Benjamin Franklin, the great American intellect of the 18th century, is given credit for the invention of bifocal glasses. Bifocals give a person the ability to clearly see far away as well as up close. Man, I can’t tell you how delighted I was to put on my first bifocals. They gave me such clarity of vision that I did not have beforehand.
The Lord wants each of us to put on our spiritual bifocals. He wants our vision to be unclouded in the distance as well as up close. How clearly Christians see eternity has a huge impact on how we live life today. If we do not have an eternal focus, daily life becomes blurry. For example, my wife and I mentor struggling marriages with most of these marriages having children. We find that many couples are willing to call it quicks without a clear understanding of how their actions impact eternity and generations to come. Read Malachi 2:13-16. Marriage is a covenant not a contract. God is in the middle of a covenant. And, our kids are impacted by how we handle His marital covenant. Yet, we handle our marriages in such a relaxed, life-will-work-itself-out manner with no eternal view considered. Marriage is just one example of our lack of clarity. The way that we as Christians deal with life in general is revealing. The Bible says that we should always have eternity clearly in our mind and work life backwards from what we see. 2 Corinthians 5 is “eye-opening”, 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. This verse states clearly that all of us will “appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” Why? So that each of us receive in eternity what “is due for what he/she has done in the body” here on earth. Ouch! Whether you believe it or not, it is true. We will be rewarded by how closely we live like Jesus here on earth. We need some new lenses of faith to clear up our vision.
Let’s not forget about our near sightedness. The Bible say, “33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.34 Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:33&34). Live daily with Christ placed first. How faithful you walk with Him determines if your near-sighted vision is clear or blurry.
It’s time to put on our spiritual bifocals!
Barnabas Man 