Sermon by Dr Peter Masters
Christ’s mini-parable of the defective eye shows how distorted our view of ourselves and of spiritual realities may be. Here are typical distortions – they may be ours – and the key things we must see to successfully find the Lord.
‘The light of the body is the eye. Therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light. But when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness.’
Our subject is ‘seeing spiritual realities.’ Now the Saviour was addressing a vast crowd of people, an unusually vast crowd. And in verse 32 he gives this warning, the men of Nineveh shall rise up in the judgment with this generation and shall condemn it for they repented at the preaching of Jonas and behold a greater than Jonas is here. And he warns the people that they will be accountable for what they do with his words and what he has to say to them. And then in verse 33, no man when he hath lighted a candle or a lamp stand, a lamp, putteth it in a secret place neither under a bushel but on a candlestick, that is in the Greek a lamp stand, that they which come in may see the light.
It was not many weeks ago we were actually looking at that equivalent verse in Mark’s gospel. The gospel of Christ is a light for all and it shines for every man and woman, every soul. But this brings us to that 34th verse, the light of the body, the organ of seeing, is the eye. Therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light. But when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Light may stream to us daylight, artificial light, and it may illuminate the face. But does it register? This is ordinary light. If we did not have sight, then it would do us no good at all. It wouldn’t help us, it wouldn’t register with us. The eye is so vital, I’m saying the most obvious things. Sight is so precious to us. Sight is of great practical importance, obviously. We function by light, by seeing, and it is a great source of pleasure also because we see pleasant things and beautiful things and things which interest and excite us and please us and stimulate us.