SERIES: “DISCOVER VISION: SEEING WHAT GOD WANTS YOU TO SEE”
TEXT: SELECTED
TITLE: “20/20 VISION”
OPEN: A. I want to ask for some audience participation..
1. Can anyone guess what the most popular surgery is in the world today?
2. Here’s another clue:
-- It’s considered safe, relatively affordable, and relatively effective
3. The answer is laser eye surgery
a. People are interested in getting their sight back to 20/20
b. They want their vision restored
B. Today is the final message in our series “Discover Vision: Seeing What God Wants You to See”
--each message has built on the next. Let’s have just a quick review:
1. Message #1 was “Eyes Wide Open”
a. Prov. 29:18 AMP – ““Where there is no vision [no redemptive revelation of God], the people
perish…”
b. We talked about what vision is, what it does, and how it motivates and moves us to do what
God is asking us to do
2. Message #2 was “Seeing Through the Lens of Faith”
--that our vision can be faulty if we’re not looking through the corrective lens of faith.
a. Heb. 11:1 – “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
b. We looked at how looking through the lens of faith demonstrated itself in our lives
--Faith shows itself in:
1). What we believe
2). How we live
3). How we give
4). How we serve
3. Message #3 was “What Are You Looking At?”
a. Heb. 12:2 – “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy
set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God.”
b. We’re to look to Jesus
1). For our purpose
2). For our persistence
3). For our prize
4. Today’s message is “20/20 Vision”
1. Even more so than the people who want their physical sight to be accurate, we as Christians
should want our spiritual eyes to be accurate
2. What happens when our spiritual vision is 20/20?
--Let’s look at the Bible this morning and see
I. SEE DEFEAT TURNED TO VICTORY
--2 Chron. 20:20 – “Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat
stood and said, ‘Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you
will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.’”
A. What happened?
--have to go back and see the verse in its context
1. We’re looking at the time period when the descendants had divided into two nations: the northern
kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah
2. Jehoshaphat is king of Judah
--He’s one of the good kings who tried to follow in the footsteps of his father Asa and worked hard
at keeping the people of Judah faithful to God
3. In our passage, we see several things
a. vs. 1 tells us that the Moabites, the Ammonites, and some of the Meunites have conspired together
to attack Judah
--they know that together, their military might is much stronger that Judah
b. Jehoshaphat is warned about the coming invasion
1). He determines to seek God for help and direction
2). He declares a fast for all the people of Judah
3). All the people of Judah meet together to seek help from the Lord
--vs. 4 – “The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came
from every town in Judah to seek him.”
c. Jehosphat prays in front of the assembly
--vss. 5-12 – “O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over
all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand
you. O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and
give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? They have lived in it and have built
in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of
judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your
Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’ But now here are
men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade
when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. See how
they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance.
O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is
attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.”
d. vs. 13 tell us that everyone stood together waiting on instructions form the Lord
e. vss. 14 says that a Levite named Jehaziel delivers a prophetic message from God:
f. vs. 15 relates the word of instruction from God – “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in
Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged
because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow march down against
them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge
in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm
and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not
be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.’”
g. Jehoshaphat fell down on his face to worship God and all of the people of Judah joined him
--some of the Levites began to lead the people in songs of praise
h. The next morning, not only did Jehoshaphat and all of his soldiers go out to meet the armies
arrayed against them. The people of Jerusalem did too
--Jehoshaphat organized an army of singers and worshippers and they the regular army to the
battlefield
i. Listen to vs. 22-25 – “As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of
Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. The men of
Ammon and Moab rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After
they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another. When the men of
Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only
dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry
off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also
articles of value—more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three
days to collect it.”
