|
|
|
|
PURITY OF HEART: OPEN VISION Though these "living creatures" may represent many things, one thing is fairly certain: John was not seeing a nightmarish vision of six-winged beasts with dozens of eyes covering their bodies. What John saw was a symbol of a deeper truth. The many "eyes" represent the open, all-inclusive vision that is the result of being in God's Presence. Let it be known, where the Lord is, there also is His throne. If you have had a meeting with the Lord, it is because your spirit is at His throne. When you were spiritually reborn, you were born again from above (John 3:3 amplified). At this very moment, through the agency of the Holy Spirit, your spirit is "seated" with Christ upon His throne in heavenly places (Eph. 2:6). Where His Presence is, there also is His throne; where His Presence is, there also is open vision. These "living creatures" are symbols of
the life one finds as he Yet, at the same time, being near to God also gives us "eyes . . . within," eyes which monitor the motives that guide self, inner eyes which stand guard against sin. The more our vision opens up, the greater we see God in His holiness. The slightest sin in our lives becomes significant; we are compelled to live pure before Him. The "four creatures" at the throne of God
do not cease to say, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty"
(Rev. 4:8). Day and night, God is Holy. When our spiritual eyes are open, the
utterances of our mouths are all, "holy, holy, holy." Jesus said to Nathaniel, "You shall see greater things than these . . . I say to you, you shall see the heavens opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man" (John 1:50-51). Because of Nathaniel's honesty of heart, Jesus knew open vision would be inevitable. Open vision is the consequence of a pure heart. To those who fight against sin, who hate falsehood, who diligently pursue walking in holiness, your struggle is a preparation for seeing God. You shall see the heavens opened. Because of our dullness of heart, we have come to expect spiritual blindness as an unfortunate condition of this world. The truth is, in the Old Testament one of God's judgments against sin was that the heavens became "bronze." Most Christians similarly see the heavens closed. Few see with open vision either into the heavenly realms or into their own hearts. The heavens are always "bronze" to a hardened heart. But the Lord promised, "you shall see the heavens opened, and the angels of God"! God wants us to have true spiritual vision. One sign that the Holy Spirit is involved in a church is that, "young men . . . see visions, and your old men . . . dream dreams" (Acts 2:17). There is continuity between God's kingdom in heaven and His kingdom on earth. Oh, there are those who say the supernatural was strictly limited to the first century, that today we "walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Cor. 5:7). Yes, we often do take steps of faith, where we walk without prior knowledge of what each step involves. But we do perceive Him who is with us! Ours is not a blind trust; it is a proven, seeing trust! Walking by faith and having spiritual vision is not an either/or situation. Just moments before Paul stated he walked by faith, he wrote, "we look . . . at the things which are not seen . . . things which are . . . eternal" (2 Cor. 4:18). Paul had revelation perception of the spirit realm. He saw the eternal spiritual body that was prepared and waiting for him in the heavens! (2 Cor. 5:1, 4) He knew how "a man . . . was caught up into Paradise, and heard inexpressible words" (2 Cor. 12:3-4). We could continue concerning Paul's spiritual perception, but the fact is, he authored one-third of the New Testament out of his open vision of Christ. How did he see the things he saw? Just after he declared "with unveiled face [we] behold . . . the glory of the Lord" (2 Cor. 3:18), he wrote, "But we have renounced the things hidden because of shame" (2 Cor.4:1-2). Later he continued, "having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" (2 Cor. 7:1). Out of a purified heart, out of his perfected holiness, came open vision of the glory of God. Remember, we are not seeking experiences, we are
seeking a pure heart. We are not running after visions; we want holiness. Even
as the supernatural realm was an expected phenomenon in the primitive church, so
also was purity the expected condition in their hearts. Therefore, do not be as
the foolish ones who seek visions. You must seek sanctification and when you are
ready, if God wills, He shall speak to you in supernatural ways (Acts 2:17-18).
Do not seek to conjure up an "experience" with Jesus; seek to have a
clean heart, allowing Christ to examine and purge you daily. And as He washes
you with His Word and chastens you with His holiness, He will draw you into His
Presence. He will open your eyes to "things without and things
within." To add, remove a name, or change a preference, please go to |
Send mail to KingdomWarrior@hotmail.com
with questions or comments about this web site.
|
Last modified: April 27, 2003
