Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
January 2014
"Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace." Hillsong
"Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." Hebrews 12:2
"Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord." Isaiah 38:2
John 16:33 NLT says, "I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” We have an enemy out there folks, who is trying everything in his power to keep blood bought believers bound up with fear, worry, doubt, and anxiety. He's trying to make us ineffective as Christian witnesses. He's trying to shut our mouths and get us to doubt God and His Word. He's trying to keep that seed that is on the inside of you and me from growing, maturing, developing, and bearing much fruit. But he is already defeated and he knows this, but until you, my friend realize that satan is a defeated foe, he will continue to put up smoke screens and you will continue to be dominated by the seen and the felt, instead of by the spirit of the living God. For this reason, we must turn our eyes upon Jesus. Isaiah 38:1-2 says, "In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord."
Let's stop here: How do you respond when given some bad news. Do you panic, complain, have a pity party, run away from God, give up on God, fire faith and hire fear? What is your response in the face of difficulty? Is it fear, worry, and doubt or faith? Do you give up or persevere? Do you give in or endure? Hezekiah's immediate response teaches us all a lesson. You see, he turned his face toward the wall and prayed to God. Most people, including myself at times, when given bad news begin to stress out, panic, complain, worry, and fear. BUT friend, that is the worst thing that you can do when faced with a circumstance or trial. Speaking the wrong words, walking in fear which results in you running into the "open" arms of Mr. Worry, Mr. Doubt, Mr. Unbelief, and Mr. Ineffective will only give the devil something to work with and allow him access into your life. Friend, we are NEVER to let our eyes, our feelings, our circumstances or anything else, but the Word dictate what we believe. We walk by faith and not by sight!
The Word says that Hezekiah "turned his face to the wall" but what does that mean for us today? To turn your face to the wall means to turn away from everything else until all you see is God. It means turning away from everything and everyone that may be distracting you from seeking God. It means to FOCUS ON JESUS, NOT YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES! Friend, we must turn away from what we see in the natural. We must turn away from how we feel. We must turn away from what people say, if it is not in alignment with God's Word. We must resolve once and for all that God is greater, stronger, and more powerful than the circumstances that stare us in the face. We must be determined to turn our eyes upon Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.
One thing that we must pay close attention to is that when Hezekiah turned away from the circumstance/trial, he did not just do so in silence, he instead opened up his mouth and prayed to the Lord. Hezekiah prayed knowing that, "...the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much" (James 5:16). He did not pray scared. He prayed in faith. The Bible says that, "Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well" (James 5:15 NLT). Because of Hezekiah's prayer the Word says, "Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: "Go and tell Hezekiah, 'This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life" (Isaiah 38:4-5). Friend, it is time for us to dig in our heels and turn toward the Lord wholeheartedly. When you get a word from God, hold on to it like a pit bull and never turn loose. Symptoms and circumstances may be screaming for attention. Fear and doubt may be shouting in your ear. But no matter what is going on, stay with God and stay with the Word. For no word from God will ever fail! Turn your face to the wall and focus on the Word. Be serious about your prayer life; your prayers are not ineffective! And watch God perform a miracle on your behalf. He who promised is faithful! Turn your eyes upon Jesus today!
Be encouraged!
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace." Hillsong
"Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." Hebrews 12:2
"Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord." Isaiah 38:2
John 16:33 NLT says, "I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” We have an enemy out there folks, who is trying everything in his power to keep blood bought believers bound up with fear, worry, doubt, and anxiety. He's trying to make us ineffective as Christian witnesses. He's trying to shut our mouths and get us to doubt God and His Word. He's trying to keep that seed that is on the inside of you and me from growing, maturing, developing, and bearing much fruit. But he is already defeated and he knows this, but until you, my friend realize that satan is a defeated foe, he will continue to put up smoke screens and you will continue to be dominated by the seen and the felt, instead of by the spirit of the living God. For this reason, we must turn our eyes upon Jesus. Isaiah 38:1-2 says, "In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord."
Let's stop here: How do you respond when given some bad news. Do you panic, complain, have a pity party, run away from God, give up on God, fire faith and hire fear? What is your response in the face of difficulty? Is it fear, worry, and doubt or faith? Do you give up or persevere? Do you give in or endure? Hezekiah's immediate response teaches us all a lesson. You see, he turned his face toward the wall and prayed to God. Most people, including myself at times, when given bad news begin to stress out, panic, complain, worry, and fear. BUT friend, that is the worst thing that you can do when faced with a circumstance or trial. Speaking the wrong words, walking in fear which results in you running into the "open" arms of Mr. Worry, Mr. Doubt, Mr. Unbelief, and Mr. Ineffective will only give the devil something to work with and allow him access into your life. Friend, we are NEVER to let our eyes, our feelings, our circumstances or anything else, but the Word dictate what we believe. We walk by faith and not by sight!
The Word says that Hezekiah "turned his face to the wall" but what does that mean for us today? To turn your face to the wall means to turn away from everything else until all you see is God. It means turning away from everything and everyone that may be distracting you from seeking God. It means to FOCUS ON JESUS, NOT YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES! Friend, we must turn away from what we see in the natural. We must turn away from how we feel. We must turn away from what people say, if it is not in alignment with God's Word. We must resolve once and for all that God is greater, stronger, and more powerful than the circumstances that stare us in the face. We must be determined to turn our eyes upon Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.
One thing that we must pay close attention to is that when Hezekiah turned away from the circumstance/trial, he did not just do so in silence, he instead opened up his mouth and prayed to the Lord. Hezekiah prayed knowing that, "...the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much" (James 5:16). He did not pray scared. He prayed in faith. The Bible says that, "Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well" (James 5:15 NLT). Because of Hezekiah's prayer the Word says, "Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: "Go and tell Hezekiah, 'This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life" (Isaiah 38:4-5). Friend, it is time for us to dig in our heels and turn toward the Lord wholeheartedly. When you get a word from God, hold on to it like a pit bull and never turn loose. Symptoms and circumstances may be screaming for attention. Fear and doubt may be shouting in your ear. But no matter what is going on, stay with God and stay with the Word. For no word from God will ever fail! Turn your face to the wall and focus on the Word. Be serious about your prayer life; your prayers are not ineffective! And watch God perform a miracle on your behalf. He who promised is faithful! Turn your eyes upon Jesus today!
Be encouraged!