The Light of Inner Vision

“And the Lord answered me and said, ‘Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.  For the vision is for an appointed time… though it tarry, wait for it: because it will surely come’” Hab 2:2-3

“… ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ… written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart” 1 Cor. 3:3

 

“A new heart will I give you, and a

new spirit will I put within you.. and I will take away the stony heart… and give you

a heart of flesh” Ezek. 36:26

“Where there is no vision, the people 

perish”Prov. 29:18

     Today we are going to talk about vision.  The Light of inner vision comes to those who have received the Spirit of the Lord.  Without vision, there is no hope, no future.  Without vision, we die.

     The translation of our ideas from the mental plane into the physical world is much different to receiving vision from the Lord.  Imagination should not be compared with inspiration.  Plans contrived in the mind are different to those impressed upon the heart by God.  Our own plans are premised upon our effort and pride, while a righteous vision requires an understanding of the relationship between Grace and Faith.  Grace is God’s unmerited favor, the outpouring of His Love.  Faith is the channel through which Grace flows. 

     Grace and faith are both reciprocal and proportional.  We are “faithing” toward God, while God is “gracing” toward us.

    GRACE

   FAITH

     Through Faith, God is entreated for the vision.  By Grace, that vision is written upon your heart.  Through Faith, you surrender, submitting your mind and heart to God.  By Grace, His Spirit moves in you, causing you to be in the right place at the right time, meet the right people, or say the right words to bring about the vision.  Through Faith, you become a conduit for positive energy, a malleable lump of clay for the Lord.  Faith relinquishes control.  Grace receives reward and blessing.

     Deny yourself and become a witness in the background.  Watch God.  He will work in you and through you as the vision unfolds.  Yes, it is still you.  But now you are the co-author of your life, the co-creator of your reality.  It is now Christ in you who takes preeminence.  As you wait for Him to move, observe as a silent witness.

     The righteous shall live by faith (Rom 1:17; 4:22).  And this “faith” should be viewed as an action verb.  It is a “faithing” experience to wait on the Lord.  Our actions come to reflect the trust we have placed in God.  The carnal nature will struggle to control the life, to encapsulate your mind within self and keep you from the vision. 

     But the call is to crucify self daily (Luke 9:23; Rom 8:13).  What does this mean?  It means to simply “hang here” in this present moment.  Refrain from all thinking and wait for the Spirit to move you.  “Hang here” and wait, just as Christ hung on the cross.  It sounds simple, but it takes trust and awareness.

     “Hanging here” in this present moment with consciousness resident in the heart and not the mind describes that “faithing” and waiting on the Lord.  It is total blind contentment necessary for the righteous vision to come to pass.

     God will write His vision for your life on your heart.  He puts a new heart and spirit inside you as a result of trusting the promises of His Word (Ezek. 36:26; Jer. 31:33).  A new heart and spirit represent a changed mindset and attitude in the believer, bringing about conviction and repentance.  The vision comes into focus through sustained faith-action. The vision crystallizes in the heart and we run toward it; if we sin or fall back, the vision starts to dissolve. The vision may change several times and coalesce into something new based on personal choices and missed opportunities.  But there is always a vision and purpose for the your life, and God wants to reveal it.  He wants us to run toward the vision.

     The vision begins as a cloudy silhouette upon the heart, but comes into focus as we demonstrate faith and grow into spiritual maturity:

“for now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part but then shall I know even as also I am known”

1 Cor. 13:12

     One of the greatest exercises of faith is in the activity of prayer.  Prayer made in the Spirit is a sweet incense to the Lord, a powerful force which can influence reality and manifest inner vision.  Prayer is a weapon for the strong, not a crutch for the weak.  Notice in today’s highlighted scripture, vision comes through prayer: “And the Lord answered me and said…” (Hab 2:2-3).

     This is an important lesson.  If we desire an inspired, personal vision from God, we must be seeking it, praying for it.  Unfortunately, most believers will never behold God’s vision for their lives.  They will see but that cloudy silhouette because they are not earnestly seeking God’s will or exercising faith.  But this need not be so.  God reveals vision to the diligent seeker.  He writes it upon the heart of the person who prays.

