Read Seeing Yourself Through God's Eyes Online
Authors: June Hunt
Seeing Yourself Through God's Eyes (8 page)
Can you imagine a 190-ton mass of metal rising against the pull of gravity? Impossible! It can’t be done! Oh, yes it can, by using a “higher law.” When you, in faith, give yourself over to the principle of aerodynamics, you can enter an airplane with full confidence it will fly you from one city to another. You are no longer ground-bound.
Similarly, when you, in faith, give yourself over to the Spirit’s control, the “I can’t” statements will no longer keep you from leaving the runway of life. When God fills your spirit with His Spirit and infuses you with His strength, you no longer have to be sin-bound. Seeing yourself through God’s eyes, you now know “I can” cancels out “I can’t” every time.
“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak
…But those who hope in the L
ORD
will renew
their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles”
(I
SAIAH
40:29,31).
Personalize these verses in your own words:
Ephesians 3:16
Philippians 4:13
Father, through Your eyes I can see that I…
I have worth because…I am given strength from God.
“I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy”
(E
XODUS
33:19).
A
ll eyes are on the woman. Her face is masked with fear. Heart pounding and blood racing, her mind is frantic as the Pharisees fling her before Christ and the curious crowd. Her fate lies with them. With slanderous delight, her accusers recount how she had been caught in the act of adultery. Reminding Jesus that according to Jewish law she must be stoned, they demand, “Now what do you say?” (John 8:5).
As Jesus’ eyes scan the crowd He realizes an opportune time has come to teach a lesson about compassion, as well as conviction of sin. And Jesus’ concern is for this woman’s soul rather than for her sin. He shifts the focus to the “faultless” Pharisees, stating, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her” (John 8:7
KJV
). What? You mean they must scrutinize
themselves?
The Lord cuts open the conscience of the crowd. One by one they retreat, dropping their stones and leaving the woman alone to face the Man of mercy, the only One who could rightfully throw a stone.
“Has no one condemned you?” asks Jesus. “Neither do I condemn you…go now and leave your life of sin” (verse 11). Jesus looked past her fault, saw her need, forgave her sin, set her free. An adulteress deserving death is given another chance at life. What matchless mercy!
Mercy
means, literally, “the outward manifestation of pity.” Mercy is more than emotion; it is
active compassion
meeting a need. No one has a right to mercy. It is extended simply because of the heart of the giver and the need of the receiver. Therefore, when God extends His mercy, He naturally expresses His heart of compassion.
God has given you, His child, an invaluable coin of compassion. One side is engraved with grace, the other is minted with mercy. Throughout your life He extends both grace
(giving
you what you
do not
deserve—liberation) and mercy
(not giving
you what you
do
deserve—condemnation).
You can’t buy the coin—it’s priceless. You can’t earn the coin—it’s undeserved. In fact, you can’t merit mercy. If you could, it wouldn’t be mercy.
Child of God, seeing yourself through God’s eyes, you can know you are forgiven—not by merit, but by mercy. What compassion from the Man of mercy!
Personalize these verses in your own words:
Isaiah 55:7
Hebrews 4:16
Father, through Your eyes I can see that I…
I have worth because…I am given the mercy of God.
“He gives us more grace”
(J
AMES
4:6).
M
y all-time favorite class was ninth-grade algebra. I loved puzzles, which made algebra fun. Because other subjects were hard for me, my A’s in algebra helped to soothe my suffering self-image. In math class, I faced each test with confidence! Tuesday’s test would be no different.
But while taking the test, I suddenly found that I couldn’t remember the formula for problem number one…and number two…or three, four, and five…my mind had gone blank! I could solve only the last two problems. Stunned, I handed my paper to the teacher. After a long, pensive pause, she asked, “When do you have study hall tomorrow?” “At ten o’clock,” I nervously replied. The next day at ten sharp I was in my algebra classroom, and I was given a second chance. I was given a gift called
grace.
Before even knowing what the word
grace
meant, I knew what it was like to be impacted by it. I was in awe that a teacher would extend undeserved favor toward me. That’s what the New Testament Greek word for
grace
means: “undeserved care, unearned favor.”
God is a God of second chances. He is a God full of grace, a God who not only saves you from eternal death, but also saves you from a defeated life. He saves you by putting His life in you. If you focus only on what it’s like to fail in certain areas of your life, you could be drawn into the downward spiral of dejection. However, Jesus said, “I have come that they might have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
He giveth more grace when the burden grows greater;
He sendeth more strength when the labors increase.