B. How does it apply?
--Several important processes for us to implement to see defeat turned to victory:
1. Remember God’s promises
a. God has made some precious and powerful promises in His word
--know that He is faithful in keeping those promises
b. Jer. 29:11 – “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not
to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”
2. Pray
a. Jehoshaphat and the people knew that they did not have what it would take to face these enemies
b. They petitioned God for help
c. They recognized Him as the sole provider for their needs
3. Listen to God’s revealed message
a. We have a whole book that contains God’s revealed message – the Bible
b. God has written this book for our instruction and inspiration for our journey on this earth
c. Let’s make sure we hear and do what it says
4. Utilize the power of praise
a. When we face a difficulty in life or when things don’t go our way, what’s the first thing we normally
do?
--gripe, grouse, grumble, and complain
b. Then we try to argue with others to get it going our way
c. We’re specifically told that God’s people shouldn’t behave that way
--Phil. 2:14 – “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”
c. I the Old Testament, the people who led the army of God into battle were the musicians
--singers and instrumentalists who sang God’s praises ahead of God’s army
5. Walk by faith
a. When we’re using earthly sight instead of heavenly sight, we see all the obstacles in our way
--Hannah Moore: “Obstacles are those frightful things we see when you take your eyes off the
goal.”
b. Walking by faith, we keep our eyes on Jesus and the goal and the obstacles disappear
6. Walk together
a. Go back to vs. 4 – “The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they
came from every town in Judah to seek him.”
b. You have to realize that you are not in the battle alone
1). God’s people have to work together to defeat our enemies
2). If you’re struggling in some area of your life, lean on your brothers and sisters in Christ
--We’re here to help
c. One of the things that keeps a church from growing is when the people of the church aren’t united
together to pursue the salvation of the lost and the encouragement of the saved
--God’s people win they are working together and not pulling apart
II.. SEE REBELLION TURNED TO REVERANCE
--Ezek. 20:20 - “Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I
am the LORD your God.”
A. What happened?
1. Notes about Ezekiel as a prophet
2. Pay attention that a group of leaders came to seek a word from the Lord through His prophet
--vs. 1 – “In the seventh year, in the fifth month on the tenth day, some of the elders of Israel came to
inquire of the LORD, and they sat down in front of me.”
3. God wants to know if Ezekiel is ready to share the truth with these men
4. Through Ezekiel, God confronts these leaders with the long history of rebellion on the part of His
people in vss. 5-29
a. From the earliest of days, God’s people rebelled against Him and His decrees
b. Even while in Egypt, where God spared them from famine, they followed after other gods
c. While God was leading them back to the Promised Land from slavery in Egypt, they sought after
other gods
d. When God gave them the land of promise, the sought after other gods
e. When God let them be taken into exile to discipline them and turn them back to Himself, they
sought after other gods.
f. Again and again, the faithfulness and mercy of God is met with rebellion and sinfulness on the part
of His people
5. God says if His people will just turn away from the wickedness and foolishness in serving other gods
that He will bless them
--Ezek. 20:19-20 – “I am the LORD your God; follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the
LORD your God.”
6. Speaking God’s message, Ezekiel turns to God’s message of grace
--vss. “‘As for you, O house of Israel, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Go and serve your idols,
every one of you! But afterward you will surely listen to me and no longer profane my holy name
with your gifts and idols. For on my holy mountain, the high mountain of Israel, declares the
Sovereign LORD, there in the land the entire house of Israel will serve me, and there I will accept
them. There I will require your offerings and your choice gifts, along with all your holy sacrifices.
I will accept you as fragrant incense when I bring you out from the nations and gather you from the
countries where you have been scattered, and I will show myself holy among you in the sight of the
nations. Then you will know that I am the LORD, when I bring you into the land of Israel, the land I
had sworn with uplifted hand to give to your fathers. There you will remember your conduct and all
the actions by which you have defiled yourselves, and you will loathe yourselves for all the evil you
have done. You will know that I am the LORD, when I deal with you for my name’s sake and not
according to your evil ways and your corrupt practices, O house of Israel, declares the Sovereign
LORD.’”
