Lord, Open Our Spiritual Eyes

by Aspiring Rev. Isaiah Thomas
(Virginia)

Church of God in Christ (COGIC)

2 Kings 6:8-18:
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Elisha Stops an Invasion of the Syrian Army
"Time after time, when the king of Syria was at war against the Israelites, he met with his officers and announced, “ I've decided where we will set up camp.” Each time, Elisha would send this warning to the king of Israel: “Don’t go near there. That’s where the Syrian troops have set up camp.”

So the king would warn the Israelite troops in that place to be on guard. The king of Syria was furious when he found out what was happening. He called in his officers and asked, “Which one of you has been telling the king of Israel our plans?”

“None of us, Your Majesty,” one of them answered. “It’s an Israelite named Elisha. He’s a prophet, so he can tell his king everything—even what you say in your own room.” “Find out where he is!” the king ordered. “I’ll send soldiers to bring him here.”

They learned that Elisha was in the town of Dothan and reported it to the king. He ordered his best troops to go there with horses and chariots. They marched out during the night and surrounded the town. When Elisha’s servant got up the next morning, he saw that Syrian troops had the town surrounded.

“Sir, what are we going to do?” he asked. “Don’t be afraid,” Elisha answered. “There are more troops on our side than on theirs.” Then he prayed, “Lord, please help him to see.” And the Lord let the servant see that the hill was covered with fiery horses and flaming chariots all around Elisha. As the Syrian army came closer, Elisha prayed, “Lord, make those soldiers blind!” And the Lord blinded them with a bright light."

The topic of my sermon on today is "Lord, Open Our Spiritual Eyes."

In our text, it says that everytime the king of Syria tried to attack the armies of Israel by surprise, the Prophet Elisha would already know where he set up camp and he would already know his battle strategies and tactics. And the king of Syria thought that it was one of his own generals.

So he called them in a meeting. So he said, "Which one of y'all have been telling the king of Israel my plans?!" And one of them said, "None of us, Your Majesty." He continued on to say that it was the Prophet Elisha who always knew beforehand what the Syrian army was going to do.

In fact, he said in the King James Version,"he knows what goes on in your own bedroom." Now, I don't know about y'all, but that's some pretty powerful stuff right there. That had to be God who allowed him to see the very things that the Syrian king did in his own bedroom.

So the king sent soldiers to Israel to find Elisha in Dothan. And when Elisha's servant saw that the Syrian soldiers were coming, he said, "Master, what shall we do?" Then Elisha reassured him that "They who on our side are more than they that with them."

How many of you are glad that "if God be for you, who can be against you?" All of God's angels put together are more together than all of the enemies that Satan may try to use to get to you. So Elisha then prayed and asked God to open up his servant's spiritual eyes.

You see you have to use your "spiritual eyes" to see what God wills to be done in your life. You have to use your spiritual eyes to see God working on your behalf. You have to use your spiritual eyes to see that blessing from God that you need coming your way!

You have to use your spiritual eyes to see that miracle of healing, that miracle of deliverance coming your way! God gave all of us spiritual eyes that we can use to see the miracle that God has planned for us. But the only way to see with your spiritual eyes is to have faith. Jesus said that with faith you "can say to this mountain be moved, and it will move."

Your spiritual eyes are one of the things that help you to exercise your faith. If you just look with your natural eyes, all you can see is the Devil's allies surrounding you, and ganging up on you, and trying to kill you. But if you look with your spiritual eyes, you can see God's angels defeating the Devil's allies and God putting the Devil in his place.

We should have enough faith in God to say, "No matter what the Devil tries to do to us, God, please open our spiritual eyes so that we can see your divine power at work." The only way to see God's power in working in your life is to look with your spiritual eyes.

Looking with your spiritual eyes is like using your faith. In fact, the only way to see with your spiritual eyes to have faith. Faith in God is very important. James 2:20 says "faith without works is dead."

Also, when you look with your spiritual eyes at God's power, you also have to be in the spirit of Jesus Christ. Romans 8:1 says "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." In Romans 8:9-10 it says, "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness."

I don't even have to expound on that. You HAVE TO BE IN THE SPIRIT OF GOD in order to use your spiritual eyes. You can't walk after the flesh if you're going to use your spiritual eyes.

So the next time the Devil tries to mess up your finances, look with your spiritual eyes and see God's power of deliverance! The next time the devil tries to plague your body with sicknesses, disease, and infirmity, look with spiritual eyes and see God's power of healing! The NEXT TIME THE DEVIL TRIES TO DESTROY YO LOOK WITH YOUR SPIRITUAL EYES AND SEE GOD'S SAVING POWER!!!

SOMEBODY SAY HALLELUJAH!!! Thank you Jesus! Your healing, your deliverance, and your blessing is on the way, but in order to see that blessing coming, you have to look with your spiritual eyes!!! Hallelujah to God!!!

In conclusion, from now on, when things are going right in your life, and when the Devil has you surrounded on every angle, look with spiritual eyes, and see God's power at work!! Pray my strength in the Lord.