To added affliction He addeth His mercy;
To multiplied trials, His multiplied peace.
His love has no limit; His grace has no measure;
His pow’r has no boundary known unto men.
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus,
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again!
12
Can you really have fullness when you have failed? Oh, child of God, discouragement, defeat, and dejection are what the God of all grace can save you from! Seeing yourself through God’s eyes, you will find that in your weakness, He will be your strength. In your failure, He will give you fullness.
How blessed you are to know the God of grace, who saves you from your failures. He is the God of the second chance…and the third…and the fourth…and the fifth…
Personalize these verses in your own words:
2 Corinthians 12:9
1 Timothy 1:14
Father, through Your eyes I can see that I…
I have worth because…I am given the grace of God.
I Am Given Complete Access to God
“In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence”
(E
PHESIANS
3:12).
A
s you were growing up, what kind of “signs” did your father wear? Was he labeled
approachable…available…accessible?
I’ll never forget my best friend’s father. He wore those signs naturally and never once threatened to remove them. As a teenager, I was continually drawn to him and always felt valuable in his presence while in their home.
The life of this man, so accessible, was in sharp contrast to the life of my father, who enforced his belief that children should be seen and not heard. I was so intimidated by his austerity that occasionally, upon hearing his footsteps, I would hide behind a door. It was never normal for me to sit in his lap, kiss his cheek, or share my secrets. I felt my father wore signs that blared, KEEP OUT…NO TRESPASSING…DO NOT ENTER!
Each evening after dinner, my father demanded the full attention of my mother, literally forbidding her to be with us. I will always remember the loneliness of being barred from receiving my mother’s care and concern night after night.
Many people think of God in the same way as I perceived my father—imposing, powerful, completely inaccessible, and certainly not interested in the details of their lives.
But is that true of God? Do you know what your heavenly Father is really like? In John 14:8, Philip emphatically said, “Show us the Father.” Jesus responded, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father…I am in the Father, and…the Father is in me” (John 14:9-10). The truth about God can be found in Jesus.
Being accessible to the poor, Jesus did not wear fashion labels for the elite. He wore no
unapproachable
labels for the leper. Even the prostitute was moved by His openness. And when the children tried to get close to Him, Jesus rebuked His disciples for trying to pin on Him the label
unavailable.
From child to leper, from seeker to sinner, no one felt unacceptable in the presence of Jesus. Though He is Almighty God in the flesh, He is always accessible. From the beginning of time to today, God is always accessible to you!
Whether or not you have ever experienced access to a loving, earthly father, you are always welcome into the presence of your heavenly Father. Seeing yourself through God’s eyes, you know He never has a DO NOT ENTER sign over His heart.
Personalize these verses in your own words:
Ephesians 2:18
Hebrews 4:16
Father, through Your eyes I can see that I…
I have worth because…I am given access to God.
“We have the mind of Christ”
(1 C
ORINTHIANS
2:16).
O
ne cold evening, the fire was warming, as was our conversation. I was spending special time with one of my closest friends—one whom I’ve known for many years. Several times during the evening, I would start to say something and before I could get my thoughts completely formed, she would finish my sentence. Twice, I remember, we said the same word at the same time.
My friend and I have a unique oneness of mind and spirit. We know each other’s sensitivities and sorrows, the preferences and the pains.
How amazing it is that God offers you the same oneness with His Son. He wants you to know His heart by knowing His Word. He wants His thinking to saturate your thoughts. His plan from the beginning has been that His nature become your “second nature.”
When you are given a new life in Christ, you are given a new nature.
Nature
simply means doing what comes naturally. God gives you the capacity to think as He naturally thinks. What an extraordinary gift!
A writer friend of mine told me that every time she sits down to write, she first prays she will have the mind of Christ—His thoughts flowing through her as she writes. Her comment had a strong impact on me—I now pray in the same way.
In the midst of confusion, you need the mind of Christ. In the midst of conflict, when criticism is caustic and when advice is adversarial, you need the mind of Christ. As long as you live, there will always be those who are mentally and emotionally on the attack.
Remember Job’s “friends”? Although Job had done nothing wrong, he was besieged with assumptions that he had sinned. He was weighed down by their words and volumes of verbiage.
At times you may feel like Job, wondering what is true. The advice-givers go on and on, weaving their webs of words. Somehow you feel caught. Can you possibly break free? The answer is yes, because as you develop the mind of Christ, His divine wisdom and discernment are available to you as well.
