Lifting Up Our Eyes: Living by Faith and Joy

The call to lift up the eyes sets the heart on God as keeper and helper, the one who knows every need before a word is on the tongue, and this knowledge steadies the soul. Joy and thanksgiving rise as the church looks above moments, fears, failures, and even successes, because joy belongs to the divine nature and therefore belongs to those united to Christ. The issue is not access but cultivation. The battle is in the mind. Focus is not passive. Perception requires directed attention. The stories people tell themselves shape their reality, so the church must align its narrative with God’s story of redemption.

Peter announces a new birth into a living hope and an imperishable inheritance, which fuels rejoicing even amid various trials, because fire-proved faith results in praise, glory, and honor when Christ is revealed. Faith in this frame is persuasion that acts, the fruit of an awakened heart that sees God. Spiritual sight governs endurance. Moses endured because he saw him who is invisible. Anna and Simeon perceived Christ among countless infants because their lives were oriented to the promise. The same Spirit-led vision trains mature sons and daughters to think on what is noble, lovely, and praiseworthy, so that the peace of God guards mind and heart. Even biology follows thinking, so thanksgiving and prayer rewire response patterns toward hope.

Jesus’ teaching on two houses, two builders, and one storm exposes foundations. Practice forms strength. Repetition cuts new paths of obedience where old defaults once ruled. Hebrews speaks of shaking so the unshakable remains. God is committed to maturity, not to crush but to refine, producing a people detached from the world’s ways yet present in the world with salt and light. Psalm 30 gives the language of hope: weeping may stay the night, but joy comes in the morning. Seated with Christ, the church learns to offer sacrifices of joy and to laugh over the heads of its enemies, because joy is the language of faith.

Gratitude interrupts anxiety, disarms bitterness, and weakens pride. The grateful person sees what God is doing and stays anchored in the age to come, while the bitter person is trapped in the narrow frame of the temporal. Citizenship is in heaven, awaiting the Savior who will transform lowly bodies to be like his glorious body. Jude commands the church to build itself up in the most holy faith, pray in the Holy Spirit, and keep itself in God’s love while God himself keeps his people and presents them with exceeding joy.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Joy flows from seeing God rightly [01:45:35] Joy is not denial but confidence that God’s victory stands over circumstances. When the gaze settles on the risen Christ and the imperishable inheritance, the heart finds language for praise even in prison. Joy speaks the truth of the future into the present and strengthens obedience. It is the atmosphere of heaven breaking into ordinary days. [105:35]
• 2. Focus directs spiritual formation [01:18:59] Seeing is active, not accidental, so attention must be stewarded like a plumb line. Narratives either enslave or free, and gratitude recasts the story under God’s providence. As the mind submits to what is true, lovely, and eternal, the peace of God starts governing reflexes. Over time, the heart’s default becomes hope. [78:59]
• 3. Trials refine faith into praise [01:28:57] Fire does not destroy faith, it proves it, and what is proved brings praise at Christ’s revealing. Shakings expose foundations so that repentance can build on the rock with practiced obedience. In this way, affliction becomes midwife to maturity. The outcome is resilience that carries the fragrance of the age to come. [88:57]
• 4. Practice gratitude to disarm anxiety [01:48:47] Thankfulness interrupts worry in real time and breaks the spell of bitterness and pride. Gratitude reorients attention to gifts already given and promises yet to be fulfilled. It teaches the soul to count mercies, not threats, and to live from abundance rather than lack. This habit slowly resets what the heart expects. [108:47]
• 5. Live by faith, not by sight [01:17:10] Faith trusts the unseen word of God over the seen pressures of the moment. Like Anna, Simeon, and Moses, vision fixed on God makes endurance possible and fruitful. The Spirit and the word furnish a superior guidance system to mere instinct. This is how the church stays unshaken while storms rage. [77:10]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [68:31] - Glory And Kingdom Prayer
• [69:37] - Lift Up Your Eyes
• [70:07] - The Lord Sees And Knows
• [72:09] - Called Into Joy And Thanksgiving
• [77:10] - Faith Over Sight
• [78:59] - Seeing Is Active Focus
• [82:40] - Looking Like Anna And Simeon
• [88:30] - New Birth Into Living Hope
• [91:33] - Faith That Acts
• [96:04] - Building On The Rock
• [99:12] - Trained By Shaking
• [100:31] - From Wailing To Dancing
• [104:11] - The Practice Of Thanksgiving
• [119:57] - To Him Who Keeps You

Bible Reading
1 Peter 1:3-9 (ESV)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

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Observation Questions

1. According to 1 Peter 1:6-7, what purpose do trials serve in the life of a believer?
2. The sermon emphasized that "joy is the language of faith" and not denial of hardship. What example was given of believers rejoicing even in suffering? [01:45:35]
3. How does Psalm 30:5 ("Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning") connect to the idea of trials refining faith?
4. What practical analogy was used to explain how repetitive obedience reshapes our default responses? [01:37:53]

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Interpretation Questions

1. Why does Peter link rejoicing in trials to the "tested genuineness of your faith"? How does this connect to eternal inheritance?
2. The sermon stated, "Your biology follows your thinking." How does this idea align with biblical teachings on renewing the mind (e.g., Romans 12:2)? [01:25:22]
3. How does gratitude "disarm bitterness and weaken pride," as mentioned in the sermon? What biblical principles support this? [01:48:29]
4. Moses endured "because he saw him who is invisible" (Hebrews 11:27). How does spiritual sight enable perseverance in modern challenges?

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Application Questions

1. What specific "narrative" (story you tell yourself) about a current struggle might need to shift to align with God’s story of redemption? How can you actively reframe it this week? [01:21:00]
2. Identify one area where anxiety or bitterness often takes root. What tangible step could you take to "interrupt" it with gratitude or thanksgiving today? [01:48:47]
3. The sermon compared faith to "cutting new paths" through repetition. What small, daily habit could you practice to strengthen your focus on Christ (e.g., Scripture meditation, worship, intentional gratitude)? [01:37:00]
4. How might anchoring your identity in "citizenship in heaven" (Philippians 3:20) change your response to a temporal pressure or disappointment you’re facing?
5. The sermon urged believers to "laugh over the heads of your enemies" like Jesus. What situation in your life needs a shift from fear to joyful confidence in God’s victory? [01:44:59]
6. What trial or "shaking" in your life could you view as an opportunity to build resilience and "carry the fragrance of the age to come"? [01:39:12]
7. How could you incorporate "aggressive thanksgiving" into your relationships (e.g., family, coworkers) to cultivate a culture of joy this week? [01:09:57]