TEXT: MATTHEW 5:29-30
"And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from
thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should
perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And
if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee:
for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish,
and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell."(#kjv)
When the right eye and the right hand that offend or causes a man to sin are 'plucked out and cut off' respectively, we would have a man with one eye or one with one hand. He lives and moves amongst men without these members of his body. He might as well be described as a fella with one hand or eye. What others could do perfectly he might be unable to do well. He would need to learn to live with this kind of disability! This man believes and knows that his right hand causes him to sin as well as his right eye...he also believes that '...it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell...'
Moreover, he desires to make heaven and avoid hell! This and only this is the reason for his disability. Disability means a disqualification, restriction, or disadvantage: a condition of being disable. Here below, he is looked upon as disadvantaged, disabled, disqualified and restricted: but in the eye of He, who lives in heaven, this man is made qualified, advantaged and liberated to soar into heaven. His earthly disadvantage and restrictions qualified him for the next world. He is robbed of certain things here on earth so that heavenly things can become his.
Brothers and sisters, not every restriction, disadvantage and disqualification are orchestrated by the devil. God authors and sponsors some restrictions into our lives as a token of His foresight and love. Some loses are God-ordained. Some disability are ability in disguise. Some times when God wants to make a man qualified for a godly or spiritual business, He robs him of earthly advantages. I believe that when God takes away some people or things out of our lives, we might start learning how to look up unto Him.
Some relationships or fellowships might go south by the ordering of God just to develop in us the stamina to withstand certain things. The principle of God is that He takes away before He gives to any man. He takes away our good works and gave us His own righteousness. He took Isaac away and gave him back to Abraham. He crucified our old man and gave us His own new life. A full hand cannot receive from God. A well connected man cannot connect with God. Many important things might be our undoing! Our way up might be blurred because of certain things which might not be sinful in themselves.
Moreover, friends, we are not talking about sin here! The right hand and eye are not sinful at all. What we have in mind here are those things that are critical and do not have sin in themselves. But when these things would occasion any sinful act, we would do well if we set them aside...put them away from our lives! No doubt, men would mock us for not having 'right hand and eye' We would be mocked for appearing helpless;
'As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor,
yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all
things.'(#kjv)
'ignored by the world, but recognized by God; terrifically alive,
though rumored to be dead; beaten within an inch of our lives,
but refusing to die; immersed in tears, yet always filled with
deep joy; living on handouts, yet enriching many; having nothing,
having it all.'(#Msg)
But the world does not know that our seemingly restriction and disability empowers us to secure the ability for spirituality. When the eye is 'removed', then our spiritual eye would come alive...if our hands are 'chopped off' God would give us wings to fly! A believer is not disadvantaged in any away! We can decide to turn every ugly situation into a blessing by the help of God. DIS-ABLED TO BE EN-ABLED!
Thus, in the eyes of God, every disability is an ability before Him. A minister that does not know much, would be forced to be humble and sit down to learn. Nebuchadnezzar was made to look up and developed a doctrine that suggests that 'God rules in the affairs of men and gives it to whoever He wants' when he was denied of his humanity by being turned into a beast. He was robbed of the ability to think like a man...he was dis-able! In this state of disability, he became qualified to pen down an epistle which forms the contents of the fourth and fifth chapters of the book of Daniel. Spiritual men and women understand that:
'...our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a
far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;While we look not
at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen:
for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which
are not seen are eternal.'(#KJV)
'These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good
times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There's far more
here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today,
gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever.'
(#Msg)
'This light and momentary affliction brings with it a reward
multiplied every way, loading us with everlasting glory; if only we
will fix our eyes on what is unseen, not on what we can see. What
we can see, lasts but for a moment: what is unseen is eternal.
(#KnoxNT)
'For our present troubles are small and won't last very long.
Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and
will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see now;
rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the
things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot
see will last forever.(#NLT)
May we be enlightened! DIS-ABLED TO BE EN-ABLED! To be continued!