Opening The Eyes Of The Heart Series

Opening the Eyes of the Heart

Spiritual Heart Surgery

Ephesians 1:17-19

Let me set the stage for you as author John Eldredge does in his book “Waking the Dead.” Two men are seated across from each other in a dark room. Outside, a thunderstorm rages in the night, shaking the old house to its foundations. Flashes of lightning are dimmed by heavy curtains, which have been drawn because it is a secret meeting. This is the first time these men have ever met, though they have been searching for each other most of their lives. Not a moment too soon, their destinies have crossed. One of them, a tall black man dressed all in black, carries the aura of a spiritual master. The younger man, trying his best to conceal the fact that he is frightened and uncertain, might become his disciple. It all depends on a decision.

This situation, if you haven’t figured it out, comes from the movie “The Matrix”. In this scene, Morpheus is trying to convince Neo that there is much more to life than what meets his eye on an everyday basis. Now, he has come to a crossroads. Morpheus gives him a choice. He says, “This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill – the story ends, you wake up in your bed and you believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill – you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.” If you have seen the movie, you know that Neo chooses the red pill. He wants to see what he has been missing this entire time. Which pill would you choose?

Now, all of us can see here this morning. Some of us may need the aid of glasses and some of us do not see as well as we used to, but we can all still see the physical world around us with our eyes. However, what if I were to tell you that if we just look at the world through these eyes, we are settling for the blue pill? I want us to step out this morning in faith and take the red pill. Let’s see through a completely different set of eyes this morning that God has made available to us. This morning, I want to do some surgery to open the eyes of our heart. Let’s see what I am talking about by looking at Ephesians 1:17-19.

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength.

This morning, I want us to allow the Holy Spirit to explain to us through the word of God what it means to open the eyes of our hearts. Before we go any further, let’s ask the Lord to bless our time.

What Does It Mean?

How many of you know the difference between book smarts and street smarts? I have a friend named Pete who is an engineer of some sort. He went to Penn State and graduated with a near 4.0 grade point average. He then went on to get his Masters degree at MIT where he finished again with a near 4.0. He is a very smart kid.

Now, I went with Pete on a mission trip to Peru. At the end of the trip, we took a trip to a marketplace which was the equivalent of the Hazen flea market. Now, I have been to many flee markets and such, so I know that every price is negotiable. You can also barter and haggle for the best deal possible, and this is the same whether you do it in Hazen or in Cusco, Peru. As I went among the booths, I gazed upon a hand carved chess set that I wanted to purchase for my brother. It was beautiful. I asked for the price, and it came close to $85 American money. Now, I had gone with a Peruvian native earlier in the week to work out a deal to buy some clothing, so I knew that they had a system to their pricing. The first price they give to gringos is always twice as high. They hope that you will pay that much not realizing how much money you are actually paying due to the exchange rate. Then, if you say no, they will give you a much better deal. They usually take half off the price so you think you are getting a steal. They are still making a killing off of you though if you pay this price. So, I haggled with this person knowing that I did not need to buy this set unless I got a great price. Finally, I said, “No Gracias,” and I walked away. Instantly, the price feel to about $15 as the vendor chased me down. I ignored him. The price fell again. I ended up paying a little more than $12 for the set.