B. How does it apply?
1. Acknowledge where you’ve strayed
a. Where have you failed to follow God’s direction for you life?
b. What things have you put in front of His things?
c. Admit your failures
2. Repent of your wrong direction
a. The biblical concept of repentance is recognizing that you’ve gone down the wrong road and turning
to go the right direction
b. God doesn’t expect you to get where you’re going immediately
--He knows that you’re going to make a few wrong turns but simply asks that you turn and go the
right way!
3. Discover God’s grace
a. Grace is simply undeserved favor
--By God’s grace, we receive something which we do not deserve
b. Salvation is by grace through faith
--Eph. 2:8-9 – “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
c. God’s people under the old covenant lived under the law
1). God used the law to teach us that we can’t work out our salvation on our own
2). Every time God’s people – both old and new covenant people – try to go it alone, we mess up
3). Look at the history of God’s people down through the ages
--God gives a brief but thorough account of what happens when we go it alone: we mess up!
d. Our only hope is in God’s grace
--That grace is clearly demonstrated in Jesus Christ and His death on the cross
III. SEE FEAR TURNED TO JOY
--Jn. 20:20 – “After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when
they saw the Lord.”
A. What happened?
1. The disciples have followed Jesus for three years
a. They watched His power over earthly and spiritual matters
--He healed the sick, calmed storms, fed 5,000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, cast
demons out of people, faced the Jewish leaders without fear
b. They shared with Him in His triumphal entry, the cleansing of the Temple, and the roar of the
crowds
c. Now He’s been captured, crucified, and buried
d. They’re frightened for their lives and their futures
--vs. 19a – “On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with
the doors locked for fear of the Jews…”
2. Here they are wondering what’s happening
a. Mary and the ladies have already told the disciples about seeing Jesus alive that morning
b. It’s now night and they don’t know what to do
c. Jesus’ body is missing and they’ve been accused of stealing it
d. How are they going to get out of town? What’s going to happen to them? Will they ever get to
see their families again? What are they going to do with their lives now that following Jesus
doesn’t seem to be even a remote possibility?
3. In walks Jesus
--vss. 19b-23 – “…Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ After he said
this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that
he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are
forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.’”
4. We see frightened men go forth to win the world for Christ
--all because of their encounter with the resurrected Christ
B. How does it apply?
1. Look with faith and not fear
a. Don’t look at your circumstances
--We serve a God who is above the circumstances
2. Trust that even though things look bleak, God is still working
--“When you’re down to nothing, remember that God is up to something.”
3. Know that Jesus is always with us
a. The disciples are thinking they’re alone
--They think the One that they’ve served and studied under and lived life together is gone
b. But in walks Jesus
1). We serve a risen Savior
2). This same Savior promised His presence wherever we go
--Mt. 28:20b – “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
IV. SEE LIVES TURNED TO THE LORD
--Acts 20:20 – “You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but
have taught you publicly and from house to house.”
A. What happened?
1. The apostle Paul is at the end of his third missionary journey
2. He’s on his way to Jerusalem for two reasons:
a. The Holy Spirit has led him to go there but warning him that it will be the last time he goes to
Jerusalem because trouble awaits him there
b. Paul is carrying the offering from the churches collected to help in relief of a famine occurring
there in Jerusalem
3. Paul has called for the elders from the church at Ephesus to warn them, instruct them, and encourage
them
--vss. 17-21 – “From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived,
he said to them: ‘You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came
into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was
severely tested by the plots of the Jews. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that
would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to
both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.”
4. Paul then shares with them about what’s going to happen when he gets to Jerusalem
5. He tells them not to worry. His only interest is in proclaiming the gospel wherever the Lord may
send him
--vs. 24 – “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and
complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.”
