Spiritual Blindness

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Luke 11:29–36 ESV

When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

The Tragedy of Blindness

Introduction

Here’s an understatement- “It’s good to be able to see!”

Maybe you’ve been temporarily blinded.

Maybe age has affected your sight

Beth not realising you could read the OHP.

Sight is one of the most important ways we interact with the world.

No sight = no sunsets. No movies. No baby faces etc

Blindness is a tragedy! We

Tear jerking video of the baby seeing her mothers face for the first time.

But we can be blind in other ways:

We might suddenly realise something good was in front of uus the whole time.

The good works someone did. The beauty of a view.

How attractive and lovely someone was.

The answer to a problem at work or school.

This Crowd Can’t See

They want a SIGN that Jesus is the messiah.

But he’s already giving them signs. He’s healing the sick, he’s casting out demons, he’s preaching with power.

The truth is right in front of them, but they can’t see it.

They say, “If he was legitimate, he’d prove it to us.”

But Jesus says - “If you weren’t EVIL, you’d believe already.”

“Your eyes aren’t healthy. You are blind, and the light in you is darkness.”

SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS STOPS US FROM SEEING THE TRUTH.

And, unless that blindness is lifted, we will never see what is right in front of us.

“The brightest sun cannot enable a blind man to see”.

#1 AN EVIL GENERATION

The great cause of Spiritual Blindness is the evil in our hearts.

“This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah

We Imagine that if we have enough evidence, we will believe the truth.

We imagine we are WISE and OBJECTIVE.

And, we often are, UNLESS the truth would require us to CHANGE.

You and I could debate the finer points of the Economy - but if we turned it to the finer points of the sin in your life…

PROBLEM: MORAL AND SPIRITUAL TRUTH DEMANDS ACTION

Asking a child to “Look at what you did.” And they fight and turn their head.

They don’t want to see (even though they can see) because if they see, they will have to change.

Acts 24:25 (ESV)

And as [PAUL] reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix (an evil governor) was alarmed and said, “Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you.”

“I don’t want to see, I don’t want to hear, because I don’t want to CHANGE.”

THE WEAKNESS OF APOLOGETICS.

Many of us hope that we could Argue someone into salvation.

“If only YOU would talk to him, then he’d believe.”

But sadly, that isn’t how it works - if the heart is dark, if it loves evil, it won’t allow the mind to accept the facts.

Here’s Paul:

In Romans 1, Paul says that the truth about God is plain - but people still reject it.

The truth can be plain to us, but we can still reject it.

Jesus said:

John 3:19–20 ESV

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.

If you don’t want to know the truth, you will not see the truth.

“The brightest sun cannot enable a blind man to see”.

#2 THE RIGHT HEART

But, what if you do want to see the truth?

Two Ingredients Necessary to see:

First, a genuine desire to know the truth.

The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

The Queen of the South wanted Solomons wisdom. And she found it.

Have you ever been in an argument and Not Wanted to Look up the Truth?

You could just google it… but then you might be wrong.

Everyone who seeks God, will find him.

Jeremiah 29:13 ESV

You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

Unfortunately, many people do not even bother to seek God.

They stand around saying, “If God exists, He can prove it!”

Even as Christians, we sometimes don’t seek Truth.

One of the main reasons we don’t look, is that we don’t want to find.

Because we don’t want to change.

“If that’s true, then I’ll have to give up something I love.”

If we have no intention of changing, we will avoid truth like the plague

The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

The Queen of the South, and the People of Ninevah wanted the truth, and were willing to change.

And that enabled them to see properly.

#3 HEALTHY EYES

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness.

Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

Obviously, Jesus is not speaking of literal, physical eyes.

Our eyes transmit reality outside to our mind inside.

In the same way, spiritual eyes, transmit reality to our inner man.

They are a window into our soul - and that window could be dirty or tinted.

But even our physical eyes betray something of our inner man.

We could have bored eyes - we’ve been overstimulated by entertainment.

Angry eyes. Sarcastic eyes. Hard eyes.

The eyes are a lamp, and that lamp can be dark.

WHAT MAKES OUR LAMP DARK?

PRIDE & CYNICISM.

I won’t look because I don’t need to.

A haughty sort of superior look.

LOVE OF SELF

Self Obsessions

Body Dysmorphia

LOVE OF THE WORLD

Easy in our time, thanks to modern entertainment.

You end up bored and uninterested in God.

ENVY OR GREED

You’ll end up blind to your own blessings.

Let’s say a greedy man attends church. He loves money, trusts in money, thinks about money all the time. When the time to take up the offering comes, he says, “Church is a big scam, they are just out to get your money!” And he doesn’t come back. But no - He had eyes full of money, and so money is all he saw. And when he dies, and can’t take a single dollar with him, entering eternity bankrupt. God will

Whatever I love I will look at, and whatever I look at, I will love.

LOOKING AT JESUS

On the other hand.

As we learn to obey Jesus, we will also learn to love truth.

THE DISCIPLES. They didn’t need a sign, but they got them. They wanted to obey.

It’s focusing on the Good & Acting on the Good.

How do I appreciate my spouse more?

A: I look at the good things.

B: I act in a righteous way towards her.

FIX YOUR EYES ON JESUS