Look January 23, 2015

What Am I Looking At?

²² Look unto me, and be ye saved. . . Isaiah 45:22 KJV

Do we expect God to come to us with His blessings and save us? He says—“Look unto Me, and be saved.” The great difficulty spiritually is to concentrate on God, and it is His blessings that make it difficult. Troubles nearly always make us look to God; His blessings are apt to make us look elsewhere. The teaching of the Sermon on the Mount is, in effect—Narrow all your interests until the attitude of mind and heart and body is concentration on Jesus Christ.

Many of us have a mental conception of what a Christian should be, and the lives of the saints become a hindrance to our concentration on God. There is no salvation in this way, it is not simple enough. “Look unto Me” and—not “you will be saved,” but “you are saved.” The very thing we look for, we shall find if we will concentrate on Him. We get preoccupied and sulky with God, while all the time He is saying—“Look up and be saved.” The difficulties and trials, the casting about in our minds as to what we shall do this summer, or to-morrow, all vanish when we look to God.

Rouse yourself up and look to God. Build your hope on Him. No matter if there are a hundred and one things that press, resolutely exclude them all and look to Him. “Look unto Me,” and salvation is, the moment you look.

Chambers, Oswald (2011-05-01). My Utmost for His Highest, Classic Edition (pp. 15-16). Discovery House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Look unto me. (KJV)  Turn to me. (ESV)  No matter how you translate it, salvation comes from focusing out attention on God.  Certainly eternal salvation comes only from God, but also salvation from all of life's challenges.

I compared several translations of Isaiah 45:22 and not one of them was politically correct.

Depressed?  Buy more stuff.
Angry?  Yell and swear.
Displeased with your spouse?  Have an affair.
Anxious?  Have an other drink.

He is to be our focus.  He it so be our salvation.  He is to be our salve.

"'Look unto Me' and--not 'you will be saved,' but 'you are saved.'"  When we focus on God, our salvation is not a future event, but an immediate happening.  God's magnificence, God's brilliance,  God's love will outshine, overshadow, and overcome all the things Satan would place in our mind's eye. 

"Look unto me".  That's it.  Not "look unto me" and chant.  Not "look unto me" and attend church.  Not "look unto me" and tithe.  No. Just turn and look.  Stare deeply into His eyes.  Search the depths of His love.  Allow His presence, His majesty to engulf your total being.  Then you will be saved.