What do they mean by "set your eyes on Jesus?"
Hebrews 12:2 "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."
Many Christians like to quote this verse, and then ask you to "keep your eyes on Jesus," while not giving you the details how they themselves are able to keep their eyes on Jesus. What do they mean by “keep your eyes on Jesus?” Consider this verse:
John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Notice in this verse that Jesus is "the way, the truth, and the life?" These things cannot be decoupled one from another, that is to say, if you have Jesus, you automatically have "the way," and if you have "the way" that means you automatically have "the truth," and if you have "the truth," that means you automatically have "the life." One cannot be decoupled from another.
Ephesians 1:12-13 "That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,"
Notice how Paul laid out a sequence in this passage of scripture? There is a sequence by which a person come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. The words "In WHOM ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth" refers to the "preacher" in this verse:
Romans 10:14 "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?"
Without a preacher preaching from the word of truth, one cannot possibly hear "the gospel of your salvation," and without knowledge of "the gospel of your salvation," one cannot possibly come to believe in Jesus Christ.
John 3:16 "¶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Jesus is "the truth" and the "gospel of your salvation" is embedded in "word of truth," the 66 books of the Holy Bible. One cannot possibly set his eyes of Jesus except he first set his ears on the 66 books of the Holy Bible.
Psalms 119:18 "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law."
God must first open his eyes to Jesus Christ before he can set his eyes on Jesus Christ, and to set one's eyes on Jesus Christ would be to "behold wondrous things out of thy law." In fact, Jesus was called "Wonderful" in this verse:
Isaiah 9:6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Therefore, the "wonderous things" in Psalms 119:18 is a reference to Jesus Christ. That would be the Spirit of Christ embedded in the word of God, which is “the truth” according to John 14:6. So, to teach that one can simply set his eyes on Jesus Christ without the 66 books of the Holy Bible would be to teach idolatry, and many churches today are guilty of that.