Looking Unto the Lord, the Lord Looking On Us, Seven Human Looks and Seven Divine Looks

Extract

Looking Unto the Lord, the Lord Looking On Us, Seven Human Looks and Seven Divine Looks
A. W. Pink

Looking Unto the Lord

Looking unto the Lord is an attitude of the soul, an act of the will, and the exercise of faith—a turning away from all that is of the creature and relying solely upon the living God. It is tersely, but graphically, expressed in these words: “But our eyes are upon thee” (2 Chron. 20:12), and blessed is the one who can really so aver. That is the language of all God’s children when they are in their right minds. At that time, they place no reliance upon self, have no confidence in the flesh, and expect nothing good from the world; but they put all their trust in the Lord. Their hearts are engaged with an almighty God, and, like Moses, they endure “as seeing him who is invisible” (Heb. 11:27). It is this which characterizes those who are members of the Household of Faith: in their need, they look to God for their supplies; in straits, for deliverance; in trouble, for comfort; in weakness, for strength. It is this which distinguishes them from unbelievers, who lean upon the “arm of flesh” (2 Chron. 32:8) and look to their fellows for help. In proportion, as we maintain this attitude of dependence on and expectation from our heavenly Father, our hearts will be kept in peace, our souls made to rejoice, and our every want will be supplied. For the sake of young preachers, we will topicalize our subject.

1. The look of salvation. “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else” (Isa. 45:22). Look not to the Law, the priest, nor to your baptism, nor church attendance. Look not to your sincerity and good intentions, nor to your prayers and good deeds; nor even to your convictions of sin. None but Christ can save you. This is very humbling to the proud creature: to have to look away from self, and be wholly indebted to Another. It is not a matter of what we are—how good or bad—but of what He is: namely, an all-sufficient Saviour, freely offered in the Gospel to every hearer. If you look unto Him, as the serpent- bitten Israelites looked upon the divinely appointed object (John 3:14)―with simple but confident faith―He will save you. No …