preached at El Dorado Christian Fellowship
by Pastor Daniel Thompson
September 30, 2001
Mark 10:46-51 Story of Bartimaus, the Bible says, "And they came to Jericho. And He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus thou son of David have mercy on me!" And many charged him that he should hold his peace, but he cried the more a great deal, "Thou son of David have mercy on me!" And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be called and they called the blind man saying unto him, "Be of good comfort rise He called you." And he, casting away his garment, rose and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said, "Unto him what wilt thou that I should do unto thee?" And the blind man said unto Him, "Lord that I might receive my sight!" Mark 8:23-25 Speaking of Jesus, "And He took the blind man by the hand lead him out of town where he spit on his eyes, and he put his hands upon him and asked him if he saw anything. And he looked up and said, "I see men as trees walking." After that He put His hands again upon his eyes and made him look up and he was restored and he saw every man clearly. That actually means that he saw all things clearly. Turn to John 9:1 And as Jesus passed by, He saw a man which was blind from his birth. Go to verse 7 and he said unto him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is by interpretation sent). And when he went his way therefore and washed and came seeing. Go to 25 And He answered and said, "Whether he be a sinner or no I know not; one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind now I see." Turn to Ephesians 1:16-18 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. The eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, The resurrected Lord has come into the midst of His church and this is what He says: Revelation 3:18 "I council you to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich, and white raiment, that you may be clothed, and that the shame of your nakedness does not appear; and anoint your eyes with salve, that you may see. Prayer: And Lord that is my prayer that I want to see. Oh father, I pray that we would be a seeing people. Oh father, I pray that you would so anoint this message, God. Father that people would sense that it is near to the very throne room, that they would sense that it is a word in season. That God I pray for a great grace to understand to receive and to respond to Your words. I pray Father for open hearts, I pray Father that there would be nothing that would hinder this message from finding a place in our hearts and that Lord it would bring forth much fruit. I just pray Father that as you told Moses, Lord you said "I will be with your mouth" I just pray that you would be with my mouth, be with my thoughts, be with my heart. Lord I am your servant God I would pray that I would be faithful to you God, and I pray that I would feed your people the finest of the wheat. I pray father for a great quickening Lord, that comes by the Holy Spirit. I pray Father for great faith Lord I pray that this message would be mixed with faith so that it would profit us in this hour. Jesus we love you and bless you. We love your word and we know that it is the power of God and that Lord you are going to communicate your mind and heart to us today. In Jesus name. Amen. Message I have just read five passages together out of the New Testament all dealing with and in a general way one common subject and that subject is Spiritual blindness. The first scripture I read begins with those who have never seen before, they are born blind just like blind Bartimaus. And then there are those who have been given vision but are not seeing very much nor very clearly, they see as men as trees walking. But who eventually come to see all things clearly, but need a further work of grace in their lives. And then there are those who have true and clear sight as far as it goes but there still awaits them a greater realm of divine thought and revelation having the eyes of your heart enlightened that you might know the hope of your calling, the glory of His inheritance. That there is a fuller work of the Holy Spirit that is coming into your life that the Lord wants to do concerning your life, concerning His plans, His purposes and His promises. And then finally there are those who have seen and have followed the Lord but they have lost their Spiritual sight that they once possessed and they are now blind. They think they see and they are blind to their own blindness. That's the tragedy of the Laodicean condition. Now I would say among us here today you fall into one of those categories of one of those scriptures that I just read concerning your sight, your Spiritual eye sight. Let me just say this: To truly live the Christian life to represent and express the life of our risen Savior, to be a witness and a testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ in the earth, to be fruitful, to minister to others, to accomplish Gods will and purpose in our lives, to receive from God all His precious promises, all His blessing, all the fullness of His intentions for our lives, we must see. Seeing governs everything in the Christian life, everything. Now just let me say this, our sight is very important to God. Now, we know the masses are blind, the Bible teaches us that there is no doubt about it the masses