Acts 26:17–18; “Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”
Something is sobering about watching someone walk straight into danger without realising it. From a distance, their choices seem reckless, almost unexplainable. But when you discover that the person crossing into the middle of the road cannot see, everything makes sense. Suddenly, what looked like irresponsibility becomes a cry for help.
A visually impaired friend once told me something profound: “Blindness is not the absence of light; it is the inability to access it.” That single sentence captures the spiritual condition of countless lives today. Many are not intentionally choosing brokenness: they are unable to see clearly. The light is present…but something blocks their access to it.
This, in many ways, is the picture Jesus painted when He commissioned Paul. In Acts 26, as Paul retells his encounter with Christ before Festus and Agrippa, he explains that Jesus sent him to open the eyes of people so they might “turn from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God.”
Those words remind us that spiritual blindness is real. It is more common than we think, and it affects far more than the outwardly sinful. Blindness can hide behind confidence, intellect, religious activity, or moral behaviour. It can even hide inside a church pew.
THE QUIET REALITY OF SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS
When we see people walking boldly down destructive paths, we are often tempted to criticise, judge, or condemn. But Scripture invites us to take a different posture; one of compassion. People don’t remain in darkness because they prefer misery; they remain in darkness because they cannot see the way out.
The tragedy is not that people resist God: it’s that they are unable to recognise Him. Jesus, the Light of the World, is near to them, but the enemy of their souls works tirelessly to dim their vision. Just as a blind person does not benefit from the sunlight shining around them, a spiritually blind person does not benefit from the presence of God unless their eyes are opened.
This is why God continues to send His people (ordinary believers like you and me) to those still searching for meaning. When we carry the Gospel in love, we carry the only power capable of opening spiritual eyes. Through the message of Christ, the imprisoned step into freedom, the confused receive clarity, and the lost discover their true home.
RELIGION WITHOUT TRANSFORMATION
Paul’s commission included both Gentiles and Jews, a striking detail. The Jews had Scripture. They had traditions. They worshipped, prayed, and observed holy days. Yet Jesus still said their eyes needed to be opened.
This challenges the modern believer. It shows that spiritual blindness is not limited to those “far from God.” A person can be surrounded by Christian language, attend church faithfully, quote verses, and still lack the life-transforming power of the Gospel within.
Spiritual eyesight is not proven by religious activity; it is revealed by inner transformation. It is shown through a genuine surrender to Christ and the unmistakable presence of the Holy Spirit at work in the heart.
A CALL TO PERSONAL REFLECTION
So let me ask you the same honest questions the devotional raised:
Are you spiritually blind in any area of your life?
Have you truly made Jesus the Lord of your life—not just in confession, but in experience?
Is the Holy Spirit alive in you, guiding you, reshaping you, transforming you?
A person who has moved from darkness to light does not merely adopt a new belief system; they walk in a new reality. Their life slowly becomes a reflection of Jesus Himself: a life marked by humility, love, purity, and a deep longing to honour God.
This journey is not about perfection; it is about transformation. It is about becoming more like Christ every day as the Holy Spirit renews us from within.
May God pull us out of every shadowed place and lead us fully into His radiant light.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, I offer my life fully to You as a lifelong disciple of Jesus Christ. Let Your light break every influence of darkness in my life and let Your Spirit dwell richly within me. May Your power be fully revealed in me. In Jesus’ Mighty Name,
Amen.
QUESTION FOR MEDITATION
What indicators show that a person is spiritually blind?
SIX KEY TAKEAWAY POINTS
Spiritual blindness is not the absence of light but the inability to access it, leaving people unaware of the danger around them:
Compassion (not condemnation) is essential when engaging those who cannot yet see the truth.
Jesus sends His people to open spiritual eyes, guiding others from darkness into His liberating light:
Sharing the Gospel is not a task of pressure but an act of rescue.
Many who seem confident or religious may still be spiritually blind, lacking the transforming power of the Holy Spirit:
True sight is revealed not by rituals but by inner renewal.
The presence of God surrounds every person, but only those whose spiritual eyes are opened experience its life-changing power:
Light must be accessed, not merely observed.
A believer who has truly moved from darkness to light reflects Christ through love, humility, and holy living:
Transformation is the clearest evidence of spiritual sight.
Self-examination is vital; every believer must ask whether Jesus truly rules their heart and daily choices.
Spiritual clarity grows as we surrender ourselves to God’s guiding light.
