OPEN YOUR EYES (Part 1-4)
OPEN YOUR EYES (Part 1)
Let the light in
Luke 11:34-36
A good eye - fills you with light
- Clear and focused
- Generous and Kind
A bad eye - fills you with darkness
- Blurred and distorted
- Jealous and stingy
When does your light, become darkness?
- When you have faulty knowledge
- When you only see the negative
- When you are always confused
- When you fail to see your mistakes
- When you reject God’s light
“The most serious mistakes are not being made as a result of wrong answers. The truly dangerous thing is asking the wrong questions.”
Peter Drucker
Men, Ideas & Politics
Mark 8:22-26
- Totally Blind - led by others
- Partial sight - perceives wrongly
- Clear vision - sees perfectly
Lessons
- Faulty vision leads to faulty life
- The way you see things determines your attitude
- The first view is not always the right view
- God is able to change our view
“Only the wisest and stupidest of men never change."
Confucius
How to let the light in
John 9:39-41
- Admit your blindness and short-sightedness
- Allow God to re-direct your life
- Accept God’s touch with humility and faith
- Actively pursue divine perfection in your outlook on life
Open your Eyes (Part 2)
There’s water in the desert
GENESIS 21:14-19
- Used and dumped by people she loved
- A single mother without adequate resources
- Left to survive in a dangerous world
- About to lose her child in the desert
Hagar’s efforts
- She provided safety for her child
- She stayed close to the child
- She prayed for God to intervene in the life of her child
"God is obliged to respond when we call on Him to provide for the dream He has given us"
“WHAT AILS YOU?”
- Fear not
- Arise
- Lift up the child
“Don’t Allow The Desert To Kill Your Dreams.”
Why couldn’t Hagar see the well?
- Blinded by bitterness against those who wronged her
- Blinded by the sight of the vast desert all around her
- Blinded by her dried up resources
- Blinded by her fear of losing her child
To see the wells around you…
- Look beyond your pain and bitterness
- Look beyond the harsh environment around you
- Look beyond your limited resources around you
- Look up to God’s promises and His faithfulness
OPEN YOUR EYES (Part 3)
There are Angels all around
Hebrews 11:3
- There is a Spirit realm as well as a Physical realm
- The Spirit realm created and sustains the Physical realm
- The Spirit realm functions parallel to the Physical realm
- Beyond the curtain of the Physical realm, is the Spiritual realm
What are angels?
Psalm 104:1-4
Supernatural beings who act on the instructions of God and execute His will in both the spiritual and natural realms
The Ministry of Angels
Psalm 103:19-21
- Communicate the will of God
- Minister to the needs of believers
- Deliver God’s people from harm
- Provide guidance for God’s people
- Wage war on behalf of believers
1. The angels of God surround us
Psalm 34:7-8; 2 Kings 6:15-17
- They encamp around the righteous
- They are more in number than our enemies
- They stand for the cause of the righteous
- They are present whether we see them or not
2. The angels of God deliver us from harm
Acts 12:5-11;
- They can step into our situations
- They can change any atmosphere we find ourselves in
- They can bring guidance into our lives
- They can move obstructions out of our way
3. The angels of God minister to us
Luke 22:41-44; 1 Kings 19:4-6
- They minister words of encouragement from God
- They help us to go through difficult situations in life
- They minister spiritual and physical strength
- They help us pursue the purpose of God for our lives
Hebrews 13:2
Do not forget to entertain strangers for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels
OPEN YOUR EYES (Part 4)
Discover the treasure within
2 Corinthians 4:3-9
Satan’s work God’s work
Blinds our minds Commands light out of darkness
Stops us from believing Shines His light in our hearts
Keeps us from God’s light Reveals His Glory in us
The Treasure
- God’s light that pushes away all darkness
- God’s power that creates things out of nothing
- God’s wisdom that designs beauty out of chaos
- God’s love that saves from sin and condemnation
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels”
Why is the treasure in earthen vessels?
- The power does not belong to us
- The glory cannot be ascribed to us
- God is always present to help us
- We have to always depend on Him
Earthen vessel Treasure within
Hard-pressed Not crushed
Perplexed Not in despair
Persecuted Not forsaken
Struck down Not destroyed
2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Wrong focus
- The Outward man: perishing
- The things we see: temporary
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Makes our afflictions heavy and burdensome
Right focus
- The Inward man: renewed
- Things which are not seen: eternal
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Makes our afflictions light and glorious
‘But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us’
2 Corinthians 4:7
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