Tag: The eyes of God

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The Eyes of God

Daily Reading

2Chronicles 18-20

Daily Thought

Judah had been allies with Israel and things needed to change. Ahab, king of Israel, the husband of wicked Jezebel. “reigned over Israel twenty-two years, and did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him” (1Kings 16:29-30). Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, desired a better epitaph. 

Jehoshaphat’s reformation of Judah began with the court of law. He appointed judges in the land, in all the cities, with one instruction, “Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the Lord. He is with you in giving judgment (2Chronicles 19:6).

I remember watching a movie with my college buddies. They laughed and I laughed. I watched the same movie several years later with my mom. She frowned and I squirmed. Funny how the same movie is different depending on whose eyes you see it through.

“He is with you in giving judgment.” To gaze through the eyes of God is to see sin with more horror, beauty with more wonder, righteousness with more desire. God would be with them, judging alongside them. “Thus Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah, doing what was right in the sight of the Lord” (2Chronicles 20:31-32).

Daily Prayer

Heavenly Father, righteous and good and holy, may I fill my eyes, my thoughts, my heart with heavenly things. May Your glory be reflected in all I do. Give me discernment to know what is right and what pleases You. When I ask You to give me the desires of my heart, God, I do not mean give me whatever I want. Rather, cause Your desires to become my deepest longing, so that whatever I want will reflect Your character.

Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, may I fill my thoughts with these, with goodness, with truth, with grace, with faith, with hope, and most of all, with love.

Amen

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The Eyes of God

Daily Reading

Leviticus 1-4

Daily Thought

Question: Why must the temple offerings be so violent and gruesome? For example, “Then he shall kill the bull before the Lord, and Aaron’s sons the priests shall bring the blood and throw the blood against the sides of the altar that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting” (Leviticus 1:5). Yuch! And wasteful–completely destroying the best of the herd.

We easily speak of sin, almost trivially, at times. Certain lies are white. Venial sins are not mortal sins. If it doesn’t hurt anyone, it is argued, why not do it? Through the eyes of a sinner, sin appears ordinary. The Bible shows us our world through the eyes of God.

The Lord, our holy God, created the heavens and the earth and filled the earth with his creatures. At the very end, he created something special, something above and beyond, some ones in whom he placed his very image. Adam and Eve were holy, without blemish, until they sinned, and their sin, though slight by a sinner’s standard (eating a mere piece of fruit), was catastrophic. You could say it was violent and gruesome and wasteful if you saw it through the eyes of a holy God.

God’s image remains in us, though badly marred, and we do not readily recognize the destructive force of sin, nor the amazing mercy of a holy God who provides forgiveness. The offerings, though violent and gruesome, remind us of purity lost and damage done. They are a foreshadowing of the great cost of sin paid in full by the sacrifice of One like us, though without blemish, Son of Man and Son of God, who took the full force of sin and wrath, and restored us as holy sons and daughters of a holy God.  

Daily Prayer

My God and Savior, what a wonderful creation. I see it today through the smog of sin, but the glory of Your handiwork is still evident. Someday, to see it restored, to live in a holy Kingdom filled with righteousness and peace, what a wonderful hope. I’m so sorry for the damage I do when I choose my own way. Thank You for rescuing me.

God, do not let me make light of sin. Remind me of its harmfulness and its cost, so that I will hate it as You do, and love grace all the more. I have the good news of my Savior, Your Son, to share to this world. You saved me with an amazing love. Thank You.

Amen