Hebrews 4:13 – Part ii
The Eyes of the Lord and the Eyes of Man
Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13)
Two eyes; yet so far apart: the eyes of the Lord out of heaven (for the Lord looks down from heaven and His eyes are righteous and holy eyes), and God sees all the works of man, and those works are continually evil. The other set of eyes belongs to man: his eyes have been tainted by sin, and although light enters in it is diffused by a deceitful heart. All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. (Ecclesiastes 1:8) The eyes of man is the gateway to his soul. The eyes bring forth man’s vanity and pride.
Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied. (Proverbs 27:20)
There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother. (Proverbs 30:11)
There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness. (Proverbs 30:12)
There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up. (Proverbs 30:13)
There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men. (Proverbs 30:14)
The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough: (Proverbs 30:15)
The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough. (Proverbs 30:16)
The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it. (Proverbs 30:17)
By the eye, therefore, one is enticed to sin. The outward sin is only the activating force of the sin that is within every man, and this sin can only be satisfied by death. As the eye is satisfied by sin (for the Lord declares that it is the eye by which light enters in); yet it is the heart and the soul that determines what to do with that light. The Lord stressed that it is what comes out of a man that defiles him. We have all heard the expression ‘the evil eye,’ this is so true in the realm of man. The Lord wants us to understand that an evil eye can have power over our entire being, and the more that we feed the evil eye with the lust of the flesh, the more defilement comes out of man.
And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. (Mark 7:20)
For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, (Mark 7:21)
Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: (Mark 7:22)
All these evil things come from within, and defile the man. (Mark 7:23)
Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful. (Romans 7:13) For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. (Romans 7:14) For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. (Romans 7:15)
The Slough
When I was young boy, I used to trap for muskrats, an activity that (for many) has become a thing of the past. Often, I would come to a slough and the slough in its character is always a slough. You can pour clean pure water into a slough, and the slough will only defile the clean water, and that water becomes part of the slough and is contaminated. As the slough, so also is the evil eye: the evil eye looks for the slough of sin that cannot be cleansed. Man in all his efforts cannot change the slough, so man cannot remove his own sin. Only God through Jesus Christ can remove the defilement of sin. A man may wash in pure water of ritualism, and religion, but he will only continue to contaminate himself and his religion. When the Lord Jesus surrendered Himself on the cross of Calvary to the darkness of death, out of His side came forth both blood and water. It was the centurion’s spear, and the hate of man that thrust that spear into the side of God’s Christ. The blood was for the atonement, the water for the cleansing, and both had to be brought forth at the same time, and even today, both are used to make a man whole in the new birth unto salvation.
The Supernatural Light
With the eye, the Lord brings light, His light to the body. It brings us to the Son of God, and a spiritual awakening in His glorious light. Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12) The light that the Lord Jesus is speaking about is the supernatural light of salvation in Him. This light transforms the man by a new birth. The Apostle Paul tells us that all things have become new, the man that I once was is no more, for I have been crucified with Christ; and the world has been crucified unto me, and I have been crucified unto the world. (Galatians 2 and Galatians 6) With the confidence of the Spirit of God, like Job of old, I can declare to the world that with these eyes I shall see God.
For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: (Job 19:25)
And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: (Job 19:26)
Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me. (Job 19:27)
In this wonderful work of salvation, the Lord’s life has become my life, for Christ dwelleth in me. In the supernatural realm, my life has become His life. Although man only sees my flesh God looks on the new being in Christ, He sees a redeemed man, a redeemed soul, a redeemed heart, a redeemed mind, for I am totally redeemed by the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ: 
this is what God sees with His heavenly eyes. In this relationship, God sees the death of His Son, and the glorious life of the resurrected Man, Jesus Christ, my Savior. The Lord Jesus has taken a position as a daysman between the body of death, and the new creature (of which I am) in Christ. My salvation is complete in God’s dear Son forever. God will never sell back what He has bought with the precious blood of His Son, Jesus Christ. The purchased possession (the soul) will be delivered for today, and for eternity. Even though, my life, and my salvation is not completely fulfilled in its course, the eternal God sees my salvation in all the fullness of His dear Son, Jesus Christ. My earthly life must give way to death, and that death must give way to victory in Christ Jesus my Lord. In the transition of laying this body of earth aside, I will be completely conformed into the image of God’s dear Son. The old man must give way to death, to put on this new man in the realm of eternity. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God. (Romans 7:4) And as this body is taken by death, with these eyes, I will behold Him, the Lord of all glory as He is, and the Scriptures declares that I shall be like Him.
