The Lamp
OCTOBER 11, 2026
SCRIPTURE COLLECTION
Today's Scripture Passage
“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!"
Matthew 6:22-23
Related Scriptures:
Deut. 15:9
Luke 11:34-35
John 14:6
2 Corinthians 4:6
Notes & Reflections
My cousin Greg was born blind.
I remember, when we were younger, we would sit on my aunt Janice's hardwood floor and watch Pokémon. I would sit next to him, and he would have a large smile on his face as he rocked his body back and forth.
What I enjoyed even more was how, when something funny or exciting happened, his hands would shoot up and dance in the air. He was probably the first person to ever invent the classic "spirit fingers."
Greg was my first blind friend. The day I found out he was blind, I asked my aunt what was "wrong" with his eyes. She graciously explained that they didn't work like they were meant to.
My aunt owned cockatiel birds. She bred them and thought they were "wonderful and cute." She especially loved the little sprout of feathers that sprang from the top of their little heads. I enjoyed them too. Greg and I would embrace every opportunity to stroke the little heads of each bird as my aunt brought them out to clean the cages.
One day, one of them lost its mind. We were enjoying our usual petting experience when, all of a sudden, it took off into the air. It crashed into the wall, stumbled over the lamp shade, bounced off the nearby picture frame, and then landed on top of the curtain.
I stared at it and screamed for my aunt to catch it. Greg's hands danced as he jumped up and down with excitement. I often wondered, after that day, how he could be so excited about something he couldn't see. For the most part, I think he was simply excited because everyone else was excited. I remember spending a lot of time wishing that his eyes could be fixed. I wanted him to see what Pokémon looked like. I wanted him to see what the birds looked like as they flapped their wings in their cage.
I wanted him to see me.
Yet he couldn't.
Greg is still blind.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus uses this well-known reality, even in his own time, to convey to his hearers the seriousness of their own condition. He argues from the lesser to the greater. He points out that if your actual eye is bad, no light can come in. The man or woman who is blind will have a life that is full of physical darkness. This kind of life is very frustrating and difficult.
But Jesus' point was deeper than a person's external impairments. Underneath this analogy, Jesus was pointing to something far more serious. He was talking about spiritual corruption. Spiritual darkness. A darkness that damaged a man's whole nature.
His listeners were very "religious." But it was superficial, and they were still in darkness. They sought after things that were earthly, things that would benefit themselves and even keep them alive. They were anxious about many things, and their lives were consumed with chasing after what they thought would satisfy them.
Jesus would point out that only God will satisfy them. He is the one who provides for them. He is the one who cares about them. He is the one whom they need in order to truly see, because not only can he take care of the physical, but he can also take care of the spiritual.
Indeed, the one who was teaching them was the one who revealed the power of God to them continually. He healed the blind and the sick. He made people walk and speak. But he also forgave sin.
He not only took care of the physical darkness, but he took care of the spiritual darkness.
Like me and my friend Greg, Jesus longs for people to truly see. He longs for them to come to him and have a life full of light.
What is election?
Election says that you and I are Christians because God, for amazing reasons, in eternity past decided to set his love on us. This wasn't based on anything done by us. It wasn't because we were especially good or had great attitudes. No, He just loved us. It was simply his mercy and grace that reached down and saved us.
What praise this truth should cultivate in our hearts.
Study Questions
QUESTION 01
Is God satisfying to you?
QUESTION 02
In what ways do you think spiritual blindness affects people around you from day to day?
QUESTION 03
Who in your life can you ask God to open their eyes?
How To Cling Today
Cling to Christ today by seeking him for all you need and read his word so that you may know him better and better each day.
Comments