Vision
“In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.” – John 1:4-7
The other morning, I went for a jog. As I went around the track's curve on my first lap, I started to see the sun shining brightly. It was so bright that squinting was not enough. My eyes watered. I had to close one eye and keep the other partially closed and look away from the sun. It was almost painful. No one had to tell me, "Hey, the sun is shining." It was obvious and could not be ignored. Why then do you think that the apostle John stated that John the Baptist came as a witness to testify about the Light? Who needs someone to tell them about something so obvious as light? The answer is simple – the blind. Light is inconceivable to those who cannot see, and they cannot know light unless it is described by someone who has witnessed it.
Imagine what it would be like to be blind. Blindness turns one's focus inward. You cannot see where you are going and are totally oblivious to dangers both to yourself and others. Jesus said that without someone leading the way who has vision, the blind will fall into a pit (Matthew 15:14). Obviously, Jesus was speaking of spiritual blindness, but the lost need us to be sober and to have clear vision so that we might be witnesses to the gospel's light, yet it is easy for believers to be deceived into becoming blind guides.
Deception comes as a result of having blurred vision or blindness that prevents us from perceiving reality. Too often we partake of "spiritual intoxicants" that blind us to the new life that Jesus calls us to. Therefore, we must be vigilant to maintain our vision. Paul warns us that "Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not the night, nor of darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep, as do others but let us watch and be sober" (1 Thessalonians 5:5-6). We are called to be alert, avoid darkness, and tell others about the Light.
The world is in desperate need of the light of the gospel. Our culture celebrates many sinful desires of the flesh. We are invited to have uninhibited sexual relations, get drunk in order to have fun, make as much money as possible regardless of the consequences to our family, dedicate Sundays to watching sports, and accumulate more "toys" than the neighbors. Too often, we walk with them in their sinful desires not realizing that fleshly living blinds us to the spiritual. First Peter 1:13-18 warns us to stay sober and vigilant, because we are no longer blind or ignorant. We are children of God and are called to be holy servants of the King.
We are not justified by works, yet too often we forget our purpose of spreading the gospel and we become blinded to the misery around us. We may ignore the homeless or poor on the way to Sunday services and then question why God will not use us. Too often we judge "sinners" instead of offering them the gospel message. Many people decide not to attend church because of hypocrisy. They view Christians as either prideful and self-righteous or see no difference between a Christian's lifestyle and their own. The gospel is hindered because our witness is limited by the lives we live. The fruit we bear comes forth from the seeds we sow (Galatians 6:7).
Jesus sent John the Baptist with a message of repentance from sin in order to heal our eyes and give us spiritual vision. We are ambassadors of Christ called in love. This world is blind and lives in darkness, but we know the way. Jesus is our light and has given us vision to lead. Reach out and show the way.
