If Your Eye Is Evil

Photo by J. Herrera

In Mathew 6:22 -23  Jesus said, “Your eye is the lamp of the body.  When your eye is good, your whole body is full of light.  But, if thine eye be evil, thy whole body is full of darkness.  If therefore the light that is in thee is darkness, how great is that darkness.”

Some people say the eye is the window to the soul.  I have always thought you can tell a lot about a person by looking into their eyes.  Sometimes you see:  compassion, kindness, exuberance, intenseness, sadness, happiness, excitement, trust, deceit, love or hate.  You can tell if a person is outgoing, shy or an introvert. Other times you may look into someone’s eyes and there’s nobody home!  There are also times when you see pure evil and try to get away as soon as possible.

I wonder what it was like when Peter denied Jesus.  Before Jesus was arrested, He told Peter that he would deny him when the rooster crowed three times. Sure enough, just as He said, Peter denied Jesus in the courtyard.  Jesus then turned and “looked” straight at Peter.  Immediately, Peter went out and wept.  Can you imagine the loving eyes of Jesus penetrating to your very soul, not with anger but with love?   How ashamed Peter must have felt at that moment.   I also wonder what it was like when Jesus stood face to face with Pilot and he asked Him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”  Can you imagine the intensity of that moment?  I wonder if there was a “stare down” so to speak.  To come face to face with Jesus, the Son of God and to have missed the opportunity for forgiveness and salvation.  Instead he sent Him away to be crucified.

I think there is a lesson here for us.  How many times do we have the opportunity to share our faith with someone, but instead we give them a look of condemnation or make them feel that they don’t measure up.  Just taking a moment and giving them a sincere look of compassion and concern can make all the difference in the world.   Ask God to help you be aware of how you present yourself to others.  Try to follow Christ’s example when reaching the lost.  Ask God to help you see that person through His eyes, not ours.

Louise LaRosa