One of the frustrations of the last few weeks has been an eye infection, all the more so since it seems to be clearing up only to return with a vengeance. Eyelids swollen, sometimes glued shut with yuchy stuff, itchiness. Thankfully at present a course of antibiotics seems to be dealing with it. Just another consequence of a dodgy immune system.
With this going on I am more than usually interested when I come across any mention Jesus makes of eyes as he does in Luke 11: 33-36:
“No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light. Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you.”
We tend to think of eyes as ‘receivers’. We open our eyes and we receive impressions of the world around us, we receive printed words and painted images, we receive light and darkness. Jesus, however, is thinking of eyes in a different way. He is speaking figuratively, of course, but he is saying that eyes are ‘transmitters’. They are not so much receiving as giving out a message. They are showing the kind of people we are.
I have to confess that over the years I have had to work at this to unravel it but in the end I believe I am being challenged to think about where my eyes go in the course of my life. If they are looking to God, seeking to be close to Him, seeking His truth, living my life according to that truth, then my personality will, as Jesus says, be ‘full of light’. If, however, my eyes are fixed on others who make claims to ‘truth’ and seek to establish my priorities, shape my values and direct my behaviour then my personality will, as Jesus says, be ‘full of darkness.’
As always happens with Jesus’ teaching there is in the end a choice to be made. He says: ‘See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.‘ Those things that you may have received as ‘light’ concerning priorities, values, directions - where have they come from? Are they truly ‘light’? If they have not come from the Source of all light then they are darkness. So Jesus is sounding out a warning: ‘Be careful out there! It is God’s will that you be ‘full of light’, that you be ‘completely lighted’. He wants you to be like that lamp in your front room that sends out nothing but light.‘
Paul picks this up in his letter to the Christians in Philippi who he says are living in ‘a crooked and depraved generation’ but in which they are called to ‘shine like stars in the universe’. They do this as they ‘hold out the word of life.’ (Philippians 2: 14-16) As they have received the light through the Gospel, as the truth has made an impact on their lives, so they must show this light in their preaching and their living.
It’s bad enough when my physical eyes are not up to the mark. But this has been a time for me to consider something far more vital to my wellbeing. What about those spiritual eyes? Where are they going?