of this world are completely and totally blind. In I Corinthians 4:4 speaking of the masses it says "In whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of them which believed not." Guess what, Satan has a ministry and what is that ministry? To blind the masses, and he's pretty good at it. He 's been doing it for 4,000 years. The devil has control of the sight of the masses, blessed by God's grace according I Corinthians, the light of the glorious gospel of Christ should shine unto them. So we know that the masses are blind. And then we also know that the religious order of our day is blind also, and there is no doubt about that, the religious order of our day is completely and totally blind. Matthew 15:14 says "leave them alone, they are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind both shall fall into the ditch, their own pride and ignorance has blinded their eyes, not Satan. They are confident they see better and further than others, in reality they are blind." Now Jesus responds to them today just as he responded to them in His day. Cause He's the same yesterday, today, and forever more. And He says let them alone, let their followers alone. Knowing that one day they are going to fall into a ditch and they are all going to perish. And Jesus says, let them alone. That is a very solemn statement. But to His own, to His own people, His own children, His own sons and daughters, Christians our sight is very important to Him. Enough for Him to come to us even today and ask us a question, just as he asked that man. What do you see? Do you see anything? Do you see the hour that you live in? Do you see what's happening all around you? What do you see? Do you see the scriptures? Do you see my Word? Do you see what it is that I've intended for your life, what I want to accomplish for your life? Do you see the Kingdom of God? Do you see clearly? You see the Lord came to that man and he touched his life with grace and then said, "What do you see?" And the man said "I see men as trees walking, I don't see clearly." Or as the Laodiceans who said they saw but were completely blind. God wants to know if we see today. He has a question, "Do you see?" He's always coming to our lives to see if we see, do you know that. God himself will continually come into your life and ask the question, do you see. Do you remember the prophet Jeremiah. I love the introduction to prophet Jeremiah. It said God came to him and what question did He ask. Jeremiah what seeth thou? What do you see? And then after Jeremiah responded to what he seen, do you know what God did. He commended him. He said you saw well. He commends clear sight. And then in verse 13 after that He comes again into Jeremiah's life and say "What do you see now?". Jeremiah told Him "I see a seething pot. The face that's there up toward the North, that's what I see. I see judgment coming upon a nation." Jeremiah you seeth well. God wants to make sure that we see and that we keep seeing. It's like an appointment with the eye doctor every six months you go in and sit and stare into this machine and the Dr. says "What do you see?". So it is when you hear the word of God preached, or when you hear the word of God spoken, or when your in meditation in the morning or when your in prayer. I tell you that there is a voice that should continually be coming into your heart whispering saying "What do you see?". I want you to see the importance of seeing well, listen to this, what is the importance of seeing well. It's vital. You know in the book of Jeremiah in that first chapter if you remember when he came to him we have an entire nation that is deep in trouble with God, deep in trouble with God. And Jeremiah ministry, Jeremiah's effectiveness, Jeremiah's entire future hinged upon the fact that he saw. And I tell you another thing that nations hope, that nations future all hinged upon a man that could see. You see it was more than just for his personal benefits that he saw. A whole nation--their future, their relationship with God--depended upon Jeremiah, do you see. It's not just about me and you. It's about an entire world, and this world needs a company of people that seeth well. My friends, the hope of your family hinges upon, do you see. The hope of this community of El Dorado hinges upon, do you see. The hope of this nation is found in a company that seeing. God's plans a purposes, God's intentions toward this nation. The very kingdom of God coming. All depends upon Jeremiah what do you see. You have seen well. Another thought along those lines, I just want to mention this. More revelation came to him after he had proven that he had seen what God had showed him. What do you see Jeremiah? I see something kind of strange but I see the rod of an almond tree. Very good you see well, I'm going to show you something more. Here's something more Jeremiah, what do you see now. Well I see a boiling pot facing the North. You see Jeremiah would have never seen the boiling pot unless he had first seen the almond tree. Are you all with me. You see revelation from the Lord is found in ones seeing and God's not going to show you and me the boiling pot until we've seen well the almond tree. There are Christian leaders right now that have seen the boiling pot and everybody's going, I don't see. And they don't because the never saw the almond tree