By Nick Bibile
"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."
— Hebrews 12:2
The Christian life is summed up in one great duty: looking unto Jesus.
Looking is an action. It is not passive. It is something we must continually do. Yet the English word looking does not fully capture the richness of the original Greek.
The Greek word translated "looking" in Hebrews 12:2 is aphorao. It is formed from two words: apo, meaning "away from," and horao, meaning "to see" or "to fix one's gaze upon."
Thus, aphorao means more than merely seeing. It means turning our eyes away from all other things and fixing them firmly upon one object. The believer turns his eyes away from the world, away from self, away from earthly attractions, and fixes them entirely upon Jesus Christ.
This is not looking at a picture, an image, or a religious symbol. It is not merely possessing knowledge about Christ. It is not simply understanding facts about Him. Rather, it is looking to Him with the whole soul in faith, trust, dependence, and love.
We fix our eyes upon Christ because He is the Author and Finisher of our faith. In Him alone there is salvation. He endured suffering, shame, and the wrath of God that rightly belonged to us. Therefore, we must continually look to Him who endured the cross on our behalf.
Apart from Christ, the wrath of God remains upon every sinner. But there is mercy for those who flee to Him, fall at His feet, and follow in His steps.
The great church father Augustine once read the works of the Roman philosopher Cicero and praised their eloquence. Yet he remarked:
"They are not sweet, because the name of Jesus is not in them."
Every faithful pastor should have two chief aims: first, to feed God's people with the knowledge of Christ; and second, to promote holiness in their lives.
The Apostle Paul declared:
"For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified."
— 1 Corinthians 2:2
Likewise he said:
"I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord."
— Philippians 3:8
To know Christ is worth more than all the treasures of this world.
Many professing Christians claim to look to Christ, yet they see nothing in Him worthy of their affection. They find beauty, pleasure, and satisfaction in the world rather than in Christ.
The prophet Isaiah described such people:
"He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him."
— Isaiah 53:2
This is how the natural man sees Christ. He sees no beauty in Him.
The true Christian sees differently.
When believers look upon Christ, they mourn over their sins because they realize that their sins pierced Him.
"They shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him."
— Zechariah 12:10
The more clearly we see Christ, the more deeply we grieve over sin and the more earnestly we cling to Him.
Many seek happiness in money, entertainment, pleasure, success, or earthly comforts.
But the true believer finds his happiness in Christ alone.
Christ is the Sun around which our lives revolve. He is the object of our faith, our salvation, our Rock, our refuge, our comfort, our Mediator, and our Friend.
He is the ladder between heaven and earth.
He is the only Mediator between God and man.
My friend, where are you looking for happiness?
Are you looking to Christ, or are you looking to the world?
The eternal Son of God became the Son of Man so that sinful creatures made from dust might become sons of God by grace.
Have you experienced this grace?
Consider the holy angels.
They have never sinned. They do not need forgiveness, justification, or redemption. They do not need salvation through the gospel.
Yet Peter tells us:
"Things into which angels long to look."
— 1 Peter 1:12
The angels eagerly desire to peer into the wonders of redemption.
If sinless angels are captivated by Christ and His gospel, how much more should redeemed sinners be captivated by Him?
Christ is more excellent and sweeter than everything this world can offer.
The highest happiness of the Christian is found in Christ.
At His feet we receive our greatest joy.
The Apostle John writes:
"These things write we unto you, that your joy may be full."
— 1 John 1:4
The world seeks happiness through sights, feelings, experiences, and possessions.
But believers walk by faith.
Peter writes:
"Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."
— 1 Peter 1:8
We have not seen Christ physically, yet we love Him.
We rejoice in Him by faith.
Are you turning your eyes away from worldly things and fixing them upon Christ?
Many professing Christians spend hours gazing upon worldly entertainment while spending little time looking unto Jesus.
The world mocks God, ridicules biblical truth, celebrates immorality, and glorifies sin. Yet many Christians consume such things daily without concern.
Can light and darkness dwell together?
"What communion hath light with darkness?"
— 2 Corinthians 6:14
Jesus said:
"No servant can serve two masters."
— Luke 16:13
Many claim to love Christ while feeding their minds upon what dishonors Him.
Instead of finding sweetness in Christ, they seek sweetness in worldly amusements.
Instead of delighting in God's Word, they delight in entertainment.
Instead of pursuing holiness, they pursue pleasure.
Many excuse sinful entertainment by saying, "It is not that bad."
But what is our standard?
Is it public opinion?
Is it the culture?
Or is it the Word of God?
Charles Spurgeon wisely warned:
"Flee all sin without exception, and follow after everything that is pure and holy without exception."
The Scripture commands:
"Abstain from all appearance of evil."
— 1 Thessalonians 5:22
The Christian should not merely avoid obvious sin but should avoid everything that encourages, promotes, or draws him toward sin.
John writes:
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world."
— 1 John 2:15
What God calls "the lust of the eyes" and "the pride of life," the world often calls harmless entertainment.
But the believer must ask:
Does this bring me closer to God?
Does this increase my love for Christ?
Does this strengthen my desire for Scripture?
Does this help me grow in holiness?
Does this glorify God?
These questions must be answered honestly.
The Christian life is a race.
"Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us."
— Hebrews 12:1
We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses—the saints who have gone before us.
The great obstacle in this race is sin.
Sin weighs us down.
Its pleasures appear sweet for a moment, but they hinder our progress and weaken our pursuit of holiness.
Many become entangled in worldly desires and cease growing spiritually.
They find Christ boring but find the world exciting.
They are alive to worldly things but dead to spiritual things.
This is a dangerous condition.
In John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, Christian met two men named Formalist and Hypocrisy.
They claimed to be on the path to heaven, yet they had not entered through the narrow gate.
Instead, they climbed over the wall.
When asked why they had not entered through the gate, they replied that it was too far and too difficult.
Many professing Christians are the same.
They want the crown without the cross.
They want heaven without holiness.
They desire salvation without repentance.
They seek comfort without self-denial.
But Christ calls His followers to take up their cross and follow Him.
True believers overcome because Christ is the center of their lives.
Scripture declares:
"And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony."
— Revelation 12:11
The Christian's confidence is not in himself but in Christ.
His victory is found in the blood of the Lamb.
When God rescued Lot from Sodom, the angels gave a solemn warning:
"Escape for thy life; look not behind thee."
— Genesis 19:17
The same warning applies to believers today.
Do not look back to the world.
Do not long for the pleasures you once loved.
Do not return to the slavery from which Christ delivered you.
Look upward.
Look heavenward.
Look unto Jesus.
"While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen."
— 2 Corinthians 4:18
The things of this world are temporary.
Christ is eternal.
The world is passing away.
Christ reigns forever.
Therefore, look to the King in His beauty.
Look to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
Look to the One seated upon the throne.
Look to Him who is altogether lovely.
Look to Him until your heart is transformed into His image.
Turn your eyes away from the world.
Fix them upon Jesus.
And run to Him with all your heart.
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