Open The Eyes Of My Heart

May 10, 2015

Morning Worship

Text: Proverbs 29:18

Subject: Revelation from The Word

Title: Open the Eyes of My Heart

Happy Mother’s Day to all our Moms. As I began the week trying to get direction for a Mother’s Day sermon the Spirit began to deal with me in a totally different direction, so if this Mother’s Day sermon isn’t like what you expected I apologize. Actually it is kind of a Mother’s Day sermon because it seems that mothers have the uncanny ability to understand when there are hidden things going on. You all know what I mean. How many of you have been caught by your mom when you were young doing something you shouldn’t have been doing and there was no way she could have known about it, but she did. That is kind of the direction that I want to take you in today with the sermon. I want to talk to you about revelation and it’s importance in the church, especially for the times we are living in.

The gift bags that our moms received this morning have a scripture verse attached to them. Psalm 119:105 (NKJV)

105 Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.

Word study on 3 words…

Word – a word or a thing – the root word is the verb which is a word spoken…

Lamp - a light or a lamp, but more than that. Refers to a bright or glistening lamp. Root word “fire”…

Light – illumination – in this instance illumination from the word.

Does God intend for His word to be light for you?

For millions of Christians the word of God is simply a book of guidelines for living. But this is also speaking of the spoken word – God speaking by His Spirit..

1 Corinthians 2:7-9 (NKJV)

7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory,

8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him."

See? There it says it. We can’t see or hear or perceive in our hearts all the things God has for us…

Really? That’s not what verse 10 says.

1 Corinthians 2:10 (NKJV)

10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

1 Corinthians 2:10 (ETRV)

10 But God has shown us these things through the Spirit. The Spirit knows all things. The Spirit even knows the deep secrets of God.

Would you agree that God shows things through both the written word and the spoken word?

Would you also agree then that it is the Holy Spirit that reveals things to us today?

The Spirit even knows the deep secrets of God.

So if you go on down to verse 14,

1 Corinthians 2:14 (NIV2011)

14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.

OK, this is where I wanted to get to today.

Proverbs 29:18 (KJV)

18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

For years I have taken this verse to refer to the church and that the church has to have a plan for the future – a vision – and if there was no vision then the church would not prosper. And while that may be true, it isn’t what this verse is saying.

The word that is translated “vision” in the KJV refers to seeing a picture in your mind and is better translated as “revelation”. So any group of people, whether the church or a community or a nation that is receiving revelation from the Lord and then keeps it is blessed.

Proverbs 29:18 (NKJV)

18 Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law.

Do you think that revelation is a good thing? Look at the last part of that verse. But happy is he who keeps the law.

How did the Law come to Moses? Through direct revelation from God! Is just receiving revelation enough? No, you have to be in obedience with God’s revealing in order to be blessed.

Proverbs 29:18 (ETRV)

18 If a nation is not guided by God, the people will lose self-control, but the nation that obeys God's law will be happy.