when God showed it to them. I don't get all this, what's going on, I don't see. I know, because when God showed you the almond tree you didn't see well. And now He's showing a boiling pot and everybody's going, I don't get it. God gives revelation once you see well He'll give you more revelation and then He'll give you more. Well what do you see now? God will not continue to unfold His mind and His heart if we do not see well. After we see well He'll give us more. How do I know that? There is a principle, Jesus told us that, "For whoever has to him shall be given and shall have more abundant. But whosoever has not from him shall be taken away what he has." That's a solemn statement too. God's very interested in what you do with revelation. It will either lead you to abundance or it will lead you to a famine. To him who has been given revelation, or the almond tree, of God's mind and heart receives an ax upon it. When he receives an ax upon it what happens is that He gives him more, he shows him a boiling pot. If you receive it and act upon it. But if you don't even the almond tree that you saw He takes it away from you. Then all of a sudden your lost, confused, in chaos going I don't see, because He took it away. Now, some people get very frustrated or upset about the direction things go. They don't see and just don't understand. They get upset with Churches, Ministers, and Pastors they feel distant or out of touch with things. They think it's because of a certain ministry or the church or some focus or priority, they have all these things going on. But I can tell you alot of times it simply they don't see. God showed them the almond tree and they didn't do anything with it and so now we're talking about a boiling pot and they don't have a clue. And God came and said you didn't do anything with the almond tree, you didn't do anything. You didn't cry out when I showed you the almond tree, you didn't cry out and say I don't see, I only see men as trees walking. OK, I'll help you I'll give you more grace so you can see the almond tree because I want to show you the boiling pot. Instead you said this isn't an almond tree so I'll go on, whatever, so now they don't have anything. They can't see they don't understand what's going on. We must steward what we see. It's vital folks. We have to steward what we see and we'll be given more. If we don't steward it, what we have will be taken. Our ministry, our service to the Lord, it doesn't matter what your doing. If your preaching at the Nursing Home, if your feeding the poor, if your in the prisons, whatever your doing. Ministering to your families, witnessing, sidewalk counseling, whatever you do for the Lord it all hinges upon, if you see. Sometimes in order to really see it is necessary to be blinded. That' s a strange statement I know. Do you remember the Apostle Paul's conversion? What happened to Paul? This great light that shown in his life, in his dark heart on the way to Damascus. After he received the light, what happened to him? He became blind for three days. When his spiritual eyes were opened God closed his natural eyes. Let me tell you I think there is a principal here. Paul was a blind man, and there is no doubt that he was a blind man, his blindness was a blindness of religious zeal. He had a zeal for God, for tradition, for the statis quoe, he was religious, God was the focus. It was zealous, it held the scripture and yet it was totally blind. That still takes place today. But when the grace of God opened his eyes he went blind naturally. What is God trying to teach us? This example tells us something that in order to see sometimes we have to go blind to our natural senses, our natural reason, our intellect and our learning. That is what God is trying to communicate. We must have at least a measure of natural blindness if we want to see spiritually. Spiritual sight is always a miracle, if you see spiritually in any measure, there is literally a supernatural work of grace in your life. If you see, blessed are your eyes who see. It is absolute grace that any of us see, it is a miracle. Yet, we didn't do anything for it, it is sovereign grace. We're all born blind, we can't see. We're all like that man on the wayside begging throughout our whole life till the Master finally walks by us and then what does He do. He hears our cries for mercy, He calls us to Himself and He gives us sight. That's a conversion, that's a miracle of redemption and that's the miracle of receiving our sight. In Isaiah 61:1 "The spirit of the Lord is upon me, the opening of the prison and the eyes of those who are bound." John 12:46 "I am come a light to the world." If you see today give glory to God, it's a miracle. That's a miracle of His love and grace in your life. Let me say something else. Spiritual sight can be lost. To lose our spiritual vision or sight, when that happens, we lose the supernatural feature a Christian life. What happens is that when you lose your sight, you end up in the Laodicean condition. The Laodicean's had lost that supernatural feature of their Christian life. They had lost that supernatural feature of the assembly of the church. They were just an earthly people, a religious people, they had lost their distinction with the world, they were a group just like every other group in the world. They blended in well with everything