The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness. Matthew 6:22-23 ESV1
Read Matthew 6:19-24
Have you ever heard the idiom looking at life through rose-colored glasses? It means positively seeing things or having an optimistic outlook. Often, if one is wearing rose-colored glasses, he/she sees things better than they really are.
There doesn’t seem to be an idiom for the opposite of rose-colored glasses, yet that mindset definitely exists. Some people look through another kind of glasses, and those glasses are half empty. Those people have a negative outlook on life and circumstances. To them, things often appear worse than they really are.
We all have glasses through which we look at life. Our glasses are our beliefs; they are the filters that determine what we see. What we see determines how we behave.
If we believe everyone is worthy of love, we will love ourselves and others. If we believe we are on Earth for a purpose, we will confidently search for, find, and fulfill our purpose, as we help others do the same. If we believe we have been blessed, we will bless others. If we believe all people have value, we will appreciate the uniqueness in ourselves and in those who differ from us.
Consequently, if we believe we are unlovable, we won’t be able to love ourselves or accept the loving words and actions of others. If we believe we are here by accident, we will treat ourselves, others, and our environment with apathy and disdain. If we believe we must always be right, we will fear differences and be offended when others offer their opposing opinions. If we believe we must look or act a certain way, we will be judgmental, yet we will be racked with insecurities.
This matter of how we perceive the world around us is greater than personality differences, though. If how we look at any set of circumstances was based solely on personality, because of the law of averages, the positive would balance out the negative, and we would be living in a harmonious environment.
But our environment is far from harmonious because we are constantly confronted with lies. These lies have been around since the Garden of Eden; they have led to our insecurities, fears, worries, selfishness, and unwise choices. Satan is the father of lies (see John 8:44). He has been a liar from the beginning. His lies have caused much sin, which has led to bondage and has sealed the deception that has affected generations and generations of people.
That is why Jesus said, “‘The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness’” (Matthew 6:22-23a). Whether you have a “healthy eye” or “bad eye” is dependent totally on where you are looking. Remember, Peter could walk on the water as long as he kept his eyes on Jesus. As soon as he looked around at the crashing waves, he began to sink (see Matthew 14:22-31).
To see the truth, we must look to Jesus: “‘the Way, the Truth, and the Life’” (John 14:6). Keep your eyes on Jesus. Truth is in Who He is and in what He says about who you are. “We are united with Christ … God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ … [we] belong to His dear Son … He purchased our freedom … and forgave our sins. He has showered His kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding … Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for He chose us in advance, and He makes everything work out according to His plan” (Ephesians 1:3-9 NLT2). The truth is, if you are in Christ, you are loved, chosen for holiness, and adopted into God’s family; you belong to Him, you have freedom and forgiveness; you have been showered with kindness, wisdom, and understanding; and you have an inheritance from God. Wow! Meditating on these truths could change one’s entire outlook on life.
One can’t fully concentrate both on truth and lies. One can’t stare into the darkness and, at the same time, focus on the light. One can’t simultaneously meditate on Jesus and his/her circumstances any more than one can look concurrently to the right and to the left. “‘No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money’” (Matthew 6:24).
That is why Jesus instructs, “‘Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on Earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also’” (Matthew 6:19-20). If one’s treasure is in Heaven, it is not dependent on the ups and downs of the stock market, the integrity of locks, the swiftness of emergency personnel, the knowledge of doctors, or the consistency of human emotions. One’s eyes naturally turn to his/her treasure. On what are you focusing?
“‘If your eye is bad’” (Matthew 6:23) make an appointment with the Heavenly Optometrist. Get your eye healthy by acquiring for yourself a pair of Christ-focused glasses. Put on those glasses and intently look through them. Christ-focused glasses are the only truly balanced lenses through which to look at the world. Christ-focused glasses keep one’s eyes on heavenly treasures. Christ-focused glasses direct one’s attention toward the only One who brings true peace, joy, and contentment.
“O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s a light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!
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.
Through death into life everlasting
He passed, and we follow Him there;
Over us sin no more hath dominion—
For more than conquerors we are!
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.
His Word shall not fail you—He promised;
Believe Him, and all will be well:
Then go to a world that is dying,
His perfect salvation to tell!
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.”3
1 Scripture quotations marked with ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All Scriptures are taken from the ESV unless otherwise noted. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.
2 Scripture quotations marked NLT are from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.
3 “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus,” Words & Music by Helen H. Lemmel, published in Glad Songs, by the British National Sunday School Union.