Tag Archives: spiritual

More than meets the eyes

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In general, the Jewish world of ancient times saw a direct relation between many things on earth and in the supernatural world. We hear Jesus speak of how children’s angels are constantly in the presence of God. The seven letters of Revelation are addressed to the angels of the churches. As Joshua prepared to begin the conquest of the Promised Land, he was met by the commander of the army of the Lord.

In the ancient world, many peoples saw their kings as divine. The Bible often speaks of rulers in spiritual terms, even using the term “gods” in Psalms 82 and 138, although that’s probably a bit of sarcasm. They are called “sons of gods,” recognizing their human nature with a link to the spiritual world. I did a study of Genesis 6 when I was in grad school, coming to the conclusion that the passage was talking about human kings. I would probably modify my view a bit now; I still believe they were human kings, but the terminology used probably indicates a demonic rebellion against God as well.

An interesting passage is Deuteronomy 32:8. Most versions follow the reading from the Masoretic text. The ESV chose to follow the Septuagint (and a text from the Dead Sea Scrolls) which reads: “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.” (Deuteronomy 32:8) [Masoretic text says “sons of Israel”] The passage goes on to read: “But the LORD’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.” (Deuteronomy 32:9) This reading reflects the idea that the nations of the world were divided up. God kept Israel for himself and gave the rest to “the sons of God.” While God was king over Israel, others would rule the rest of the nations. Whether or not this reading is the original one, it reflects an ancient Jewish understanding of the relationship between the nations and the spiritual powers.

That helps us understand apocalyptic literature. Physical problems on earth are solved through cosmic warfare, heavenly beings defeating demonic forces. We read Revelation, for example, and wonder why John would describe the fall of Rome in such terms. If we were immersed in the Jewish milieu, we wouldn’t ask that question. The tie between earthly powers and unearthly ones would be assumed and expected.

All of this to remind us that as we look at the world around us, we need to remember that there’s much more than meets the eye. Our physical world is the tip of the iceberg. That’s one reason we have to place complete trust in God, for only He can navigate us through situations that are bigger than we can possibly comprehend.

Let’s Get Spiritual

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337522537_ebc4a82409People mean lots of different things when they say “spiritual.” For some it just means something religious. For others, it means someone who takes his religion seriously: “He’s a very spiritual person.” But what does it mean in the Bible?

The Apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 2:14-16, contrasts the spiritual man with the “natural” man. In chapter 3, he says that the Corinthians were not acting as spiritual men but as “fleshly” men. Yet, he affirms several times in this book that the Corinthians have received the Holy Spirit and that the Holy Spirit lives in them. However Paul had trouble discussing spiritual things with these Christians because they were looking at things from a human point of view, not a spiritual point of view.

So it seems that when the Bible talks about spiritual things, it is contrasting them with physical or natural things (see 1 Corinthians 15:44). You have the things of this world, the things of our human lives, and you have the things that go beyond that, the spiritual things. I’d like to suggest that we take more time this year to focus on the spiritual things. How? Here are a few suggestions:

1) Recognize the reality of the spiritual world. All right, I’ll admit it. Just thinking about such things makes me uncomfortable. I am a child of Western society, raised with the idea that logic is king and that the scientific process is our constitution. We are only supposed to believe that which can be touched, handled or tested in a laboratory. As Christians, we’ve learned to get beyond that point, yet we are still reluctant to truly believe in an unseen spiritual world.

The Bible says: “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:11-12) There are spiritual forces, real powers that exist and work against us. Denying that fact won’t help us win that struggle.

Lest you become afraid, let me remind you that as Christians, we need not fear these powers. John wrote: “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4) As long as we walk in the light, we have God’s protection. Just as there are spiritual powers that oppose us, there are spiritual powers that defend us and aid us. James says that if we submit to God and resist the devil, the devil will flee from us.

At the same time, we should not be complacent. Peter says that: “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) We need to be aware that the struggle is real and that it is one of life and death.

2) Recognize how our actions affect our place in that struggle. We need to take sin seriously. When we sin, we are aiding and abetting the enemy, allowing these dark forces to have some degree of control over us. No, I’m not talking about demon possession as it occurred in the time of Jesus; I think that was a special situation limited to that time (which is why the epistles do not speak of casting out demons). But I do believe that, by our own actions, we can allow evil to have a real place in our lives. Paul warned the Ephesians not to give the devil a foothold (Ephesians 4:27). He also says that when we offer our bodies to sin, we becomes slaves of sin (Romans 6:14-23). We must choose whether to walk in the light or crawl in the darkness.

3) Recognize the real power of prayer. He who is not spiritual sees prayer as a psychological exercises on the par with meditation and self-hypnosis. Those of us who are spiritual realize that prayer changes things, that prayer is a communication with the Supreme Power of creation, with the Almighty God. Prayer summons the aid of all that is right and holy. Paul concludes his discussion of our spiritual armor by saying “Pray at all times in the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:18). We need to pray often, pray fervently and pray with faith.

Lift Your Eyes

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eyesI spent two summers in Long Beach, California, working with the church there. One thing that comes to mind when you think about that area is the traffic. Trying to navigate my way along the crowded streets was quite intimidating to this Texas boy. Since I was spending much of my time looking for places that I had never been to, I had to concentrate on street signs and house numbers as well as deal with the traffic.

Toward the end of that first summer I realized that, if I would just raise my eyes a bit, there was a beautiful view of the mountains near Los Angeles. The view had been there the whole time; I just hadn’t raised my eyes to see it.

There is an old joke about a courtroom scene. Sam, an old man, was a witness in a burglary case. The defense lawyer asked Sam, “Did you see my client commit this burglary?” 

“Yes,” said Sam, “I saw him plainly take the goods.” 

The lawyer asked Sam again, “Sam, this happened at night. Are you sure you saw my client commit this crime?” 

“Yes” said Sam, “I saw him do it.” 

Then the lawyer asked Sam, “Sam listen, you are 80 years old and your eyesight probably is bad. Just how far can you see at night?” 

Sam said, “I can see the moon, how far is that?”

Alan Smith, in his Thought for the Day, retells that joke, then asks the question: “How far can you see?” He talks about people walking along with their heads down, seeing the trash on the sidewalk rather than the beauty of the world around them. He then says that we often do that spiritually, focusing on the physical things around us, rather than the spiritual.

I was talking with someone the other day, commenting that our senses can be so overwhelmed by the physical world around us that it’s hard to see the real world. You see, the sights and sounds and smells around us blind us to the unseen things. It sounds strange, doesn’t it? Yet it’s true: the real world is the unseen world and what we see is merely a facade.

Paul wrote: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:18) We know that this world and everything in it will one day disappear, yet it’s so hard for us to look beyond this world. In another letter, Paul wrote: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:1-2)

So lift your eyes a bit. Look beyond the here and now and catch a glimpse of eternity. There’s a beauty there that is easily missed.

{photo by Rick Sampson}