around them. They were morally good people, they were prosperous, they were probably growing and building on to their buildings. Yet Jesus came to them in Revelations and said "You're absolutely and totally blind." And He also says "I don't want to have anything to do with you." The Church is to be a heavenly body of people. It should have within it's body a supernatural feature to it's life. And that supernatural feature is the one great fact that the church sees what the world does not see. When you go in and the Church is just as confused as the world I tell you they've lost their sight and there is no more something supernatural about God's people anymore. Their just a club. Their just a society. Without the supernatural, without sight, without seeing what the world can never see it means they are just like everybody else. The Laodiceans left their heavenly position and they didn't see. The Laodiceans can be described as a people that know but don't see. They are a knowing people, because they know the word of God, but their not a seeing people. They know about the things of God, the things about His word, about His history, but they never see. They never see His heart, His mind, they never see what God is doing around them. They never see God's intentions and desires. Religion is simply the excersise without the sight. It's just the thing we do with no sight. That 's Laodicean, that's the age we live in. We've got the excersise all around us but few are seeing. The corporate body of Christ, the assembly, do they see. I know they know but do they see. There is a big difference. Let me tell you though, there is hope for all those who are living during the Laodicean age, which is where we live. God promises a remnant of people, a place next to His throne. It says "he that overcomes I will give to him to sit with me in My throne." Let me tell you this, if that promise is for you and me those are only for those who see are going to end up overcoming this age. Let me just say. The greatest need of our hour is a people that see. Not a people that know, but a people that see. A people that can say with confidence I see. How many people do you know that can say I see. If the church is confused, how are we any different than anybody else, if we can't stand and say I know you're all confused but I see. What hope is there for a nation if the church doesn't see with confidence? I understand it's backwards but I see. I know what's going on exactly. I'm not confused. The only hope for this world is the fact that this world could find a people on the earth that actually see. The world is a place of chaos and confusion, it's a place a tragedy, a place of grief and sorrow, a place of continual contradiction. Yet God has a company of people that can say I see. I understand. I am not lost. I am not confused. I know where I'm going. I am confident. I see. Blind people can have little influence upon a blind world. Their not a great deal of help, only those that see will make any eternal impact upon the culture around them. I 'll just say you and me need to be listening to people that see. This is not the hour to be listening to those that know, praise God for those that know, but we need to be listening to people that see. Those that know are not rare, those that see are. We've got a lot of Christians that are settling for people that know. They are doomed spiritually speaking, their never going to touch anybody. Christianity has largely become a tradition. Through preaching and teaching the truth it has been resolved into a series of truths. Evangelistic or Evangelical doctrines, if you will, and it sets the boundaries around Christianity. It' s something that you might say is fenced up and it's packaged and it's categorized and it's ordered all together. From my view, we pastors and teachers are providing the Biblical truths. We know, we're using illustrations, antedotes and we try to make relevant old truths through our modern world. But much of the truth that we are presenting are basically dressed up. They are dressed up in our personality and our style, our approach or our background our ways. You know some people actually choose their church based upon the dress. I like his style, I like his manner, oh he seems kind of excited up there, or he's a good communicator, or he understands doctrine. There is nothing necessarily wrong with that. Or I like the way he says things. But I just want to say something, when all the dress is gone, all the style, all the personality is stripped away the people of God are left with something. They are left with men who are trying to communicate truths in an order that will be acceptable and that will make some sort of impression on their hearts. When it's all stripped away that's all you've got left. Basically many of us are just trying to out do the people who came before us. The point that I'm trying to make is this. That is not what matters. What matters the most is this, does that man see. When you listen to a man from the pulpit it ain't what he knows. That's not going to do you any good. Does that man see. Where there is true spiritual life, where there is true anointing, where there is a life changing grace, it will come through vessels that see. That defines true ministry, not your knowledge and not your background and not your theological