2 Corinthians 4:3-6 (NRSV)
Read 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 on biblegateway.com
Verse 3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. Verse 4In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. Verse 5For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake. Verse 6For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Devotion
In Egypt, where we live, donkeys and horses pulling carts still mix with cars in heavy traffic, and every one of them wears blinders. These leather shields beside their eyes keep them from seeing reality in every direction but the way their master wants them to go. They enforce total servitude by removing visual data that could give the animal some alternate basis for good judgment.
What keeps us from seeing reality? How has the text's "God of this world" given us blinders? Has material well-being made it impossible to think spiritually? Has post-enlightenment prejudice against anything but physical reality made it impossible to conceive of One who is beyond all ken? Has petty literalism, with regard to scriptural detail, replaced the blazing glory of the light shining in the darkness there?
Christ is not about blinders. Christ is about seeing clearly! Christ is about revelation of the fullness of God.
Prayer
Lord, so often we walk around in our world, acting exactly as if you were not there at all. Remove our blinders and help us to see! In Jesus' name, Amen.