The Law of First Mention
The first mention of the eyes of man is in Genesis 3:5. For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. Just a reminder, remember that many times in the first five books of Moses including Genesis, we have the law of first mention. I will describe this law the best that I can: when we see the first mention of a subject it usually travels through the entirety of Scripture, and we will see with the first mention of the eyes of man that the character of man’s eyes (as we see them in Genesis 3:5) are completely marked and stamped with the sameness through the whole of Scripture. It is the eyes of man that Satan uses to entice or tempt man because temptation comes in through the gateway of the eye: notice the progression that Satan used in Genesis. First, he told the woman that her eyes will be opened, but open to what? Notice, Satan leaves out both sin and death. He used the motivation that caused his own fall; for it was Satan who desired to be above the throne of God. Now, with the woman, Satan drives this same ambition into the heart of the woman.
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! (Isaiah 14:12)
For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: (Isaiah 14:13)
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. (Isaiah 14:14)
The Lure
Satan, the serpent (one and the same) used the prideful character of his own disobedience to entice the woman. Satan wanted to be like God; therefore, he brought the same lure to the woman by saying to her, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods. His statement of enticement, and ye shall be as gods, is not all that he used for he told the woman that when your eyes are opened you will know both good and evil. Notice: he left out the discernment of good and evil. Discernment is knowing the difference between them both; just having the knowledge is not good enough. She already knew good because she was in the presence of the Almighty God, it was evil that she lacked in knowledge, understanding, and experience. Satan knew that he was stirring the vanity in the woman. His total temptation was geared for vanity, for this was the lure that led to Satan’s own fall. When you think of vanity, you cannot forget the eye; for it is the gateway to both vanity and pride. And the eye in the fallen creature becomes the mirror of sin.
Notice, her reaction in verse 6. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (Genesis 3:6) It is the eye that presents the outward to the heart of the woman. In her being she probably thought, How can this be wrong, after all, it is good for food, but it was forbidden food by God. According to her eyes, both the tree and the fruit were pleasant to look at, and being pleasant to the eyes, it brought on no fear of God. There was no fear of death because of what she was beholding. Now continuing on with vanity and pride, her sight brought on the desire to make one wise. You see how important that the first mention of the eyes of man is in the entirety of Scripture. Now. . . stop . . . read Genesis 3:6 several times, then meditate on the words. There are two things that I want your spirit to absorb: first is the progression of the fall; the second is the world that you live in today. It is the present evil world, John tells us, and the lure of the world works through the eyes of man. These same characteristics in verse 6, are applicable today. Eve was not in an evil world as yet, for sin had not entered in to the Garden and the world. How much more do we have to be concerned about what we look at, or upon, with our eyes today. Even if it looks good for food, it can bring destruction to the soul.
A Side Note- A brief life experience: my wife and I were traveling (as I was preaching the gospel in this immense country), and we had our best friend with us: our dog named Zork. We had very little funds, we searched the car, and found enough change for two sandwiches. When I returned to the car, I unwrapped the sandwiches and prayed, then before we ate, we broke off some of the sandwich for our dog. He refused to eat, again we tried to feed him, and again he refused to eat. Then I opened the sandwiches, the meat had dark green streaks running through it. The green tint was certain sickness or worse. Our trusted companion smelled the contaminated meat. We only looked on the outward, it looked good for food, yet sickness was between the bread. Even today, we thank the Lord, and we thank our trusted friend Zork, for he was a good and faithful friend. ♦ End of Side Note.
