It’s been said we don’t know what we don’t know, but it’s just as true that we can’t see what we can’t see. Sometimes the enemy has so clouded our vision that we need God to break in with light—to open our eyes wide so we can see the supernatural events unfolding behind the natural scenes.
I’ve been there, and so have Balaam and Elisha’s servant. Although we walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7), sometimes God will choose to let us see something supernatural to bolster our faith—or just to get our attention when we’re going astray. Like I said, I’ve been there, and so have Balaam and Elijah.
When God opens our eyes, it may be in the form of a prophetic dream, a vision, a trance or even what feels like a real-life experience in heaven or hell. Although we should not seek supernatural experiences for the sake of seeking supernatural experiences, we should seek God and trust that He will give us what we need. There’s nothing wrong with crying out to God to open your eyes when you sense that you aren’t seeing what He really wants you to see.
Blind Balaam Begins Seeing Clearly
In Numbers 22, we read about Balaam, a misguided prophet who sought riches and honor over God’s will. King Balak wanted Balaam to curse the Israelites and even offered him a bountiful booty for the false prophetic curse. Balaam asked God about it and was told not to go. When Balak’s crew upped their offer, Balaam waited on the Lord’s direction. (As if God would change His mind!)
Seeing the idolatry in Balaam heart, the Lord told him to go with Balak’s men. So the prophet arose, saddled his donkey and took off on the journey. Of course, it wasn’t really the Lord’s will for Balaam to curse the Israelites. God got angry that Balaam’s heart was for riches and honor and sent an angel to take a stand in his path and prevent him from moving ahead. Balaam couldn’t see it, but his faithful donkey could.
“Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face. And the Angel of the Lord said to him, ‘Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your way is perverse before Me'” (vv. 31-32).
Now, Balaam had a decision to make. Ultimately, even though the will of the Lord was made abundantly clear to him, the false prophet betrayed Israel. Mercy to the one who deliberately opposes the Lord’s will after his eyes have been opened to the supernatural! It took some time, but the soothsayer fell at the sword of the children of Israel in battle (Josh. 13:22).
Elisha’s Servant Sees Reinforcements
In Elisha’s day, the king of Syria was warring against Israel. The prophet Elisha gave the Israelites a marked advantage—he was able to hear the words Syria’s king spoke in his bedroom and relayed them to the king of Israel (2 Kings 6:12). The Syrian king wanted Elisha stopped and sent out horses and chariots and a great army to fetch him. When he saw the Syrian army surrounded the city, Elisha’s servant got scared.
“And his servant said to him, ‘Alas, my master! What shall we do?’ So he answered, ‘Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (vv. 15-17).
What confidence Elisha’s servant must have gained—not just in that moment but throughout his walk with the Lord. And that brings me to Paul’s prayer for the church at Ephesus, which is something I would suggest praying over yourself daily. In this prayer, Paul asks the Lord to open the believers’ eyes for a specific purpose—a purpose that is sure to spark faith in soul and spirit:
“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power” (Eph. 1:15-19).
Powerful!
Again, although we should not seek supernatural experiences for the sake of seeking supernatural experiences—we should seek God, and He will give us what we need—there’s nothing wrong with crying out to God to open your eyes when you sense that you aren’t seeing what He really wants you to see. We all have blind spots, whether it’s personally or with spiritual warfare. So cry out to God, ask Him to flood your heart with light—to open your eyes—and show you what He wants you to see. Amen.
Jennifer LeClaire is news editor at Charisma. She is also the author of several books, including The Spiritual Warrior’s Guide to Defeating Jezebel. You can email Jennifer at [email protected] or visit her website here. You can also join Jennifer on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.
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