Eternity Focus

UV 2094/10000 Eternity Focus
While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4 v 18

We are not human “bee-ings”, bees who are too busy to focus on one thing, on the unseen Creator of all things, attracted and distracted as we are by the sights and sounds of the seen world. We are human beings created with a faculty of faith even as we have the six perceptive senses and the faculty of reasoning. We are to focus not on things of temporal or temporary value but the things that are of eternal value. Faith does not involve the suspension of reasoning but it involves focussing all of our faculties, emotional, rational and perceptive to see the unseen, to know the unknown, to understand the things of God and of His kingdom.
We need to forget what is behind us and focus on the goal of knowing Christ and becoming like Him. We need to imitate the single-minded focus that Jesus had as He prepared Himself to be sacrificed on the cross. Jesus constantly focussed on the eternal even while He was alive to the needs of the present moment. Even as He taught the multitude the eternal truths of the beatitudes, He saw that they were hungry and asked his disciples how much food was available. The limitations of resources namely seven fish and five loaves did not limit his desire to satisfy the hunger of the people. He did not limit Himself to the seen but prayed to the unseen Father and thereby, saw the multiplication of food. We need to develop this kind of focus that lets us connect serving the needs of people around us in the immediate context while preparing to fulfil the Lord’s eternal purpose for our lives.

There is a constant interaction between the immediate, the future and the eternal. Our faith in the Lord gives us an unifying vision. There is also a constant interface between the seen world and the unseen spiritual world. Jesus laid bare the principles and precepts that underlie the unseen spiritual world. Faith gives us the ability to focus on the unseen and spiritual without ignoring the demands or needs and priorities of the seen, present and physical world. Jesus mastered the art of focus on the unseen and eternal- He could walk on water, multiply the fishes and loaves, heal the sick, cure the incurable, bring the dead to life, find a gold coin in a fish to pay His tax, explain the principles of the Kingdom of God in simple parables. When we focus on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, we learn and live a spiritual or abundant life.

Prateep V Philip