Trust in the Sincere Milk of the Word
In our spiritual life we have food as well, Peter tells us that as newborn babes we should desire the sincere milk of the word, it is only by the sincere milk of the word that we grow in the Lord. Why use the word ‘sincere’? The Holy Spirit wants us to understand that only His voice is the sincere voice of God. Only the words that the Holy Spirit has given in the Scriptures and delivered to the heart of man is the sincere milk of the word. In the process of time, as we learn the Scriptures by the guidance of the Holy Spirit we pass from milk to solid food, or meat. The Holy Spirit within us tells us whether the milk or meat is good for us. It is He who opens the Scriptures to us to prevent us from suffering spiritual sickness. It is the Spirit of God using God’s eternal word that feeds us with the food for our spiritual growth. The Bible is full of delicious meals for the soul, they are there for every child of God.
The world, the flesh, and the devil want our eyes on their food, and if you are in doubt concerning their food, read the epistles of Paul, and you will not be in doubt very long, for he opens your eyes to the wickedness of the things of the world. Anything that excites the world cannot be good for the child of God. Remember what excited Eve, it was her own interpretation of what she saw that led to the fall of man. We must guard against the world, the flesh, and the devil, and remember that word ‘flesh’ applies to what we carry around every day. We also have the devil, he is active in every place, he has traveled and is traveling throughout the four corners of this earth.
The Doubt Attack
In Matthew, Chapter 4, Satan tempts the Lord Jesus. The first temptation is to bring doubt, If thou be the Son of God? The tempter tried doubt, and so today, with every child of God the first attack is always doubt. Does this sound familiar? Was not Genesis 3:6 to cause doubt in the heart and soul of Eve concerning what God had declared? I repeat what I wrote earlier, remember what the Lord purchased with His own blood, He will never sell back to the world, to the flesh, or to the devil. We are bought with a price, the precious blood of Christ; therefore, we must glorify God in our body, and cast out all doubt and fear for joy and gladness (or grace and truth). Satan in his deception not only uses doubt, but he is very willful. We are told that he travels to and fro through the whole earth seeking whom he may devour.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:(1 Peter 5:8)
Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. (1 Peter 5:9)
But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. (1 Peter 5:10)
Likewise, the devil tried to usurp the Lord’s will in Matthew, Chapter 4. As he tempted the woman, he also tried to tempt the Lord Jesus. The devil did not ask the Lord Jesus, but with his perverted being tried to tempt, or command the Son of God. But God cannot be tempted.
Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: (James 1:13)
But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. (James 1:14)
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. (James 1:15)
Notice the similarity between Genesis 3:6, and Matthew 4:4. The command of the devil was for the Son of God to turn stones into bread. This was very similar to the tree that was good for food, and to make one wise. Eve’s answer should have been the same as the answer of the Lord Jesus, for man truly does not live by bread alone; for it is by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God that man lives. Eve, as well as Adam, had listened to the words that proceeded out of the mouth of God, and by obedience to those words they would live, and by disobedience they would surely die. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? (Genesis 3:11) In the answer of the Lord to Satan, He took away the power of the world, the flesh, and the devil. By His answer He completely dissolved the temptation of Satan by the word of God.
The Number Four
In Matthew 4:4, we have a biblical principle in the spiritual truth of the number 4. The number 4 is the number of the world: north, south, east and west; the four corners of the world. We also have the four corners of spiritual deception. In Psalm 24, we have the world, and they that dwell therein: meaning man. (Psalm 24:1) The earth [is] the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. This gives us our fourth element of spiritual temptation. First, we have the world, then we have secondly, man; thirdly, the flesh; and fourthly, the devil. In the Book of the Revelation, we have the number 4 as a symbol of God’s message to the whole world: the four beasts. It is God’s message to every realm of the world. In Revelation, Chapter 6, we have the number 4 in judgment to the world in the four horseman of the apocalypse.
