Once I Was Blind

Thought for Today - September 15
Once I Was Blind!
By Robert A. Searles

     Once I was blind, but now I  see.  From the moment of my physical birth until the moment of my rebirth as a child of God, my spiritual eyes and understanding were afflicted with blindness. This is true of all people whether or not they will acknowledge this truth.
  
  “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of God” for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” I Corinthians 2: 14. 

Jesus said: “Except  a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3: 3.
  
  Unfortunately, there are certain religious leaders today occupying pulpits and  teaching and preaching some form of religion who are blind leaders of the blind.

  Jesus said: “Every plant which my heavenly Father  hath not planted shall be rooted up. Let them alone, they be blind leaders of the blind, and if the blind lead the blind, both shall   fall into the ditch.” Matthew  15: 13,14.

     These blind leaders have never truly been born again and experienced a personal relationship with Jesus Christ; therefore, they teach the doctrines of men, a social gospel of good  works, good deeds, the keeping of rules and commandments .  More emphasis placed on tolerance and love, and at the same time neglecting to teach the penalty of not being forgiven and pardoned by God and having a personal relationship with Christ.

     Praise God! Christ is  willing and able to open the blind eyes of all those who will come to him and ask to receive their sight.  In asking we must believe that he is, in fact, the divine son of God, and is the only way, the truth, and the light.  We must believe that  he is the propitiation for our sins: he paid the price of our redemption, and we  are forever saved by his grace.  We must believe that he arose from the dead and ascended into heaven, and is now our great high priest who makes intercession for us before the throne of God.  We must believe that  if we will confess our sins, he is faithful and  just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

    When we receive all this truth by faith as a free gift of God's grace, we are miraculously born again, and then and only then can we see spiritual things.  We must have the confidence that Jesus can and will do all this for us, and as we believe, Jesus said, it shall be done unto us.

     “And when Jesus departed thence two blind men followed him, crying,  and saying, thou son of David, have mercy on us.  And while he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, believe ye that I am able to do this?  They said unto him, yea, Lord.  Then touched he their eyes, saying, according to your faith be it unto you.  And their eyes were opened, and Jesus straitly charged them, see  that no man know it.” Matthew 9: 27-30.

     In this case Jesus gave physical  sight to physical eyes, and at  this time he was not yet ready for it to be known abroad.  Today Jesus will give spiritual sight to spiritual eyes and he wants all those  who have received spiritual eyesight to go into all the world and  preach the gospel.