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Volume 33   Number 14 Apr 5, 2009

        Ephesians 1:15-18: Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease 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 to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding (your heart) being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints...
        We are dealing with having EYES OF THE SPIRIT; in other words, to be able to see what God sees and to see from a higher perspective. This is called SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING.
        When you use a pair of binoculars to see far off or to see what is up ahead, you have to be still and stay steady or else the slightest movement will blur your view. For many of us, our vision of what is just up in front of us is a blur, because we won't be still long enough to get focused and have a clear vision. We need the spirit of WISDOM and REVELATION from God. We need the eyes of our understanding to be enlightened if we are to know what our hope is and know the glory of His inheritance in us, His saints.
        In the Old Testament, in 1 Chronicles 12:32, the armies were called to come together to make David king. It was said of the tribe of Issachar that they were men who had understanding of the times to know what Israel ought to do. How much more we need people who have understanding of the times in which we live and know what to do. There was a people then and there will be a people in this hour who will be the same—people who have eyes of the Spirit and people with spiritual understanding.
        1 Corinthians 1:26-31: For you see your calling, brethren...(or the question could be: Can you see your calling, brethren?) That not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. (Note, it didn't say not any, but not many). But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. And the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.....that, as it is written, "He who glories, let him glory in the Lord." If you are going to glory, or manifest, or project something, then glory, manifest, and project the Lord.
        It is clear that God chooses whom He wills, and that He is an equal opportunity employer. No matter who you are, or where you come from, or what place you are in life, God can and will use you mightily if you are available.
        1 Corinthians 2:1-5, 9-11: (The Apostle Paul said) And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Sometimes that is all you can stand on and that has to be the only focus.
        Next Paul says: I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
        Again we see the Apostle Paul identifying with the people. He also made it clear to their memory that he had been with them in hard times and reminded them that it was not persuasive preaching or human wisdom or efforts that got them through, but it was the Spirit and power of God. He again reminded them that their faith was to stand in the power of God and not in the wisdom of man.
        With that revelation, Paul goes on to speak by the Spirit: But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
        There is so much more that God has to say and is going to do. We are living in the "information generation," and yet with all our learning and all our information, we are not any wiser to the things of life that really count. Indeed, we need to be a generation with eyes of the spirit and with spiritual understanding—a spiritual generation who knows what to do and will do it. We not only need spiritual SIGHT, but we also need INSIGHT to be able to see beyond our natural seeing and to have vision beyond our natural understanding.
        People with spiritual understanding become people of the Spirit. People with no spiritual understanding become people with just a persuasive word of human wisdom but no demonstration of God's power, life, or anointing.
        2 Chronicles 16:9a: "For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is perfect (set, fixed, without wavering, loyal) to Him."
        1 John 1:1-4: That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—the life was manifested, and we have seen and bear witness and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—
        That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.
        YOU MUST SEE beyond your circumstances.
        YOU MUST SEE beyond what your natural senses would show you.
        YOU MUST SEE with the eyes of your spirit, knowing that the vision you have received is truly a reality just waiting to be made manifest!
        DO YOU SEE YOUR CALLING?