Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit · Sermon No. 1466
“The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; hat you may know whiat is he hiope of His calling, and whiat are he richies of he glory of His inhieritance in he saints, and whiat is he exceeding greatness of Hispower toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power, which He worked in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the hea venly places.” Ephesians 1:18-20.
[On a night when the Tabernacle was thrown open to all comers, the ordinary hearers vacating their seats for the occasion.]
You see the text begins with a personal experience within the mind and judgment—“the eyes of your understanding being enlightened.” Everything depends upon the opened eyes! The scene may be fair and the light may be bright, but if the sight is gone, all is in vain. Zedekiah had his eyes put out by the king of Babylon and then he was taken down to the imperial city, but as for being able to enjoy anything, he might as well have been in a desert. There were vast halls, palaces, hanging gardens and a city wall which was the wonder of the world, so that Babylon is called, by the Prophet, “the glory of kingdoms and the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency”—but the blinded monarch beheld nothing of all the grandeur of the golden city and to him her wealth was as though it had not been.
Thus is it with us by nature—we have no apprehension of spiritual things, no power to discern eternal good—our foolish heart is darkened. Therefore the Lord must first enlighten the eyes of our understanding, or else, however precious the Truth of God and however clearly it may be stated, we shall never be able to apprehend it. I find there is a rendering of the text which runs thus, “The eyes of your heart being enlightened,” and it strikes me that this version has about it the appearance of being the correct one, because Divine things are usually better seen by the heart than by the understanding.
There are a thousand things which God has revealed which we shall never understand and yet we can know them by a loving, trusting experience. Our Savior says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” The purifying of the heart is the enlightening of the spiritual eyes. Strange as it may seem, the true eyes of the renewed man is seated rather in the heart than in the head—holy affections enable us to see and, as far as possible, to understand Divine things. I pray that in each one of us the eyes of our heart may be enlightened so that we may know spiritual things as they are best known.
Now, the prayer of our text was offered for Christians—for converted persons, for those who had faith in Christ Jesus and love to all the saints—yet Paul says that he never ceased to pray that their eyes might be enlightened. Yes, Brothers and Sisters, he who sees most needs to have his eyes enlightened to see more, for how little as yet of the Glory of God have any of us beheld? Even that favored pilgrim who has been led by the shepherds to the top of Mount Clear, to stand there with telescopic glass and gaze into the glories of Immanuel’s land has yet only begun to perceive the things which God has prepared for them that love Him!
I pray God that if we already see, we may see more, until our eyes shall be so strengthened that the light of the New Jerusalem shall not be too strong for us, but amid the splendor of God which outshines the sun, we shall find ourselves at home. But if Believers need to have their eyes enlightened, how much more must those who are unconverted? They are altogether blind and, consequently, their need of enlightenment is far greater. They were born blind and the god of this world takes care to further darken their minds. Around them there broods a sevenfold midnight, the gloom of spiritual death. “They meet with darkness in the daytime and grope in the noonday as in the night.”
O blind eyes, may Jesus touch you! May the Spirit bring His sacred eye salve to make you see and, tonight, though it is not ours to give you eyes, we will tell you what is to be seen, hoping that, perhaps, while we give the description, God may give you eyes with which to verify our report. Perhaps even the reporting of these things may set you longing for them and, when you have but a longing, God will hear you! If that longing is turned into a prayer and that prayer is kindled by a spark of faith, that longing shall be the beginning of light to your soul and you shall see the salvation of
God!
Tonight, then, there are two things we shall ask about—what things are to be seen and known according to the text? And, secondly, why it is our anxious desire that every person here should see and know these things?
I. First, then, WHAT IS TO BE SEEN AND KNOWN ACCORDING TO THE TEXT? When you heard me read it, you must have noticed that it contains three “whats.” “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe.” Upon these three “whats” I shall try to speak tonight—may the Holy Spirit speak through me to all your souls.