Eyes to See

“But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.” (Matthew 13:16)

Although we have five senses, we gather most of our information only through our eyes and ears. (The same for our spirit—your spirit has eyes and ears.)

You can receive instruction from God through your physical and spiritual eyes.

I went past the field of the sluggard, past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment; thorns had come up everywhere, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins. I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest- and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man. (Proverbs 24:30–34)

Notice that the writer did three things to gain wisdom from God: he observed, he applied his heart to what he observed, and then he learned the lesson. By seeing a run-down vineyard, he saw a spiritual truth. We too can see spiritual truths as we go about our daily activities.

Jesus tells us to look at and consider the birds of the air and the lilies of the field (Matthew 6:25–34). He reveals that our Heavenly Father feeds the birds and clothes the lilies. Jesus tells us that we should not worry about such provisions, as we are more valuable than they are and that our Father knows our needs. Again, we can see spiritual truths from God everywhere around us.

Notice that the examples above require seeing something in the physical realm and then seeing something in the spiritual. It is Father who gives us revelation—allowing us to see. Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15) After Peter answered that He was the Christ, Jesus said, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.” Peter saw the physical Man Jesus and Father allowed Peter to see that truth about Jesus.

(There is another method of seeing which is called visions. See the section, "Visions" for more information.)

How do we see spiritual truths behind those things that we see in the physical realm? If we do not yet have eyes that see, we can get desperate and call out to God: “I want to see!” One particular man did this many years ago and his story has been told for almost 2,000 years:

Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" … "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him. The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see." "Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road. (Mark 10:46–52)

We too can receive eyes to see—functioning spiritual eyes—all we need to do is ask!

The value of seeing is revealed in Jesus’ explanation of how He functioned in His ministry:

I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. (John 5:19b–20a)

(This topic is discussed further in the Ears-2-Hear Teachings.)