Sight And Vision

Sight and Vision

2 King 6:12-17

Not long ago my wife made me go to the doctor. The married men know what I am talking about when I say that she made me go to the doctor. I was just going for a check up, but you know that there are some parts of that check up that I find particularly unpleasant. I have never been fond of the prostate exam. ---I am talking to the men. ------Fortunately I am not quite old enough yet where I need to start having that exam annually, and the doctor agreed that I probably didn’t need one that day. I thank the Lord for small favors.

I was also going because I had been having some trouble with one of my eyes. Given my family history I thought it would be good to have it checked out. Our sight is one of those things that we can easily take for granted, until it begins to be a problem. One of the greatest creations God made is the eye. The ability to see and to differentiate and distinguish between colors, and shapes and sizes and faces and places and all of the wonder of God’s creations is an absolute miracle.

But you know church, there is the ability to see and then there is the ability to see. Let me see if I can make it clearer. There is sight and then there is sight. Are we together? Let me go one step further, there is sight and then there is vision. And sight and vision can be two completely different things.

This week I preach a follow up sermon to my sermon last week The High Cost of Vision. In that sermon we explored the fact that vision costs, but no vision costs more because where there is no vision the people perish. I want to tell you today that there are some places and some situations where there is no vision. Many people have sight that do not have vision. It is also possible to have absolutely no sight but to be a person of great vision. ------I’ll prove it in just a minute.

Sight is the ability to see what is in front of us. Sight is the ability to look at the situation and say this is what I see. Vision, is the ability to look at the situation and see what is not there but what can and will be. There is a difference between having sight and having vision. Sight will make you see what is, but vision will make you see what will be there. Sight will make you see what is happening, but vision will make you see what is going to happen. Sight sees the predicament, but vision sees the potential. Sight sees the present, but vision, sees the promise of God. If you don’t believe me then ask Ray Charles, who did not have sight but who had a vision for his life. If you don’t believe me then ask Stevie Wonder who lacking, sight still had a vision for his life. We can have all the sight in the world, if we don’t have vision we are in serious trouble.

This was the case with the assistant to Elisha the prophet. He had sight but he did not have vision. The king of Syria was upset because some one had been telling the king of Israel that he was going to attack him. How many people know that God will send people into your life to warn you when you are about to come under the devil’s attacks? The problem most of us have is that we don’t like listening to warnings. We think to ourselves, nobody who looks that good could be trouble. We think to ourselves nobody who can talk like that smells, like that or has legs like that can end up being our demise. Unlike us, the king of Israel listened to the warnings he received and he was having success against the king of Syria. Well, the king of Syria got upset and wanted to know who has been telling the king of Israel what our plans are? There must be a spy in the camp. Somebody has got a big mouth, and every body knows that loose lips, sink ships. The kings’ men told him that it was not one of us, but Elisha the prophet who tells the king of Israel even what you say in your bedroom. The king said well where is this Elisha? I have got something for him. His servants told him that Elisha is in Dothan.

I should pause here and say that Elisha was God’s man. Elisha was God’s prophet. Elisha was operating in obedience to and under the protection of almighty God. Verse 14 says that the king sent chariots and a great army by night. Elisha was God’s man but night time still came. Elisha was God’s man but it still got dark in his life. Can I tell you this morning that it does not matter who you are, or how important you are, or what your title is, nigh time will come in all of our lives.