Thoughtless extremes are the dwelling places of some in the family of God. We meet these regularly – people who are a product of what they were indoctrinated with shortly after their conversion to Christ. They came with no knowledge and then received what was taught to them in sincere belief. Some were taught that Jesus Christ begins their salvation but, from that point forward, it is their responsibility to hold it all together. Others were taught that hyper-extreme version of God’s sovereignty and it bred in them an apathetic approach to Christian living and the Great Commission – after all, why bother tiring yourself out when God has had it all sewn up from the beginning? Some were trained that worship is all about the emotional experience of a moment put to music. Their brethren on the other side of the aisle were educated to conclude that worship is still and quiet with no outward display at all because this is how we please God. For many it’s about bible knowledge, for many others it’s about individual expression and experience. Whether the emphasis is prayer or evangelism or discipleship training or scripture memorization, the church is always in danger of going to thoughtless extremes at the expense of other valid facets of our faith. Perhaps the greatest and only extreme we should actively pursue is to be extremely humbled. Nobody has this thing called faith-living down pat yet…that includes you.
“When he entered the house, the blind men came to Him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.” And their eyes were opened.” – Matthew 9:28-30 {ESV}
We are like these blind men who needed their eyes opened. We don’t always see what should be perceived. I’m a firm believer that we stand in need of successive “touches” from the Master in order to continually discern what He has for us. Our flesh limits us from being able (on our own) to properly understand ourselves, others, or the Lord Himself. No matter how many books we read, degrees we earn, churches we join or ministries we multiply, there is an ongoing need for spiritual illumination from God. One of Paul’s foremost prayers for Christians was that they might have the eyes of their understanding enlightened (Ephesians 1:18). Have you slowed down recently to have your vision checked by Him? There are three quick points of emphasis in the short verses above that I’d like us to consider.
- The blind men displayed initiative and made their way to Christ
- He asked them simply if they believed that He could cause them to see
- He touched the place of their blindness and rewarded their faith by empowering them to see
When our lives are hazy and we find ourselves akin to these blind men we should know by now to quickly enter the presence of the Master. Confusion and listless living are the occasional reality of all of us: Who am I? What am I doing? What does God desire from me and for me? For what am I now living? These questions require illuminated answers from a holy and divine perspective. The next issue to be addressed is whether or not we truly believe that God can give us the understanding – do we trust Him to open our eyes? If the answer is No then we will continue to stumble about under overcast skies with insufficient light upon His path. When we find that we do believe that Christ can and will open our eyes, then we are candidates for receiving from Him crystalized clarity. It is here where the Lord places a personal touch upon us and restores our vision for living unto His glory. These are tremendous moments which refresh us and reacquaint us to a sense of the ongoing victory which is truly and presently ours in Christ. I have often found myself in desperate need of a touch like this. It is likely that both you and I will find ourselves again with this need in the not-too-distant future.
The Lord Jesus said, “According to your faith be it done to you.” Don’t miss that. Though I am strongly convinced of God’s sovereign orchestration of all things we find here that His plan incorporates your faith and addresses even the degree of it. What are we doing to strengthen our faith? How are we nourishing our souls these days? You and I live frenetic lives with hurried schedules. Our culture teaches us to maximize our bodies, build our reputations, strengthen our financial portfolios, broaden our education and enlarge our capacity for recreation and leisure. Yet the Spirit tells us to focus more intently upon deepening our faith; this is a calling to which we can be tempted to shrug our shoulders, shuffle our feet and bow out of this holy summons.
Therefore we often walk in dimness.
Be careful of living in thoughtless extremes. Guard your heart against assuming that the Sovereign God will just make your vibrant faith and fruitful life come to pass. Let us also be warned not to scurry about wrongly believing that it all depends on us. I’m not telling you to act. I’m telling you to think. I’m writing to encourage you to slow down and assess the luminescence of your life – are you walking in brightness or shadows these days? Your Savior has touched you once for eternal life. He is prepared and able to touch you again for vision for living. Do you believe that He will do this? Be it unto you according to your faith.