John 9

Apparently, the disciples were of the mindset that if something bad happened to you it was your fault! While that can be true, it’s not always true. Sometimes bad things happen and it’s so God can use them to do a work in our lives. Perhaps it’s a work of maturity (Romans 5:2-4), perhaps it’s a work of empathy (2 Corinthians 1:3-4) or perhaps it’s a way to display His glory, as it is here.

Whenever we encounter someone who has a problem we can respond in one of three ways: we can revile, we can reflect (as the disciples initially do), or we can respond.

Jesus responds to the blind man’s need with love, and reveals in a very real way that He is the light of the world! He also reveals that He is creator and God. Just as God formed man out of the dust of the earth, so Jesus takes mud and gives a man back His eyesight. But Jesus wants the man to display faith and obedience, so He has him go and wash His eyes, and it’s then that He gets His sight back (reminiscent of 2 Kings 5:1-14). The people are amazed! They drag Him before the Pharisees because it’s the Sabbath, and the Pharisees end up arguing among themselves. Some think Jesus has to be a sinner. Some think He can’t be to do such a sign, so they end up asking the man. The man, perhaps simply because of the miracle, or perhaps because of the similarity to what Elisha did in the Old Testament, calls Jesus a prophet.

Although his parents are fearful of the religious leadership, the man born blind was much more forceful and antagonistic, probably because he could now see! In fact, He throws some of the leaderships assumptions about Jesus back in their faces, and has some Biblical support to do so:

Psalm 66:18 (WEB) “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.”

Proverbs 15:29 (WEB) “The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.”

The leadership is so upset that they apparently excommunicate the man, which is just what his parents were afraid of (34, 22).

Jesus then comes to the man, reveals Himself as the Son of Man (which is Messianic), and the man worships Him. Jesus then says two of the most profound statements in Scripture. He first says: “I came into this world for judgment, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind.” The Pharisees, perhaps suspecting that Jesus is talking about them, ask, “Are we also blind?” Jesus responds by saying: “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.”

They were satisfied that their darkness was light, so they were guilty. If they could admit that they were in spiritual darkness, then their guilt would be removed and they would see!

Thought for the day: Chances are you will be confronted with a situation today where you can choose to revile (like the Pharisees), reflect (like the disciples), or respond (like Jesus). What will you choose to do?

Matthew 9:36 (WEB) “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.”