The Eye on the Tree
As we behold the mysteries of life, and even the mysteries of man, there is only one place that the answers can be fully revealed. The answer to all spiritual questions is the same answer that the Lord Jesus gave to Satan as recorded in Matthew 4:4. To go a little further, man can only live by the word of God. A man without Christ (who is the Living Word of God) is not alive to God. A man in Adam is dead in Adam. Sin that reigns within him has made him a slave of death, only the glories of the One in heaven can free man from this bondage that Adam brought on every man who comes into the world. It is not man who has told us that we can find life in Christ, it is God through divine revelation who has not only given His Son, but continually keeps the message of the gospel before all men that they might repent, and turn towards God in Jesus Christ. Today, the serpent continually repeats these words, Ye shall not surely die; and yet, death is a continual witness every day, every hour, to the lies of the devil. Eve should have been well aware of the word of God, and like the Lord Jesus, only by obedience to the word of God would she have life, but that was not to be. The eyes looked on the tree, and not to God. The ear listened to the deceiver, and did not recall the truth, Thou shall surely die. The tree was pleasant to look at, and by looking at the tree, desire took hold. Her heart was turning from God to a lie, and sin was waiting for an entrance into the world.
Set Your Eyes on Things Above
In this temptation the woman was deciding between the difference of the wisdom of God, or the wisdom of the world. If her choice was contrary to God’s will, it would bring forth death. It would ruin any relationship that Adam and Eve had with God. They would be away from God and without the wisdom of God. That is why Paul speaks to us concerning the wisdom of God. For Jesus Christ is not given for wisdom but made unto us wisdom. He becomes a part of us, and His wisdom is active in us. So, without the counsel of God, Eve had surrendered her greatest asset. Remember, God’s presence was in the Garden, could she not cry out for His counsel, and would He not answer her? This shows us that there was no thought of God in her thoughts, or in her being; not one look, or glance out of her eyes for God. Her eyes were full of self, and her desire was what she should not have. The tempter had succeeded without firing a shot, instead of taking the cup of salvation, she took and did eat of that which was not bread, and which was not spiritual food for both her and her husband. In that moment of time they disobeyed God, and fell victim to Satan’s temptation that would continue through the age of man and time. Sin entered into the world and death by sin. Man gave up his dominion, and liberty in the Garden for slavery to sin and the world’s dominion over him, for he shall work by the sweat of his face.
When I came out of darkness into the glorious light of the Lord Jesus Christ, my dearest friend wanted me to continue to run with the pack of mad dogs. I turned to the word of God, the answer was simple, the Lord said, I have far better food for you now in the word of God. The friends, one by one, went away, but my new friend (the Lord Jesus Christ) has stuck closer to me than a brother. I had made it perfectly clear to them; His name is, and always will be, The Lord Jesus Christ. He is my tree of life, and my eyes are wide open when I look to Him. Satan is still going to and fro throughout the whole earth, but the one who I have trusted is at the right hand of God. I have a Man in heaven (that same lowly man) that walked on earth, and suffered for me. He has now been exalted higher than the heavens, and He is the Lord of glory to me. His eyes are on me all the time without a blink, and this holds true for every Christian. In suffering, He bears with me in my suffering. In temptation, He cannot be tempted, and we are partakers of the divine nature. We are told to resist the devil, and that with the word of God, and because of the Living Word, the devil will flee from us. Beloved, don’t listen to his lies, don’t let your heart and faith stumble like Eve. Set your eyes on things above, your affection on the Man in heavenly places.
If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. (Colossians 3:1)
Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. (Colossians 3:2)
For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:3)
When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:4)
Amen
© Copyright 2017, Michael Haigh
Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the King James Bible. (KJB)