Taste and See

Having Our Eyes Opened to Spiritual Matters

1 Samuel 14:29 KJV

Then said Jonathan, My father hath troubled the land: see, I pray you, how mine eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.

Introduction: The Difference One Taste Can Make

Background…In 1 Samuel 14,

Israel is in conflict with the Philistines.

Saul has made a rash command that no man should eat anything until the evening. The soldiers are weary, faint, and struggling.

Jonathan, not knowing about his father’s command, takes the end of his rod, dips it into honey, tastes it, and the Bible says, “his eyes were enlightened.”

That phrase is powerful.

Jonathan was not blind physically, but when he tasted the honey, strength came back to his body, clarity came back to his mind, and brightness came back to his eyes.

Saul troubled the land… means brought confusion

Jonathan eyes where enlightened…means he saw the light

There is a spiritual truth here: sometimes God has to awaken our vision.

Sometimes we are looking, but we are not seeing.

Sometimes our eyes are open physically, but dull spiritually.

Sometimes the child of God needs a fresh taste of the goodness of God before he can see clearly again.

Psalm 34:8 KJV

O taste and see that the Lord is good: Blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

The message is simple:

When we taste the goodness of God, our spiritual eyes begin to open.

I. THE PROBLEM OF DIMMED VISION

1 Samuel 14:29 “My father hath troubled the land…”

Jonathan recognized that something had weakened the people.

Saul’s command had not helped Israel; it had troubled Israel.

The soldiers were fighting the right enemy, but they were doing it without proper strength.

That is where many believers are spiritually.

They are saved, but weary. They are in church, but dry. They know the truth, but their vision is dim. They are fighting battles, but they have lost spiritual clarity.

A. Spiritual Weariness Can Dim Our Eyes

The men of Israel were faint because they had been fighting without food.

Spiritually, we can become faint when we try to fight battles without feeding our souls.

You cannot live strong spiritually on yesterday’s meal.

You cannot face today’s temptation with last month’s devotion.

You cannot fight the world, the flesh, and the devil while starving your inner man.

Matthew 4:4 “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

A Christian who neglects the Word will eventually lose spiritual sharpness.

B. Carnal Thinking Can Dim Our Eyes

Saul’s leadership was fleshly.

He was making decisions that sounded spiritual but were not Spirit-led.

That is dangerous.

Not everything that sounds religious is spiritual.

Saul’s command sounded spiritual, but it weakened the army.

Sometimes man-made burdens can drain the joy, strength, and clarity out of God’s people.

Jesus rebuked religious leaders who put heavy burdens on people while missing the heart of God.

The Christian life is not lived by fleshly pressure. It is lived by spiritual power.

Zechariah 4:6 “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, Saith the Lord of hosts.”

C. Sin Can Dim Our Eyes

There is also a dimness that comes from sin and compromise.

Sin clouds judgment.

Sin dulls discernment.

Sin makes wrong things look normal and holy things look unnecessary.

Samson is a tragic example of this. He played with compromise until finally the Bible says:

Judges 16:21 “But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes…”

Before Samson ever lost his physical eyes, he had already lost spiritual vision.

💡 A windshield does not have to be shattered to become dangerous. It only has to become fogged over. You may still be able to see shapes and lights, but not clearly enough to drive safely.

That is what happens spiritually when our hearts become fogged by weariness, carnality, or sin.

II. THE POWER OF A SPIRITUAL TASTE

1 Samuel 14:27 “But Jonathan heard not when his father charged the people with the oath: wherefore he put forth the end of the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in an honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes were enlightened.”

Jonathan tasted a little honey, and his eyes were enlightened.

The honey did not change the battlefield.

The honey did not remove the Philistines.

The honey did not end the war.

But it changed Jonathan.

That is what God does for us.

He may not remove the battle immediately, but He gives strength in the battle.

He may not remove every burden at once, but He opens our eyes to see Him in the middle of it.

A. A Taste of God’s Word Opens Our Eyes

The Bible is often connected with sweetness.

Psalm 119:103 “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”

Jonathan tasted honey and his eyes were enlightened.

The believer tastes the Word, and spiritual understanding begins to return.

God’s Word opens our eyes to truth.

Psalm 119:18 “Open thou mine eyes, That I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.”

That should be our prayer every time we open the Bible:

“Lord, do not just let me read words. Open my eyes.”

B. A Taste of God’s Goodness Opens Our Eyes

Sometimes discouragement makes us blind to the goodness of God.

We see the problem but not the Provider.

We see the battle but not the Captain.

We see the valley but not the Shepherd.

