Can You See It? | Courteney Bence

Isaiah speaks, remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old, because God declares, behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth; can you not perceive it. God’s question implies more than a promise. It names a problem. Sight can be distorted. The eye gathers, the heart interprets, and what gets into the eyes eventually shapes the mind, the marriage, the parenting, the faith. Jesus names the eye the lamp of the body. If the eye is healthy, the whole person is flooded with light; if the eye is bad, darkness spreads. The issue is not whether God is working. The issue is whether the church can see it.

The phrase I have already begun means heaven is already moving before earth recognizes it. Delay, grief, betrayal, and survival-mode tint the lens. Faithfulness can sit inside a stuck frame if it keeps staring at yesterday. God therefore commands, remember not, not to erase history but to heal vision. Yesterday’s pain tries to narrate today. Yesterday’s power can box God in. The Red Sea was real, but if eyes lock on the split sea behind, they will miss the mountain He is moving now. Different methods, same Savior. Jesus healed blind people in different ways to reveal Himself, not to teach a technique. Methods are comfortable. Revelation requires trust.

Jesus’ words about the speck and the plank are not just about judgment. They are about vision. The greatest threat is not blindness but distortion, because distortion convinces a person that what is crooked is straight. When God says now it springs forth, He describes growth that is silent but certain. New things often start as seeds, not as headlines. The question becomes, can the church see the sprout and protect it, or only the oak once it towers. Sobriety at five days is a seed worth guarding. Early obedience is a sprout worth watering.

Elisha prays, Lord, open his eyes, not Lord, remove the army. God’s provision was already on the mountain. Sight changed, not the circumstances. The writer of Hebrews therefore directs the gaze, fixing eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher. The answer is not to look harder. The answer is to look at Him. David agrees, expecting to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Bartimaeus names the ache, Rabbi, I want to see again. God restores sight so love can return, forgiveness can grow, and dormant dreams can wake. Some plants are not dead. They are dormant, and resurrection is not hard for Jesus. God is doing a new thing. He starts by changing vision, then everything else begins to move.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Guard your sight to guard faith Attention forms interpretation, and interpretation directs decisions. Jesus calls the eye the lamp, so what enters the eye sets the hue of the whole interior life. Naming what has crept into sight is the beginning of clearing space for light. Where light gets in, recognition of God’s new thing gets possible. [04:14]
• 2. Stop staring at pain and success Pain trains expectation to shrink, and success can trap God inside old methods. God does not minimize wounds or miracles; He reorders attention so yesterday does not narrate today. Faith remembers without fixating, honors without idolizing, and looks for fresh mercy this morning. [08:51]
• 3. Expect new methods, trust the same Savior Jesus heals with mud, with a word, with a second touch. The variety is not randomness but revelation. When methods become idols, predictability replaces dependence; when the Savior is central, any pathway becomes an altar for His presence. [09:53]
• 4. Learn to see sprouts, not just oaks Now it springs forth describes quiet, certain, gradual growth. Seeds look ordinary, even invisible, yet they hold futures. Protect the small beginnings God entrusts, and refuse the lie that only finished products count as miracles. [16:56]
• 5. Pray for opened eyes, fix on Jesus Elisha asks for sight, not escape; Hebrews points the gaze to Jesus, not to effort. Vision is healed by a Person, not by a trick. Looking at Him steadies the heart until armies shrink and providence fills the hills. [23:52]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:30] - Behold, a new thing
• [00:51] - Story: when sight got distorted
• [02:27] - How vision interprets life
• [03:33] - What gets in your eyes
• [07:21] - Stop letting pain narrate today
• [08:51] - When yesterday’s miracle becomes a box
• [09:53] - Different methods, same Savior
• [12:58] - Plank, speck, and clarity
• [16:56] - New things begin as seeds
• [20:32] - Elisha’s prayer for opened eyes
• [23:52] - Fixing eyes on Jesus
• [26:04] - Goodness in the land of the living
• [29:05] - Bartimaeus: I want to see again
• [31:05] - Dormant is not dead

1. What two things does God command His people to stop focusing on in Isaiah 43:18, and what does He promise instead?
2. According to Matthew 6:22-23 (referenced in the sermon), how does Jesus describe the relationship between the eye and the body’s “light” or “darkness”? [04:14]
3. In the story of Elisha’s servant (2 Kings 6:17), what did the servant see before and after Elisha prayed for his eyes to be opened? [20:32]
4. What analogy does the sermon use to describe the early stages of God’s “new thing” (e.g., seeds vs. oaks)? [16:56]

1. Why might God command His people to “remember not the former things” even after reminding them of past miracles like the Red Sea? How could focusing on past successes limit faith? [08:51]
2. The sermon says, “Distortion convinces a person that what is crooked is straight.” How might distorted spiritual vision affect decisions in relationships, work, or faith? [14:07]
3. Hebrews 12:2 urges believers to fix their eyes on Jesus. How does this instruction address the problem of interpreting life through pain, grief, or survival mode? [23:52]
4. Why does the sermon emphasize protecting “sprouts” (small beginnings) rather than waiting for “oaks” (visible results)? What does this reveal about God’s process? [16:56]

1. What “former things” (painful memories or past successes) are you most tempted to fixate on? How could this focus blind you to what God is doing now? [07:21]
2. Identify one area where your vision feels “distorted” (e.g., a relationship, a dream, a daily habit). What practical step could you take to “clear space for light” in that area? [03:33]
3. The sermon warns against valuing methods over revelation (e.g., expecting God to act the same way every time). Where have you seen God use unexpected methods in your life? How can you cultivate trust over predictability? [09:53]
4. What “sprout” (small, quiet growth) is God nurturing in your life right now? How will you intentionally protect and nurture it this week? [18:00]
5. Elisha prayed, “Lord, open his eyes” (2 Kings 6:17). What specific prayer could you borrow from Scripture this week to refocus your spiritual sight? [20:32]
6. The sermon says, “Dormant is not dead.” What dream, relationship, or calling in your life feels dormant? How might you invite God to resurrect it? [31:05]