Please Open Your Eyes!
Richard Hollerman
Unnumbered illustrations are all around us that would show the folly of taking things for granted and assuming that everything is okay. John may be walking through life—totally unaware of the cancer that grows in his body. Jane may go from day to day, oblivious to the cancer that is eating her body. Tom may be occupied in school and not really be aware of the dreadful car accident that awaits him in only one week. In these and a thousand other cases, we go through life, unaware of the “enemies” of our body and mind that affect us. I hope you will agree with me that this is a serious problem that deserves to be addressed.
More than these physical, emotional, educational, financial, and social dangers, there looms before us tragic spiritual dangers that affect nearly all of us! Almost every day I am confronted with this reality—and you must be too. But are we really aware of how insidious these dangers are, for time and eternity?
For example, nearly every day I glance at the obituary page or pages in our local newspaper. In a city of this size, there may be many dozens of deaths reported each day, giving names and birthdates, occupations and accomplishments. As I survey these death reports, I often see photos of smiling men and women, people who indicated a pleasant aspect to life, but probably many of them were unaware of the death that would overtake them only a month, a year, or a couple of years after the photo was taken. They faced life, seemingly unaware that “it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment” (Hebrews 7:27). I think, “How tragic to live, to work, to have families, to travel, but finally to die and meet God, unprepared!
How many men and women left work but never made it home because of some traffic mishap that took their life! Just yesterday, as I was driving in this area, at least two people “ran red lights” right before me. They must have seen that the light was red, but they chose to drive through the intersection any way! Neither of these incidents resulted in an accident or fatality, but it might have!
Think further: Many people choose to eat a regular diet like everyone else—a diet that is filled with unhealthy and destructive foods. This has been called the SAD (standard American diet) diet! They may not even be interested in nutrition but just are concerned about the taste of certain familiar and tasty dishes. But over the years, their nutritional carelessness may result in a heart attack, diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, or a stroke. “Doing what comes naturally” seems to be their only theme. But finally a trip to the doctor may remind them that it is nearly too late to make major dietary changes that will prolong their life. Why is this?
A family may send their two or three children to the local public school, assuming that this is just what responsible parents do for educational choices. The father and mother may be busy with their jobs or careers and not really have time to do anything different from the ordinary. Thus, the children are sent to pre-school, kindergarten, and twelve more years of elementary school, junior high, and high school. Then, as a matter of course, these same families may send their publicly-trained children to a local community college or state university. After four years of grueling work and expenses, the sons and daughters graduate to begin life—just like everyone else does. Nearly always they have rejected the Scriptures—the truthfulness of God’s word, the morality taught in Scripture, the fact that God created all things by His spoken word rather than evolutionary lies, and so much more. In twenty-two years, these grown children have had their minds and lives changed and formed according to the prevailing views of society and a fallen culture. How dreadful!
Our thoughts here could go on and on, as you can clearly see. In a thousand ways, people become blind to spiritual reality since they have been formed by the culture around them. If they do happen to have some religious leanings, these spiritual beliefs and practices are far different from what we see revealed in God’s Word. In many cases, it is just too late. The die has been set and the lifestyle has been formed. Such people will live and die without further major changes. It is too late.
What about you? Are you happy and contented with your present lifestyle—or are you dissatisfied or even sick of life as you have known it? We began these few words with the title, “Please Open Your Eyes!” This is a plea to the majority who are in spiritual blindness (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:3-4). If you find yourself in this blindness and lethargy, please call out to God for His help in overcoming this and giving you new eyes to be able to see spiritual reality. We all need to be changed in life. We all need a spiritual “resurrection” that will enable us to see truth that is before our eyes. Will you do this today? You are on the right track if you are reading the articles on this website. If you have a spiritual hunger and thirst, God will surely fill this need and deliver you. Please do so today—without delay!