Have you ever woken in the middle of the night? The bedroom is dark. You are engulfed in a heaviness. Nothing is clear. At first you struggle to see, but as your eyes begin to adjust to the dim atmosphere you soon begin to distinguish the outline of familiar objects. Black has become gray. The gray doesn't feel as ominous. Gray is comfortable, so you rest in its surroundings.
Gray is a frightening colour. It can lead us to accept the unacceptable and tolerate the intolerable. It gives the distorted view of comfort, shading truth. We settle into living with the assumption we can see when we cannot. This contentment sadly makes us unconscious of a greater need.
Inaccurate spiritual vision will result in more than a stubbed toe from stumbling around in poorly lit environments. Adjusting to a lifestyle that denies the light of Christ and convincing ourselves that just saying we see equates to seeing, without evidence of Jesus shining and abiding in us, we're walking the wrong side of the divine divide my friend.
Do you have assurance of salvation? Without a doubt, do you have the confidence that if your life was to end in the next moment you would spend eternity with Christ? On what basis do you stake that claim?
As I write this, my heart is filled with concern for those who have falsely convinced themselves that they are ok. They adamantly affirm sight, but they are walking in the dark. Like the Pharisees they have mingled with truth, sat in the midst of believers, spoken the vocabulary of the religious and proudly still maintain their status as seeing.
Matthew in his gospel puts it this way, "Not everyone who calls out to Me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter." (Matthew 7:21). When Jesus comes and asks, "Would you like to get well?" (John 5:6b), they refuse to admit that they are sick.
Admitting your blindness brings forgiveness and freedom. We can't just shut our eyes to truth pretending all is well. I think we all know when we are living in self-deception. Jesus is the light. St. Augustine said, "It is of no advantage to be near the light...if the eyes are closed."
I urge you to open your eyes. The Light is all around you. Be brave enough to admit the blinders that keep you walking in hypocrisy. Admit your charade of sight. You may be fooling some, but God is looking past your eyes to your heart. He longs to hear you echo the words spoken by the blind man Jesus healed, "But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!"
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