The Sparrow Watcher

By: Lisa Petersen

“Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.” Luke 12:6-7

Recently, my husband was asked to preach, and I was asked to sing a special before his message. God put on my heart to sing, “His Eye Is on the Sparrow.” My husband took the theme of that song for his message that evening. Let me take this opportunity to share with you the highlights, which spoke to my heart.

From Wikipedia, we read: “Civilla Martin was born in Nova Scotia in 1866. Her husband was an evangelist who traveled all over the United States. She accompanied him and they worked together on most of the musical arrangements that were sung at his meetings.” She stated the following: “Early in the spring of 1905, my husband and I were sojourning in Elmira, NY. We contracted a deep friendship for a couple by the name of Mr. and Mrs. Doolittle— true saints of God. Mrs. Doolittle had been bedridden for nigh twenty years. Her husband was an incurable cripple who had to propel himself to and from his business in a wheel chair. Despite their afflictions, they lived happy Christian lives, bringing inspiration and comfort to all who knew them. One day while we were visiting with the Doolittles, my husband commented on their bright hopefulness and asked them for the secret of it. Mrs. Doolittle's reply was simple: ‘His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.’ The beauty of this simple expression of boundless faith gripped the hearts and fired the imagination of Dr. Martin and me. The hymn, ‘His Eye Is on the Sparrow,’ was the outcome of that experience.”

“The entire poem she wrote was sent to a well-known composer of that day, Charles Gabriel. His lovely music has carried it all around the world in small churches and great crusades.”

The title of the song comes from Luke 12:6-7 where we read: “Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.”

Apart from these two appearances in Luke, and two in the Old Testament, the word sparrow appears twice more in the Bible. It is found in Matthew 10:29-31: “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.”

This passage points out to us some very important truths about the promise, “God’s eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.”

First, we notice the original recipients of this promise were His twelve disciples. These were His followers that He would empower to represent Him before the world. They were sent by God to where they would go, and they had His authority because they were simply obeying His command.

In the same way, we as Christ’s followers today can enjoy some of the same promises. His command is still good today, and the promise of His presence is still the same.

Matthew 28:18-20 has a command: “Go ye...” and a promise: “...I am with you alway.” When God sends us forth to where He has for us to go with His message, we can say with the song writer in verse 1, “Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come, Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heav’n and home, When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He: His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.”

Also, we cannot fail to see the realities of their persecution. These believers who went at Christ’s command, with Christ’s message, were to expect certain trials along their path. They would be as sheep facing wolves seeking to devour them. They would face men who turned on them and delivered them up to people not friendly to their cause or calling. They would be used by God to testify against the evils of their generation. They would be betrayed by friends and family alike. They would have to flee from one place to another because of the persecution. They would remind people of Christ because they would suffer as He did.

And it is in the context of this suffering, this persecution, that we see the recipients receiving this promise from Christ. It is all about God’s eye being on the sparrow and how they could know He was watching over them, just as He is watching over us in our sufferings.

There are times we go through hard situations. We are tempted to think, “Where is God? Doesn’t He know what I am going through?” Let me encourage you- Yes! He is there. He knows what we are going through. He loves us very much. This is where we have to remind ourselves of the truth that God never leaves us, nor forsakes us. We have to remember that His eye is on us even if it doesn’t feel like it. We walk by faith, not by sight.

This is what we would call the remedy of His presence. It is the only way to make it through the things that trouble us in this path God has set before us. Verse 2 of the song says: “‘Let not your heart be troubled,’ His tender word I hear, And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears; Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.” We only get to see the next step. We have to trust His leadership for the rest of the way. We must continue to believe, in hope, that He is leading us to His good destination for our lives. We must know that He is watching over us all along the way.

As we read through the passage where this promise appears, it becomes clear that there are some requirements to obtain this peace, the peace of knowing that God’s eye is upon us. First, we must be saved by confessing Christ. Then, we must love Christ above all others. We must follow Christ in the midst of all others.

The song writer recognized these requirements in verse 3 of the song: “Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise, When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies, I draw the closer to Him, from care He sets me free; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.” Those pains and cares are done away when we remember the promise that God’s eye is on the sparrow.

There is one final thought at the end of Matthew 10 showing the rewards available to us because of this precious promise. The reward is something that profits us. It is like a wage that is earned. No act of faith will go unrewarded, be it ever so small. He sees every act of faith that we do for Him. God will not forget. The woman who encourages God’s work shall be rewarded. You see, He is watching, just like Christ watched the widow giving her mites. He knows our motivations, and His reward is waiting as we continue in service to Him.

I don’t know what you are going through today, but please remember that God’s eye is always on us, as it is on the sparrow. We must believe it, by faith, and trust that what He says is true.

So, with that in mind, we can join the hymn writer in the chorus of our song: “I sing because I’m happy. I sing because I’m free. For His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.”