Have you ever found yourself taken back and at a loss for words when you heard someone say something, or maybe witnessed their questionable actions…and asked yourself: “What in the hell were they thinking?”

Truth be told, not only have I thought/asked myself that very question when seeing what others might have done or said, but I’ve even asked that of myself …in times past (‘What was I thinking?’). True story. And if we are being honest here, I’d imagine most of you can look back and recall instances where that was a fair question to ask yourself regarding things you may have said or done, yes?

Where we can make matters worse for ourselves though is when we are quick to ‘judge’ others during those times that we are astounded by what we are witnessing; and I say ‘make matters worse for ourselves’ because Jesus reminds us that we ought not to be ‘quick to judge’…for in the same way we judge others…so shall we be judged’ (Matt. 7:1-2). Also true story.

One long overdue trait that I am working on developing in myself, which probably comes with age and wisdom…is I find myself these days saying less… and listening/observing more. And Jesus, who is our ‘wisdom’ (1 Cor. 1:30)…models for us perfectly how we should respond in such times. After all, IF…we are truly abiding in Him, we also ought to ‘walk as He walked’ (1 John 2:6).

Take for instance during those three hours He hung on a cross, suffering intensely as he labored for every single breath He took before He died…and in one moment He looked down at those who put Him there, many even taunting Him…and as He pressed up on that spike that secured his feet to that wooden beam…Jesus uttered these words of prayer to the Father: “Forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34)

They. Don’t. Know. What. They. Are. Doing.

Really? Is that a legitimate ‘excuse’ for anyone to be able to use…they didn’t know what they were doing? I mean, they really did…didn’t they? And yet, Jesus would suggest otherwise if those prayerful words are accurate (which I believe they are). So talk about extending mercy and grace to those who reviled Him and spat upon Him and killed Him in the most hideous way known at that time in history.

Many of us are familiar with the last line in that first verse of that famous hymn- Amazing Grace: “I was blind but now I see.”

This may not ‘land well’ for some…but it is possible to sing that stanza with sincere tears and ‘all the feels’…and still be blind. This would probably be prevalent among those whom Jesus said were proficient at ‘honoring God with their lips while their hearts were far from Him’ (Matt. 15:8). Paul refers to this as walking in a ‘form of godliness while denying the power’ (2 Tim. 3:5).

So what exactly is ‘it’ that ‘blinds us’, or keeps us from truly ‘seeing’? Now this is where it can get uncomfortable for many who still are reluctant to buy in to the fact that we live and exist in a world that is not only ‘physical’ in nature…but also has a ‘spiritual’ component or layer to it as well.

Have you ever been working on a project where you were assembling something, a piece of furniture, a jigsaw puzzle perhaps, or maybe a recipe where all the ingredients came in three separate but sealed bags…and either you had misplaced or had not yet found that ‘third bag’? At some point, you come to a standstill because there are ‘missing pieces’ that keeps you from moving forward to complete the project. I would submit to you that many struggle to make sense of this life and world because they have been ‘blinded’…or failed to yet see and discover this ‘third bag’ or component that points to ‘spiritual matters’. And because it concerns ‘things of the spirit’…Science can be a little slow in confirming or ‘proving’ this added layer because…well…we are no longer talking about ‘natural’ things.

Look at what Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 2:6-16, explaining why the ‘natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them because they are spiritually discerned’ (14).

Friends…how stable can a ‘3-legged’ stool be…if one of the legs are missing?

And if you are one of those who remain skeptical…I get it; but please hear me when I say I’m not asking you to believe me simply because I’m telling you these things are so; but at least be open to considering the possibility that I am sharing ‘truth’ with you here. Again, you don’t have to believe me, but at least be willing to ‘review the material as they did in Acts 17:11…and then ask God to ‘confirm’ to you if there is any truth to these things I share here. I’m pretty confident that if it’s truth you seek after, and your heart is humble…God will indeed ‘reveal’ these matters to you as well. And when He does…you better buckle up.

So why and how are so many people ‘allegedly’ blind to these things I speak of, which results in them saying and doing things where they ‘know not what they do’? Well, again all I can do is point you to scripture that states that the ‘god of this age has blinded the minds of those who are perishing…from seeing the light of the gospel’ (2 Cor. 4:3-4). Yes, that would be the same ‘god of this age’ who is referred to as the ‘wicked one' who influences and manipulates the ‘whole world’, according to 1 John 5:19.

When Paul wrote there in that passage from 2 Cor. 4….he mentions how this ‘gospel is veiled’ (3)…but…if you look in the previous chapter, we learn that this ‘veil is removed when one turns to the Lord’ (2 Cor. 3:16). And it is to those whom have ‘turned to the Lord’…that the ‘mysteries of the kingdom are revealed’ (Matt. 13:11). Would you give that a moment to ponder, please?

Now turn to 2 Timothy 2 and read vs.24-26 and ask yourself…why might it be possible that people are saying and doing things that Jesus said…’they know not what they are doing’?

You mean…people can really be ‘taken captive’…by…’the devil’?

Well who do you think Jesus came to set us free from, as He announced was His reason for coming, in Luke 4:18?

Join me tomorrow?