A Careful student of the Scriptures will observe that frequent mention is made of the lifting up of the eyes. We read that just prior to raising Lazarus from the dead Jesus lifted up his eyes; that before healing the man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech Jesus looked up to heaven; and yet again, before feeding the multitude, he took the loaves and the fishes and looking up to heaven blessed and brake them. Christian Science shows that a deep significance is attached to this act of looking up to heaven or lifting up the eyes, which metaphysically understood indicates that thought is lifted above materiality.
In the Glossary to "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 586) Mrs. Eddy defines eyes as "spiritual discernment,—not material but mental," and this is precisely what must be lifted up or used. Had the Master lifted up merely his physical eyes at the tomb of Lazarus, he would have seen only what those around him were beholding, namely, evidences of death, sorrow, and limitation. But through spiritual discernment he could descry the man of God's creating—the man whom God made to reflect His glory and dominion. By reason of spiritual discernment he could say, "Lazarus, come forth," with the result that Lazarus came forth. Again, had Jesus at the time when he fed the vast multitude looked with only a material sense of sight at the few loaves and fishes put before him, he would have seen lack, hunger, fear, discord. What he did, however, was to look up to heaven, harmony, realizing God's ever operative law of peace and plenty which enabled him to demonstrate an abundant supply for all.
An instructor of mathematics looks over the problems of his pupils with his thought firmly fixed on the law of numbers, with his eyes, as it were, lifted up to this law. So clear is his apprehension of the laws relating to numbers that any mistake made by his pupils is quickly detected and corrected by him. He does not mistake a wrong solution for a right one, nor does he become confused or discouraged by reason of the mistakes made by the pupils. In like manner Jesus' understanding of God, the Principle of being, was so clear that he could demonstrate the right solution of life's problems to be harmony based on spiritual law. Thus, when he was confronted by the mistakes of mortals, as evidenced by sin, disease, or death, he could correct these mistakes. With his eyes lifted up to the spiritual fact of God's omnipotence and the spiritual creation of which we read in the first chapter of Genesis, wherein God saw all He had made and "behold, it was very good," Jesus 'never became confused nor discouraged by sense evidence. He understood every discord to be the result of ignorance or misapprehension of spiritual law and knew that it could be corrected by a right apprehension of Truth.
To-day there is the same need to lift up the eyes. A study of the Bible, in connection with the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mrs. Eddy, gradually enables one to look beyond the mortal discordant sense of creation to spiritual reality. In this textbook Mrs. Eddy says (p. 264): "Mortals must look beyond fading, finite forms, if they would gain the true sense of things. Where shall the gaze rest but in the unsearchable realm of Mind?" This recalls the psalmist's words: "Unto thee lift I up mine eyes," also that Nebuchadnezzar after having endured the hardships consequent upon disobedience to God declared, "I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation."
The eighteenth chapter of Genesis contains a picture of Abraham in the heat of the day sitting in the tent door. Then the record states that "he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him." Had Abraham depended upon material sense to guide him he might have thought of the heat, and felt that he was tired, and paid no attention to these strangers. But he did not let selfishness blur his vision. With uplifted eyes he saw an opportunity to express kindness, and his hospitality to God's messengers brought him abundant blessing.
Jesus once cautioned his disciples: "Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest." God's ever operative law of health, harmony, peace, and abundance is always waiting for us to apply it if we but refuse to look upon the false material sense of creation and persistently look up to the divine Principle of being. This does not mean the ignoring of error, for Christian Science reveals the unmistakable fact that what one sees is determined by his state of consciousness. Nevertheless each and every one can so purify his consciousness here and now as to be able to see, as did John, a new heaven and a new earth.
Let us therefore strive to lift up our eyes that it may be said, "Blessed are your eyes, for they see." The uplifting of the eyes must begin by the uplifting of thought. Reflecting the pure thoughts of justice, honesty, mercy, kindness, love, which flow from the river of the water of life that washes away the curse brought upon humanity by reason of its evil thinking,—its passions, greed, selfishness, and hate,—our eyes are uplifted to see that city wherein there is no night, no sorrow, where there is neither hunger nor thirst, and God wipes away all tears from the eyes.