background, it doesn't matter. The main thing that will define a man's ministry is do you see. The seeing factor makes the difference upon the hearts and lives of the people. Not knowledge, anyone can get up and read the book. It's not the knowledge that makes the difference it's seeing. All spiritual growth is founded upon one being able to see. To keep us growing and moving the Lord brings us into experiences where it is absolutely necessary for us to see. To see the Lord and to know the Lord in a new way, fresh understanding and a new revelation the old will never sustain us in the new experience. Does God ever do that in your life. He's always bringing you into a crisis isn't He, of some sort. Why? Because you need to see Him in a new and living way. That's happening all the time. The Lord comes into our lives and brings us into a place and then all of a sudden we' re desperate. We're looking out and we want to see Him and He shows Himself to us. That's how we end up growing. What is spiritual growth? The definition is conformity to the image of God's Son. That's spiritual growth. That's the end in view. How do we grow? By knowledge, by reading, by church attendance, by seeing. II Corinthians 3:18 says "But we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image from glory to glory even by the spirit of the Lord." How are we changed? With open face seeing Him. Seeing and spiritual life go together. Light and life always go together. If a man has light he will also have life. What did Jesus say? "I am the light of the world" and then He said "I came to give you abundant life." Seeing and abundant life, out of your inner most being will flow rivers of living water. Spiritual life is the result of seeing. That freshness in your life, that enthusiasm in your life, that passion in your life, that love, that sense of worship, that joy, that peace, that confidence. Where does that come from? Seeing. Did it come from a book or a tape? Seeing. The marks of true spiritual life are among those that see. They possess an extraordinary willingness and trust in God. They have surrendered themselves and have somewhat a humble posture toward the Lord. They have courage and resolution and it all comes because they see. Have you ever been around Christian brothers and sisters and there is no life. Why don't they have life? Because they don't see. It's not because they don't love the Lord, it's just because they don't see. Passion comes when you see. Joy comes when you see. Faith comes by seeing Him who is unseen. What moves you in your ministry or in the direction of your life? Our whole life should be governed by seeing. Where there is no life there is no sight. The more you see the more it will govern your life. Jesus said what? "The zeal of your house has consumed me." To see, the more you see, the more you really see the more you feel overwhelmed about the whole deal. It occupies your thought, your time, your energy, your prayers and it's all a result of seeing. I know one thing that has happened in all of our lives over the past few months, in many areas of our lives, not just in abortion, most of us have felt completely overwhelmed. Let me encourage you today, blessed are your eyes they see. The more we take in, the more impressed upon our hearts these things the more it begins to govern our lives. Sight should always have a governing impact on our lives. If we're saying we're so much busier, we're so much more involved...GOOD. Because we see. It begins to take over our lives and that is a good thing. The more we see the more we act. What did the apostle Paul say when he saw? What were the two questions when the light came into his life? "Who are you Lord?" and "What do you want me to do?" The more a man sees the more he acts. A man that doesn't see doesn't act. It's not as much based on just faith and works it's based on do you see. Because when see you act, when you don't see you don't act. Sight costs a great deal in our lives. It isn't cheap. Do you remember the blind man in the temple in chapter 9 of John. He went to the pastors and elders and said "Praise the Lord I see." It says that they abused him, they reviled him, they jeered at him, they spoke unkindly of him. You think they would be excited but they weren't. Why? Because the pastors and elders of that church couldn't see. They got angry because he saw and they didn't and they said "You're out of the church." It's happening. All those who confessed Christ or those who saw the Bible says, out of the church. You will find that many that see don't do to well in the church. They are not all rebels, they just get abused everywhere they go. They are branded troublemakers just like they did in John chapter 9. One of them the Lord's disciple. Even his parents weren't happy that he saw. They didn't associate with him they said I don't know go ask him, it's his deal, I don't want to get kicked out of your church. Folks were separating from him because he was kind of bent now that he saw. Sight can bring along with it great pain in our lives and it's all about conformity to Christ. If your experiencing that pain today it's all about conformity to Christ. We will never be greater than our Master and if they persecuted Me they will persecute you. If they rejected Me then they will reject you. A servant will never be greater than his Master.
