Is There Really Such a Thing as Perfect Vision?

Gen 16:13 And she called the name of the LORD that spoke unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?

Ever looked right at something and not seen it? We do it all the time.

It's a general malady of the human race ... either that or gremlins which apply a little magic and make that red tie look blue even when it's hanging two inches from your face or that mask the label on the peanut butter jar that's sitting eye-level in the pantry or that create a cloak of invisibility around your car in the mall parking lot, even though it's parked right on the row you're walking down.

Moms complain that kids are exceptionally blind when it comes to seeing what's right in front of the. But grown-ups aren't much better. Ever been told you're blind as a bat because you missed something you should have seen? And there are plenty of times where 20/20 vision is no help to really seeing. For instance, we can't see what's going to happen tomorrow or the motives in someone's heart. When we're stuck on a particular point and missing the big picture, we often can't see the forest for the trees. Or maybe we have tunnel vision and can't see past our own prejudices. When things are really tough in our lives, we sometimes can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Or when it's really dark, we admit we can't see our hand in front of our face. And how about when you pass someone with a handicap or deformity, someone who's poor and smelly, unlovely to look at, vile acting or "beneath you," in your opinion ... ever looked right past them without seeing them?

We use lots of expressions to describe what we can't see. And, truth is, sometimes we just don't want to see. We don't want to face the reality of what we see -- and the responsibility that comes with it -- if we do get a good look ... such as the injustices that occur in the world or the attitudes that govern our actions.

But there's One who sees it all ... God. One of His names is El Roi, the God who sees. Hagar called Him that in the verse above. She'd been sent into the desert, away from Abraham and Sarah's tent, with her infant son, and she thought they were going to die. But God was there. God saw. And God intervened. Because God is Spirit and unfettered by time, He exists in the past, present and future, all at once. His eyes, the Bible says, are constantly roaming to and fro across the earth, seeing the good and evil men do. Nothing is hidden from God.

Psalm 139 is a chapter in the Bible that tells some of the things God sees. It says He searches us -- our inner being. He sees our thoughts and words before we think them and say them. He knows when we sit down and rise up. He sees us when we're lying down and going out. We can't hide from Him, because He sees in the darkness -- it's as the light of day to Him. He even sees us when our body is still unformed, and He sees the total number of days we'll live on earth.

He's not only got x-ray vision, He's got perfect vision. And His vision isn't colored by the things that color man's vision, such as hate, prejudice, selfishness or pride. He sees man for what he is -- a piece of grass that's here today and cast into the fire tomorrow. He sees the injustice and oppression in the world. He sees when we turn away from people in need. Nothing escapes His eye. He knows who worships Him in secret and who just makes a big display of worship for the approval of man. In the garden of your life, He sees the weeds you're too lazy or too fond of to pull out ... weeds like criticism, a judgmental spirit, unforgiveness, self-centeredness, laziness or arrogance. What you do in secret, thinking no one will know, He sees.

And, one day, there will be an accounting ... by His standards. He says those things done in secret will be exposed. He says He'll pay back for the evil done and He'll reward those who have lived for Him and been good stewards of that which He's entrusted to their care. He says at that time it will be too late for mercy or grace or forgiveness or love or any of those things He's offering now through Jesus.

Is your life up to inspection from El Roi, the God who sees? If not, confess it. God sent Jesus because He knew no one could stand up to His scrutiny which lays us bare to the bone and shows us like we really are. He sent Jesus to cover us with His righteousness, like a warm robe around a naked, shivering body, so that when God looks at us, His eyes don't see our sin, they see Jesus, in all of His glory. Ask Him to be your covering today.

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