6. Paul then gives them warnings about false teachers, prays with these elders from Ephesus, and gets
back on the boat to Jerusalem
B. How does it apply?
1. Keep the faith
--Be earnestly occupied with the completion of God’s will for your life
2. Care about others
--Many times we’re too occupied with our own lives to honestly help others
3. Stay on task
a. We’re not here to debate methodology
b. We’re here to share the message of Jesus, to help each other as we walk together in this earthly
life, and to be an influence for good in the community in which we live
c. If we’re hung up on little things then the greater work will never be accomplished
CLOSE: A. The preacher of a certain congregation was overjoyed because he had been praying for a new
vision to win the lost and minister to the community. He determined that God had answered his
prayers and he was ready to move to make the vision a reality.
At the next church board meeting, he presented the new vision with as much conviction and
passion he could muster. When he finished, the chairmen of the board called for a vote on the
new vision. All of the board members voted against it. It seemed the preacher was the only one
in favor of moving forward with the vision.
The chairman of the board looked at the preacher and said, “Well, preacher, it looks like you’ll
have to rethink your vision. Would you like to close the meeting in prayer?”
Frustrated, the preacher raised his hand to heaven and prayed, “Lord, Please show these
people that it’s not MY vision but that it’s YOUR vision!”
At that very moment, the clouds darkened and a bolt of lightning shot through the window,
splitting the meeting room table in two. The board members were all knocked out of their seats as
the preacher remained standing untouched
As the board members dusted themselves off, the chairman said, “Well, looks like it twelve
votes to two now.”
B. Let’s look at the vision for this congregation again
I see a vision for Martinsville First Christian Church. As the church we’re called and
empowered for several tasks. The two most important tasks are reaching out to the lost and
reaching in to the Body of Christ itself. The vision I see is focused on reaching out to the lost.
How do we arrive at the goal of reaching out to the lost? I see us doing it through the children
of this community and its outlying areas. I’m talking about the elementary school kids.
Kids’ Club was a good start last year. I believe God wants that ministry to grow. Children are
important to Him. Jesus said in Mt. Growing Kids’ Club by one grade and one day will make
a great impact in the children who attend. We’ll have a better chance of reaching more kids by
starting at the beginning of the school year.
I also see a Sunday evening program called Kids’ Praise. While the adults are meeting for
evening worship, the young people will meet for a worship designed along their level. The songs,
the message, the activities all geared to their age levels.
Through these children, we can reach their parents. But even if we don’t, we’re building a
legacy. We’re investing our time and effort into future members of the body of Christ and future
adult citizens of our community, state, and nation.
What will it take? It take you embracing the vision and committing to its success. That means
we’ll need volunteers to work with the children. Maybe you’re saying, “I can’t work with young
children. They get on my nerves. I just don’t have the energy to put up with their childish
behavior.”
Here’s the bottom line: if you don’t, who will? I know we have a good number of older folks
but God hasn’t given you your retirement papers from the kingdom as of yet. If you’re still
breathing, you’re still a worker for God’s kingdom. We’re going to work toward getting some
help through EIU for Kids’ Club. But we still need folks to serve. It’s going to take about 3-4
years of hard work but I believe it’s our calling to this community.
It’s also going to take money. We’re not going to get their parents right away so we’re going
to need a mode of transportation to get the kids here on Sunday nights. We’re going to need
snacks and programming materials. Through Kids’ Club and Sunday night, we build our Sunday
School and our Vacation Bible School. It all takes money to finance these programs. Nothing is
too difficult or too expensive to fulfill God’s vision for our congregation.
How long will it take? I don’t know. The growth is not up to you or me. It’s up to God. But
if we’ll be faithful on our end, He’ll be faithful on His end.
C. Are you seeing what God wants you to see? Are hearing what he wants you to hear? Are you
doing what he wants you to do?
1. How do we clearly see what God wants us to see?
a. We knowingly watch for what God wants us to see
b. We look through the lens of faith
c. We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus
2. The thing that corrects our spiritual vision is to simply do one thing
--Heb. 12:2-3 – “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the
joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will
not grow weary and lose heart.”