David said:

Psalm 34:8 “O taste and see that the Lord is good…”

Sometimes you cannot explain it until you experience it.

You can tell someone honey is sweet, but they will not know its sweetness until they taste it.

You can tell someone the Lord is good, but when they taste His grace, His mercy, His forgiveness, His presence, and His power, their eyes begin to open.

C. A Taste of God’s Grace Opens Our Eyes

The greatest eye-opening moment in a sinner’s life is when he sees Jesus.

The natural man is spiritually blind.

2 Corinthians 4:4 “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not”

But when the Holy Spirit opens a sinner’s eyes, he sees his sin, sees the Savior, sees the cross, and sees his need to be born again.

That is why Saul of Tarsus could be religious and still blind.

He had religion.

He had zeal.

He had knowledge.

But he did not truly see until he met Jesus on the Damascus road.

After meeting Christ, his eyes were opened physically and spiritually.

III. THE PRAYER FOR OPENED EYES

2 Kings 6:17 KJV

And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.

Throughout Scripture, God’s people needed their eyes opened.

This is not just a lost man’s need.

Saved people need spiritual vision too.

A. Open My Eyes to the Presence of God

In 2 Kings 6, Elisha’s servant was terrified because the enemy surrounded the city. All he could see was danger.

But Elisha prayed:

2 Kings 6:17 “Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see”

And when God opened his eyes, he saw the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire.

The enemy was real, But God’s presence was greater.

That is what we need.

Not imaginary optimism.

Not denial of the problem.

But spiritual vision that says, “There is more with us than with them.”

B. Open My Eyes to the Condition of My Heart

Sometimes we need God to open our eyes to what is going on inside of us.

David prayed:

Psalm 139:23–24 “Search me, O God, and know my heart: Try me, and know my thoughts: 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.”

That is a scary but necessary prayer.

“Lord, open my eyes to my pride.”

“Open my eyes to my bitterness.”

“Open my eyes to my coldness.”

“Open my eyes to my misplaced priorities.”

“Open my eyes to the things I have excused.”

Revival often begins when God’s people stop seeing everybody else’s sin and start seeing their own need.

C. Open My Eyes to the Needs Around Me

Jesus said:

John 4:35 “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.”

Sometimes our eyes are closed to people who are hurting all around us.

We see crowds, but Jesus sees souls.

We see interruptions, but Jesus sees ministry.

We see sinners, but Jesus sees people who need salvation.

A church with opened eyes sees the lost, the broken, the backslidden, the lonely, the weary, and the wounded.

💡 A man can walk through a hospital and only see rooms, hallways, and nurses. But a doctor walks through and sees symptoms, needs, pain, and urgency. The difference is trained eyes. God must train our eyes to see people the way He sees them.

IV. THE PROOF OF OPENED EYES

When God opens our eyes, something changes.

Jonathan’s eyes were enlightened, and he immediately understood the situation more clearly.

Spiritual vision always produces spiritual response.

A. Opened Eyes Bring Discernment

Jonathan saw that Saul’s command had troubled the land.

Spiritual vision helps us discern what is helping and what is hurting.

Not every tradition is truth.

Not every burden is biblical.

Not every popular thing is pleasing to God.

Not every open door is God’s will.

We need discernment.

B. Opened Eyes Bring Strength

Jonathan said:

“how mine eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.”

The honey gave him renewed strength.

When God opens your eyes, you do not just see better; you walk stronger.

You pray stronger.

You worship stronger.

You witness stronger.

You endure stronger.

C. Opened Eyes Bring Direction

A man with dim eyes stumbles.

A man with opened eyes walks with purpose.

Proverbs 29:18 “Where there is no vision, the people perish”

When spiritual vision is lost, people drift.

Families drift.

Churches drift.

Believers drift.

But when God opens our eyes, He gives us direction again.

We see what matters.

We see what is eternal.

We see what is worth living for.

Conclusion: Lord, Open Our Eyes

Jonathan tasted a little honey, and his eyes were enlightened.

But we have something better than Jonathan had.

We have the full revelation of God’s Word.

We have the indwelling Holy Spirit.

We have the finished work of Jesus Christ.

We have the gospel.

We have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

So the prayer of the message is simple:

Lord, open our eyes.

Open our eyes to Your Word. Open our eyes to Your goodness. Open our eyes to our own hearts. Open our eyes to the lost around us. Open our eyes to eternity. Open our eyes to Jesus.

The world does not need a church with dull eyes and cold hearts.

The world needs believers who have tasted the goodness of God and can say:

The question is:

Have your eyes been opened?

And if they have grown dim, will you come back to the honey of God’s Word, the sweetness of God’s presence, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ?