Faith Science - Faith To See The Invisible

The Chaldeans answered the king, and said, “There is not a man
on earth who can tell the king’s matter; therefore no king, lord,
or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or
Chaldean. It is a difficult thing that the king requests, and there
is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose
dwelling is not with flesh.” For this reason the king was angry
and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise
men of Babylon. So the decree went out, and they began killing
the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to
kill them. Then with counsel and wisdom Daniel answered
Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to
kill the wise men of Babylon; he answered and said to Arioch
the king’s captain, “Why is the decree from the king so urgent?”
Then Arioch made the decision known to Daniel. So Daniel
went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell
the king the interpretation. Then Daniel went to his house, and
made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,
his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of
heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions
might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then
the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel
blessed the God of heaven.
Daniel 2:10–19 nkjv

I established earlier in this book that the spirit realm is as real as the
natural realm but it’s invisible and mass-less. Identifying the details
of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and its interpretation necessitated spiritual
sensitivity. What the king’s spiritual advisors could not do was
see clearly in the spirit realm. Daniel knew that if he could just get a
glimpse of what God had revealed to Nebuchadnezzar in the dream,
their lives would be saved. He shared it with his three friends, and
they sought the face of God for insight.

In the spirit, the limitations of time and space do not exist. God
said this about himself: “Declaring the end from the beginning, And
from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel
shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’” (Isaiah 46:10 nkjv). God
declared the future through images in a dream and set the stage for
Daniel’s promotion. What kind of wisdom would you have access to
if you approached God in a difficult situation before you ever considered
another option?

Since our hypothesis states that biblical faith is “complete trust
in the invisible evidence provided by the Word of God confirmed by
commensurate action,” Daniel demonstrated his faith by confidently
sharing what God revealed to him with the king. The king expected
him to recount the dream and then explain what it meant, with the
risk of death if he got it wrong. With the only evidence of the king’s
dream being what God showed Daniel in a vision of his own, Daniel
needed faith to survive. After Daniel told the king everything, let’s
see how it turned out.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, prostrate before
Daniel, and commanded that they should present an offering
and incense to him. The king answered Daniel, and said,
“Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a
revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.” Then the
king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he
made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief
administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. Also Daniel
petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-
Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat
in the gate of the king.
Daniel 2:46–49 nkjv

Daniel’s faith led to instant promotion. When people begin to see
life through the eyes of God, they begin to see the invisible. What
might look one way on the surface might be completely different
underneath, and the person who always knows that is God. He
knew all along that this situation was designed for their promotion
and the threat of death was just a catalyst for action. Normal
people limit themselves to what their natural senses can perceive.
In contrast, God has a plan for promotion that cannot be perceived
through physical eyes or with carnal understanding.

Like the magicians, astrologers, and Chaldeans discovered, people
who only see through the eyes of reason will draw blanks at some
important times. They may have been able to create an interpretation
of the king’s dream by reason, but they couldn’t deduce its contents
if he didn’t tell it to them. From their perspective, deductive reasoning
could only go so far and no farther. That lack of spiritual insight
almost cost them their lives, while Daniel and his friends received
great promotion. The lesson learned from faith to see the invisible is
that spiritual eyes can see beyond the limits of time and space.

Faith Science - The Invisible World

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.

Colossians 1:15-17 NLT

Biblical faith is “complete trust in the invisible evidence provided by the Word of God confirmed by commensurate action.” Based on the Scriptures, there is an invisible world that exists simultaneously with the visible world we live in. In that world are thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities. Thus, if we believe the Word of God, we cannot ignore it. In the same way that Christ is the visible image of the invisible God, what we see in our lives are visible images of what’s happening in the invisible world. Even if we choose not to acknowledge it, our lives are directly affected by what we cannot see with our natural eyes. Now let’s apply this perspective to the following biblical account.

The king of Aram became very upset over this. He called his officers together and demanded, “Which of you is the traitor? Who has been informing the king of Israel of my plans?” “It’s not us, my lord the king,” one of the officers replied. “Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel even the words you speak in the privacy of your bedroom!” “Go and find out where he is,” the king commanded, “so I can send troops to seize him.” And the report came back: “Elisha is at Dothan.” So one night the king of Aram sent a great army with many chariots and horses to surround the city. When the servant of the man of God got up early the next morning and went outside, there were troops, horses, and chariots everywhere. “Oh, sir, what will we do now?” the young man cried to Elisha. “Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. “For there are more on our side than on theirs!” Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire. As the Aramean army advanced toward him, Elisha prayed, “O Lord, please make them blind.” So the Lord struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked.

2 Kings 6:11-18 NLT

When life is seen through the eyes of faith, it is completely different from physical reality. Elisha knew that God’s army was there to protect him, so he had no fear of the Arameans. It didn’t matter to him what his natural eyes could see. As long as God existed, he was safe. His servant, however, was not as confident . He looked up and saw troops, horses, and chariots everywhere, so he responded just like any intelligent human being would. He was panic-stricken. He shared his fears with Elisha, and one of the most amazing revelations in Scripture took place.

Elisha prayed for God to give his servant spiritual vision so he could see into the invisible world. Instantly, his perspective changed. If he thought the Aramean army was impressive, what did he think when he saw the hillside filled with horses and chariots of fire from God’s army? Did they all arrive as soon as the servant’s eyes were opened, or were they already there? Did the fact that they became visible validate their existence? Of course not! The invisible world is real all by itself and can only be seen through the eyes of faith. What happened with Elisha’s servant was necessary for him to believe what Elisha already believed by faith.