Looking with the Heart

Ephesians 1.15-23 (2)

Pray Psalm 34.3, 8, 9.
Oh, magnify the LORD with me,
And let us exalt His name together…
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good;
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints!
There is no want to those who fear Him.

Sing Psalm 34.3, 8, 9.
(Alleluia [Lowe]: Mighty God, While Angels Bless You)
Taste and see how good is Jesus; blessed are all who in Him hide.
None shall lack for any blessing who in Christ will e’er confide.
Refrain v. 3
Magnify the Name of Jesus! 
Let us lift His Name in praise!

Read Ephesians 1.15-18; meditate on verse 18.
What is the heart? What are its eyes? Why should we look with them?

Preparation
1. What does Paul want us to know?

2. How does he say we can know that?

Meditation
Sometimes I like to watch Susie as she is making bread. Everything starts with a vision in her mind—a beautiful, brown, crisp loaf, sliced and ready to serve. The thought of that excites Susie’s heart; then desires takes over and engages the eyes as she looks for all the ingredients—out to the fridge in the garage to get the secret flour mixture, into the freezer in the kitchen for yeast, bowls, spoons, seasonings, all that stuff. She searches out each component and every tool, arranges them in order on the workspace, and then gets to work, her eyes focused on every part of the process while the eyes of her heart remain focused on the finished loaf. I tell you, it’s a thing of beauty to watch. Then to engage with the olfactory sense. Then to consume with complete satisfaction.

And that’s about what it means to look with the eyes of the heart so that we know Jesus—our Calling and glorious Inheritance—better and better. The phrase “the eyes of your understanding” is misleading. It is actually, “the eyes of your heart”, that is, your desires, what we gaze at, long for, look for, and pay earnest attention to. Get in mind what you’re after: To know Jesus better, see Him exalted in glory. Focus in detail on what He looks like, what’s around Him, Him looking at you. Seeing that, no matter how faint, begin to engage Him more, so that your heart becomes excited at the prospect of being in His Presence and you are looking to see Jesus more and more clearly. Stay at it. Don’t just try this for five minutes and call it quits. Make seeing Jesus a part of who you are, what you do, and what you aspire to (Gal. 2.20; Col. 3.1-3; 2 Cor. 3.12-18).

Unless we make it a commanding priority to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord (Ps. 27.4) we will never know how utterly refreshing and enjoyable that can be. If you do, then you’ll understand why Paul prayed for this for those he loved.

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.16
Unless we seek the Wisdom of the Holy Spirit—of revelation in the knowledge of Him—we will never be able to see the beauty of the Lord Jesus in all His majesty and fullness. For our Helper-Spirit not only guides us into all truth (Jn. 16.13) but also gives us eyes to see Jesus in all His glory.

Without His leading, we will be blind; and instead of seeing His glory, we will spend our time walking into walls.

With His leading we can see the expounded Word. 
Our hearts being enlightened that we may know:
what is the hope of His calling and
what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance (Eph. 1.18).

We have one hope—Jesus Christ—and the calling that comes along with our belief in Him (Jn. 3.16).
We also have a multitude of riches and blessings in Him through our adoption and inheritance.

“LORD, I hope for Your salvation, and
I do Your commandments” (Ps. 119.166).

“Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies.
Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
The LORD executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.
He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel.
The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; 
as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. 
As a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him. 
For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust…
But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, 
and His righteousness to children’s children, 
to such as keep His covenant, 
and to those who remember His commandments 
to do them” (Ps. 103.1-14,17, 18).

In light of all these beautiful and abundant blessings, we would do well to beseech God for Wisdom to see, utilize, and enjoy them.

“Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people 
that I may discern between good and evil” (1 Kgs. 3.9).

“How much better to get wisdom than gold!
And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver” (Prov. 16.16).

“For God so loved the world that He gave us Jesus” (Jn. 3.16)—one hope and showers of blessings.
Seeing this glorious Gift, we pray like Paul, that others will seek to see Him too—
in all His beauty, majesty, holiness, perfection, honor, and glory.

Reflection
1. Where would you turn in Scripture to find Jesus, exalted in glory?

2. Why is it important that we set our hearts and minds on Him there?

3. What can you do to improve in this discipline?

And did we know what we are called to, and what we might find in him, surely we should come and be suitors to him. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Ephesians

Pray Psalm 34.1-7.
Ask God to help you seek Him, to teach you what to look for when you do, and to fill you with joy in knowing Him more as a result. Practice the questions in today’s “meditate on” again.

Sing Psalm 34.1-7.
(Alleluia [Lowe]: Mighty God, While Angels Bless You)
I will bless the LORD at all times; I shall praise Him evermore!
My soul makes its boast in Jesus—Him we gladly all adore!
Refrain v. 3
Magnify the Name of Jesus! Let us lift His Name in praise!When I sought the LORD, He answered and from fear delivered me.Those who look to Him are radiant; shamed their face shall never be.
Refrain

When I cried to God, He heard me, and from trouble rescued me.’Round their camp His angel lingers that they may delivered be.
Refrain

T. M. and Susie Moore

If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).

Other columns of interest this week: In our ReVision series on “The Kingdom Economy” we are looking at commerce from a Kingdom perspective. Our Read Moore podcast continues readings from the book, Such a Great Salvation.  In our Crosfigell series on Brendan of Clonfert, the saint is making progress in his journey to find The Promised Land of the Saints. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.