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Eyes of Faith
Introduction: Will you prayerfully ask the Lord to give you eyes of faith to see life and people as He sees them?
What can we learn from Scripture when it comes to seeing the unseen reality of our world? We have much to learn as we function in a world where faith is often despised and discounted.
"Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them." And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
Elisha was surrounded by an entire army. The Aramean king was upset because Elisha was spoiling his plans and he surrounded the town of
Right now there are thousands of conversations and music and pictures floating through the air. If you have the right antennae and the right receiver, you will see thousands of programs piped in from satellites hanging over our heads right now. There are cellular phones, and CB radios, and on and on ... . There are on a different wave length than what the human senses can pick up.
The prophet asked God to open the eyes of this servant to see things as they really were! What a difference it made! It is only God who can open our eyes that we may truly see!
Do I believe this? Do I really want to see things with eternal glasses? Do I really desire to see things as God sees them? Can I even comprehend what it must have been like for this servant of Elisha to see God's horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha? Elisha couldn't do it for his servant! It took God and God alone to open the eyes. My prayer is that God will do that very thing for us.
The Scripture promises in Psalm 34:7 
, "The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them."
Key idea: Only God can allow you to have eyes of faith. Ask and you will receive!
Our natural tendency is to see things from the human perspective. Scripture makes it clear that God desires that we see things from a spiritual perspective.
When the two blind men asked to be healed, MAT 9:29 Then he touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you";
Your ability to see things as God desires is directly related to your faith! That's why I choose to use the phrase, "The eyes of faith".
Eyes of Faith see things as they really are. This is spiritual "insight". Insight is "The capacity to discern the true nature of a situation; penetration." 1 Samuel 16:7 
"The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
Man sees things on the outside, God is able to see straight through to the hidden motives of the heart! He has laser beam vision. Man is often impressed with fashion and dress and pomp and circumstance. That does not phase God. He sees what really matters!
VERY IMPORTANT: Without eyes of faith, we live as enemies of the cross of Christ! This is not just a nice suggestion for Christians.
Philippians 3:18-21 For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
Again in Colossians Paul speaks to the importance of getting our eyes off earthly pursuits.
Colossians 3:1-2 - "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."
God's desire is that every Christian experience the reality of having eyes of faith.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
There are many things you can do without eyes of faith, but there is one thing that is impossible to do without the eyes of faith, and that is "please God". Isaiah speaks in judgment of those who see physically but never see with the eyes of faith! Their hearts are calloused!
Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" 9 He said, "Go and tell this people: "'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' 10 Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed."
God cannot make you see if you are unwilling. Satan wants nothing better than to see you blinded from the things that matter most.
2 Corinthians 4:3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
We need to see things from God perspective, and be like the me of Issachar:
1 Chronicles 12:32 men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what
Do you understand the times and understand what we need to do? Do you have the heavenly perspective?
This is spiritual insight!
Not only do we need spiritual insight to see what is going on below the surface, we need spiritual foresight to see things beyond the boundaries of time.
Eyes of Faith Have Eternal Foresight
Defined: fore sight noun. 1. The act or ability to foresee. 2. The act of looking forward. 3. Concern or prudence with respect to the future.
Myopia is a human failing!! This is nearsightedness. Opposite of foresight. It is seeing only self! God desires that you and I get the focus off of ourselves and onto Jesus!
Hebrews 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. 4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
Why was Jesus able to endure the cross and scorn its shame? He focused on the joy set before Him!
What was the joy that was set before Him? The glory of dwelling in the presence of the Father!
If you and I are going to have "eyes of faith", we need to understand what we have to look forward to...
Like a man of Issachar, knowing the times, what must you do? What is God doing in your life by faith? How are you going to have to trust God through this time in your life?
How do you think Satan might tempt you to walk by sight and not by faith?
Application:
What are you faced with in life that you need the eyes of faith?