     Let us examine how God’s vision for Paul manifested.  On his way from Damascus and in the desert, God knocks Paul to the ground and blinds him.  Paul asked, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do” (Acts 9:6).

     This is how we begin our spiritual journey.  In seeking vision, we first must begin blind; we must ask, “Lord, what would you have me do?”  Paul remained blind for three days (Acts 9:9).  Paul got right with God and His prayers had power.  God sent Ananias to heal his blindness, “for behold, he prayeth” (Acts 9:11).

     So notice the order of events.  First, God knocks us to the ground (Acts 9:4).  This pictures humility, our starting point.  Then our proper response should be, “Lord, what would you have me to do?” (Acts 9:6).  Finally, we energize through prayer. God restores our sight—the vision comes into focus (Acts 9:11, 18).

     Praying in the Spirit unleashes the Power, or “dunamas,” of God.  Grace is the favorable result of the “dunamas” of God.  The formula is in itself a reinforcing loop: PRAY-WAIT-TRUST.

                                    WAIT

                        PRAY             TRUST

     Keep denying self, “hanging here” in the presence of the moment, and at the appointed time God will move, reveal, and transform:

Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it”

Hab 2:2-3

     The reinforcing loop of PRAY-WAIT-TRUST energizes the “dunamis” (power) of God:

“…that he may run that readeth it.”

(Hab 2:2-3). 

     At the appointed time, the Spirit moves toward that vision.  We appropriate courage; we lean upon God in being filled with the Spirit.  Willpower no longer controls.  Logic and the mental faculties take a back seat to the operation of the Spirit, the “dunamas” Power of God.  He works through  submissive vessels to bring about a personal vision.  As we run closer, the mosaic becomes clearer and the vision takes form.

     The PRAY-WAIT-TRUST loop energizes the “dunamis” (Power) of God.  Don’t plan too much.  Jesus said that tomorrow will take care of itself.  Look at the vision and focus on what you are supposed to do today.  God will show you exactly what to do when tomorrow comes.  Day-by-day living feeds the soul and enlightens the vision upon the heart: “And the Lord answered me and said, ‘Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables”—

These tables picture the heart: 

“… ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ… written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart”

2 Cor. 3:3

     Did you catch that?  God writes a vision upon the tables of the heart.  Our lives write a new epistle!  We have the opportunity and potential to become the very personification of Scripture, a living testimony to God.  We are to become that vision, and that vision is to become us.

     The vision is akin to God whispering a divinely inspired secret upon your heart.  You receive it, trust it, and run toward it to examine it more closely: “that he may run that readeth” (Hab 2:2-3).  The vision unlocks by patiently trusting it will come: “though it tarry, wait for it: because it will surely come” (Hab 2:3).

     God’s purpose in writing His vision upon your heart is to create living, walking, breathing Epistles—testimonies of His Love and Power on earth.  Our bodies are the Temple of God (1 Cor 3:16; 1 Cor 6:19)

     Let’s recap how to receive inspired vision.  First, humble yourself, or God will enforce humility.  Second, be converted and receive that new heart and spirit that He has promised.  This requires trusting God.  Third, be brought to that point of asking, “Lord, what would you have me to do?” (Acts 9:6).  The answer may not come right away but you must diligently seek it.  Finally, God opens your eyes to the vision when you pray.  God restored Paul’s sight because, ”behold he prayeth” (Acts 9:11).

     The vision may take days, weeks, months, or years to manifest, but God will begin by writing it upon the tables of your heart.  It may begin as a cloudy silhouette, but it will crystallize as you run toward it.  It will show itself clearly as you grow in His Spirit and Love.  Finally, as part of His vision for your life, you will be transformed into a Living Epistle, a shining testimony for others to see. 

“… though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come.” Hab 2:3

May the Lord of Glory reveal to you the light of inner vision.                                             

                                                               Larry Word