Clearing The Cataracts
By Pastor Steve Peich
Last month I had my eyes examined. As I did, the doctor and I got into a conversation about cataracts. When I did some research on that ailment, I found this. A cataract is a clouding that develops slowly in the lens of the eye. It obstructs the passage of light. As a result, things don’t look clear. Moreover, contrast sensitivity is also lost. That is, differentiating this from that is more difficult. Without treatment they can cause blindness.
This is not a bad description of what may be happening to some of our souls. Because of the constant flow of polarizing politics, one-sided newscasts, algorithms guiding what we see and read on our devices, and the human proclivity toward confirmation bias, we may be forming cataracts on our souls. That is, we are not seeing things clearly, and so differentiating God’s purposes, values, and goals from human ideologies have become more difficult.
As one anonymous sage once put it, “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.”
Like all of you, I was stunned, saddened, and angry over the mob violence of January 6th in Washington D.C. The temptation of my heart was to speak about people (whom God values, loves, and cherishes) in demeaning and denigrating ways. I wanted to vilify and demonize a whole list of folks who I think are responsible for leading this country to this point (can someone say cataracts?).
But on the Friday that followed that historic day, I went into solitude and prayed. For some reason the words of Jesus to Peter came to mind. These were the words He spoke after Peter stated that Jesus was the Christ. Jesus said: “Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not prevail against it.”
In that moment the anger (and cataracts?) started to dissipate, and hope started to arise. I realized that as a Christian I don’t need to panic or participate in rage because God’s Church and His Kingdom are not in danger. Human kingdoms may be, but not God’s. God’s church will prevail.
Let me be clear. God doesn’t eventually prevail, but He is, in this very moment, prevailing. The Church of God is an unstoppable force because God is at its head and not cataract-laden humans. This is why I can maintain hope (not some saccharine version of optimism, but real hope) in a time like ours.
That being said, here’s a sober reality: He never said that about any other entity on earth. He didn’t say that about the Red Sox or the Yankees, the left or the right, Republicans or Democrats, China or the United States.
What can you see beyond the latest rage fests on TV or online? What can you see beyond the heart sickening racism that still plagues us? What can you see beyond the violence and hostility of Seattle’s and Portland’s and Kenosha’s and Washington’s riots? What can you see beyond tribalistic politics and increasing polarization?
Can you see God’s work prevailing?
One thing I see is that God is still Lord, His church will not fail, and I am a part of the mission of that church to speak and bring peace, healing, and redemption to a lost, violent, and sinful world. Yes, I want this nation to heal and flourish, but as one pastor and podcaster recently put it: “A divided nation needs a united Church.” (Carey Nieuwhof)
May God give you the eyes to see Him prevailing, and may you join Him in His unstoppable work in the world.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, help me to see how You are prevailing even as chaos and division plague my country. Make me an instrument of Your peace; a peace that has the power to crush the gates of hell. Amen.
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