireland and Paris, France]. Any Kingdom group interested in hosting a meeting must please contact us as soon as possible by email: Sonrise1@aol.com, or telephone: 702-647-2131. Our itinerary is filling up quickly.

[P.S. We are not in need of lodgings as all our accommodations are prearranged.]