Eyes Opened by Grace

The grace of God is revealed by the divine inspiration of Balaam, a man whose eyes were open as he viewed the encampment of Israel according to their tribes.  Though Balaam was greedy and selfish, he had been given revelation from God concerning the nation of Israel and the Messiah who would rise out of Jacob and rule.  Afar off Balaam saw a Star come out of Jacob, and when Jesus was born wise men followed a star to worship the Child whose birth of a virgin had been foretold.  Balaam may have loved the wages of unrighteousness (2 Peter 2:15), yet God graciously for a season opened his eyes to see and proclaim what only God knew.

Blessed is the one whose eyes are opened by God to behold wondrous things in His word!  Blessed are those whose eyes are opened by faith in Jesus Christ to behold Him as their God and KING of KINGS!  It is like the one Jesus makes to see is given the key required to open up the vast wealth of God's wisdom and understanding found throughout scripture we now can see and hear ourselves.  A curator of a museum has access to works of art not yet made available to the public, and by faith in Jesus Christ Jew and Gentile alike are give access to truths hidden from the foundation of the world.  These immaculate, polished gems of truth hide in plain sight in the pages of God's word followers of Jesus have the benefit of admiring and holding close to our hearts, while the most distinguished scholars among men remain ignorant of their beauty and value.

One such gem that caught my attention recently is Zechariah 12:8-10 in relation to God's deliverance of Jerusalem from their enemies:  "In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; the one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the Angel of the LORD before them. ⁹ It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. ¹⁰ "And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."  For those whose eyes have been opened to behold Jesus as LORD, the only begotten Son of God, the glory of the returning Messiah shines forth brighter than the noonday sun.

When Jesus came and ministered in Judea, He was rejected by the sheep of Israel He came to shepherd and save.  His claims of being God in the flesh prompted accusations of blasphemy, and the Son of David was crucified and pierced on Calvary.  As Jesus hung on the cross the chief priests hurled the accusations prophesied in His face prophetically penned in Psalm 22.  They mocked and scorned the Messiah who suffered and died, but Jesus as He said rose from the dead alive and glorified three days later.  Before Jesus ascended to the Father in the view of many witnesses He promised to return, and He will do so to deliver Jerusalem and judge the earth.  God promised, "They will look on Me whom they pierced."  The Jews who survive the Great Tribulation will look upon Jesus and recognise Him as the Son of God they once rejected.  Their grief will be ultimately swallowed up with joy and peace that passes understanding by the grace of God through faith.

We are blessed beyond measure to have Bible translated in a language we can read, yet understanding of the text and proper application comes by interpreting scripture with scripture by the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus opens the eyes of those who trust in Him to see His glory in these thin, gilded pages.  He also opens our mouths to taste and see He is good and to proclaim the everlasting truth of the Gospel of grace to all.  There is more to see, believer; there is more in God's word to explore.  There is more of our lives to properly align with God's wisdom.  There is more truth to lay hold of, and we can look forward to seeing all fulfilled by God's grace in due time.