Walking By Sight

As I have recently discovered, there are few things in life that feel worse emotionally and spiritually than to be shunned by individuals whom you were led to believe were your friends.
I have often stated that there is nothing worse in the world than simple betrayal of a friend.
And it is true.

But just imagine how deeply this feeling is magnified when we betray God or shun His will, opting not to live by faith, but rather to walk by our own judgment with our own sight.
It seems to me that many Christians and Churches, whom we suspect are following God are
actually following their own agendas and walking by their own sight.

There is a famous man from the Old Testament who teaches us something about walking by sight; his name is Lot.
Now, Lot was a believer - but he was also enthralled with the material wealth of the world. In the end, this would be his downfall.
He walked by sight; not by faith and it is faith whereby we alone can  please God.

Lot was Abraham's nephew; they had traveled to Canaan together but the time came when they had to separate the flocks and herds because of disputes among their hired hands (Gen. 13).
Abraham gave Lot the choice; wherever he chose to settle, Abraham would go to the opposite place.
Scripture is clear that Lot saw the Jordan Valley with its lushness and productive cities and he wanted to go there; so, Abraham lived in Canaan.

This is not unlike a Christian or a Church who can see the material things of the world; they can see other Christians or Churches prospering numerically or financially and become so envious that eventually that they begin to use ungodly means to accomplish their material goals.
But if Lot proves anything to the modern Church it is the fact that if you choose to live in Sodom, you must take on Sodom's judgment when it comes.

You see, those who refuse to be patient and wait on the Lord and His timing and direction, it is these who are anxious for themselves and their children and even their church to 'get ahead' of everyone else.
But to what end?
For when a person strives to advance in a worldly way within the Body of Christ, it will always be disastrous to their character.
And when it involves a church body doing this, it is helpful to remember that those who build up constantly in a worldly way will always be disappointed in time.
Worldly methodology only works for a little while; then the glitter of the 'show' begins to fade.

For Lot, the disaster came when he found himself not only living in Sodom, but 'setting in the gate,' meaning he was one of the leaders of the city.
He had become fully involved in Sodom's society; a society of wickedness.

Due to the wickedness of the cities in the valley, 
God destroyed them; not just Sodom and Gomorrah, but most likely all five which were located in the area.

As for Lot, he escaped with his daughters, lost his wife, lost his possessions and lost his home.
The man who was once equal with Abraham in material and spiritual wealth, now spends the rest of his life living in a cave, penniless.

This is the perfect illustration for Paul's statement to the Corinthian Church:

1 Cor 3:11-15

11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. 15 If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

Again, if a person or a Church lives in Sodom, you must take the judgment of Sodom when it falls upon you.

Abraham is a totally different story because he walked by faith, not by sight.
Now, there were times when Abraham used his eyes instead of his faith and it always got him into trouble - and the same is true for our lives.
If  you walk by sight it will lead to trouble - now, you may not have warring sons like Abraham, but you will have trouble in your life or your church every time to some degree.

Abraham was told by God: 'Fear not, for I will be your shield and your reward.'
This is the greatest promise any person can ever have.
And it is a promise which can be communicated to the Christian; but we must accept it on faith and not by what we currently see in our lives.

Through Abraham, God chose to bless all the nations on Earth; this was a promise which seen its fulfillment in the grace offered by the Lord Jesus Christ.
Yet, the promise and fulfillment are connected in the person of Abraham.
As believers, we must constantly ask whom it is that God wishes to bless through our lives; for, we know that God has blessed the Christian to be a blessing to others.


Abraham, as he grew in the Lord and trusted Him more and more, was once required to take his son to Mount Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice.
As they traveled up the mountain, Isaac asked where the sacrifice might be, to which Abraham prophetically replied:
"God will provide for Himself a sacrifice."

Anyone who truly studies that passage will soon realize that it took more love and self-sacrifice on the part of Abraham to give up his son than it did for Isaac to submit to death.
Yet, Abraham could not have seen the fulfillment of his own words if he did not have the faith in God to do what was just, right and holy - even when he could not see the future or understand the present command.

In our lives, it works much the same way.
It often takes much more sacrifice and love to give up what we desire or love than it does for the things we abandon to be left alone.
For, if we choose those things, people or places over the leading of God, they have become our own personal idols - and to serve God rightly, there can be no idols in our hearts.

A Christian can have no co-equals with God in his heart or life.
When we do, it ends in disaster...always.

For example, I once knew a man who had unintentionally made his spouse into his own personal idol. He catered to her every whim, sacrificed many aspects of his life to make her happy; the more he did the more she took advantage of his gifts of grace.
But then, it was discovered that she had truly manipulating his good will and love toward  her; participating in multiple affairs with numerous men.
Upon discovery, it broke his heart and broke his life because she, for all practical purposes, had become his sole object of worship and devotion.
She was his goddess.
And the psychological damage caused, has yet to be repaired and may never be.

There can be nothing equal with God in our lives; for if there is, ruin lurks around the next corner in the forgotten shadows.

Traditionally, and within most societies, fear is how people approached God.
This is even true in the Judeo-Christian Tradition. 
If you mishandle the Ark of the Covenant, you die; if you touch the forbidden mountain, you die; if you walk into the Most Holy Place - you'll never come out alive.

This would strike fear into the heart of any person walking by sight; but if you walked by faith, you would soon understand it is Jesus who has opened God to every person as a friend and Father.
In Jesus, God provided a way of relating to humans without fear; an informal approach whereby all people can come to Him by faith in His grace.

Now, this isn't always accepted because the materialist Christian always thinks there is something else to be had or something else to work for; but in Christ, the only work that counts is His work and the only thing to have is faith.
And it is faith which comes without a price tag that we could afford; for to provide it and that way of God, Jesus Himself had to knock down the barriers with His blood on the Cross.

If you want a lasting relationship with Him, walk by faith with Him.
I promise it will prove a greater journey than walking by sight on  your own.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.