GAZING INTO HIS FACE

[Albert Finch]

Proverbs 29:18 says, "Where there is no VISION [no redemptive revelation of God], the people perish....."

In the case of Steven in the New Testament, he was a man who was full of faith and of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:5). He was so full of grace and power that he performed great wonders and signs among the people during his day (Acts 6:8).

As others persisted in their own stubborn misperception and blindness of spiritual sight (Acts 6:9), Stephen preached with boldness and his listeners were not able to resist the wisdom and spirit by which he spoke (Acts 6:10). Even to the point of death, he had no fear to speak God's truth because his "eye" saw something beyond this natural world.
Acts 7:55,56 - "full of the Holy Spirit… he gazed intently into Heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God," saying, 'Behold, I see the Heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God'"
When Stephen "gazed" (NAS) or "looked up steadfastly" (KJV) into Heaven, the Greek definition and meaning of this was not only that he fixed his "eyes" but also purposed his "mind" into Heaven.

JOURNEY INTO THE UNSEEN REALM

The Lord is reminds us in 2 Chronicles 16:9 which says, "For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His."
God is on the move, eagerly searching for those who are filled with His light to see that He is ready to strongly support those whose eye lenses of the heart and mind are turned completely towards Him. He is inviting us into the journey of His heart – into the journey of the unseen realm.
God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). No one has seen God at any time (John 1:18), yet Jesus tells us in the beatitudes that the pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5:8).

SOURCE OF SPIRITUAL FOOD

We can be disqualified by the blindness of our hearts if we continually push away the grace and the kindness of the Lord.
The enemy continues to try to bring disgrace and discredit the people of God through spiritual blindness – blindness that is caused by the lack of looking and gazing into the face of God as a regular exercise of intimate worship or the lack of gazing into the Scriptures to find food for the soul and nourishment for the spiritual eyes.

OPEN AND RECEPTIVE

When the Bible says to "see" God, it means to look at, behold and to allow one's self to be seen; to appear. It is in the sense that God is revealing Himself to us and at the same time we are willingly revealing ourselves to God.
This is where we find ourselves in a place of openness and receptivity, and then at that point in time, God will impart VISION and impregnate us with new life and NEW VISION. This is how we get to know Him, to see with the eyes, to see with the mind, to perceive and to become acquainted with Him by daily experiencing Him and to take heed and believe in our hearts what He is saying to us.

CULTIVATING A CONSCIOUSNESS OF LONGING FOR HIM

If God is wanting us to look and gaze intently at Him, isn't it because He is looking and gazing intently at us?  The eyes of God reveal intimacy and longing and a strong desire to be with us now and forevermore. God is longing for those who are longing for Him.
If you are experiencing an indescribable longing in your heart toward God, that means He is drawing you. He promises the pure in heart will see Him and the hungry of heart will be filled with the treasures of His love. If He is drawing you, it is because there is more to see, more to perceive, more to experience, more to learn and more to be transformed by.

This is an invitation, not only to open our eyes but to journey into the depths of God's heart with NEW PENETRATING VISION, where He writes the words of His heart upon your heart. and He is ready and waiting to meet you where you are, right here, right now!

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