From Blindness to Sight

I have never been blind.  Guessing from the fact that you are reading this I don’t think you are blind either.  I wonder what it would be like to be completely blind.  No light.  No shapes.  Complete darkness all the time.  I know people overcome, but I am sure it is not easy.  In today’s story from the book of John we read a story of two types of people; those who are blind, and those who see.  Read carefully, because the blindness isn’t always so easy to see.  😊 

Background:

• It might be important to know before you read this story that in the time of Jesus culturally it was seen to be a sign of sin to be blind.  As if God were judging you or your parents for some horrible sin so you were born blind. 
• Before this particular miracle Jesus had done many amazing things and healed all kinds of diseases, including blindness.  But, the religious leaders and many in the city of Jerusalem still doubted.  They didn’t know where Jesus came from.  They didn’t know where he got his power from.  They didn’t know what he wanted.  In a sense, even though they could see Jesus, they were blind to his truth. 

John 9

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. ² And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” ³ Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. ⁴ We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. ⁵ As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” ⁶ Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud⁷ and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

⁸ The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” ⁹ Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” ¹⁰ So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” ¹¹ He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” ¹² They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

¹³ They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.¹⁴ Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. ¹⁵ So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” ¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them. ¹⁷ So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

¹⁸ The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight¹⁹ and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” ²⁰ His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. ²¹ But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” ²² (His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.)²³ Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

²⁴ So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” ²⁵ He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” ²⁶ They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” ²⁷ He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” ²⁸ And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. ²⁹ We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” ³⁰ The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. ³¹ We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.³² Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. ³³ If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” ³⁴ They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.

³⁵ Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” ³⁶ He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” ³⁷ Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.” ³⁸ He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. ³⁹ Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”⁴⁰ Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” ⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

Things to think about:

• Do you notice anything different about this story compared to other stories of Jesus healing people?  Did the man ask for healing?  Why the delay in healing?  (Jesus made mud out of his own spit, then sent the man to a pool to wash.  When the man could finally see, Jesus was long gone.) 
• Do you think Jesus is using the real life blind man as an example for the Jews who are spiritually blind?  Why are they so blind?  What don’t they see?
• I love the boldness of the blind man.  He is standing before some of the most powerful men in his country and he is like, “Why, this is an amazing thing!  You don’t know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes…”  It’s almost as if he is shouting, “Wow, what a bunch of idiots you all must be.  How blind are you that you do not see he is obviously from God.”  Jesus was right before their eyes putting his power on display and they could not see him.  They were blind.
• The question that Jesus asks the blind man at the end of the passage is the question for you today.  “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”  Do you believe that Jesus is God? Do you believe he has the power to heal, not just your physical blindness, but your spiritual blindness?  Do you believe he has the power to give you life?  If you believe may you be like the blind man in this story and worship our Lord Jesus Christ today!

"What Was In A Man"

Who knows you best?  Do you have a friend that knows all about you and really “gets you?”  Are you married to a spouse that understands your history, knows your likes and dislikes, and can read your emotions?  Maybe a brother or sister that just always seems to know what you are thinking?  We all probably have someone in our lives that knows us well.  Today, I want to look at a short passage from the book of John that reminds us there is someone that knows us even better than we know ourselves.

Background:

• Jesus had just started his ministry and was baptized by John the Baptist. 
• Jesus performed his first visible miracle officially starting his ministry by turning water into wine at a wedding feast.
• A few days after the wedding Jesus went to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover and there he discovered money-changers and merchants insulting the Lord turning the Temple into a “house of trade.” 
• We pick up the text with Jesus performing miracles and “signs” in Jerusalem.  It is a short text, but packed with meaning.  Let’s take a look.

John 2:23-25

²³ Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. ²⁴ But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people²⁵ and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.

Things to think about:

• How cool would it have been to see a “sign” from Jesus?  I wonder what those signs were?
• Verse 23 says the people “believed” in his name when they saw the signs.  What kind of belief did they have if Jesus does not “entrust” himself to them in verse 24.  I looked in a commentary and found out that it is the same Greek word used in both verses.  The people “believed” in Jesus, but he didn’t “believe” in them. 
• Why didn’t Jesus believe in the people?  Why didn’t he have faith in their faith?  He knew their hearts.  He “knew what was in man.”  I like that phrase.  Jesus knew that in man there is sin and a brokenness that doesn’t allow us to see things properly.  Jesus knew that some of these same people who “believe” in him because of the miracles would one day shout, “crucify him!”  They believed in Him for his stuff (his signs) but didn’t really believe in him for who he was as Lord and Savior. 
• Jesus knows your heart as well.  Here is the biggest question that will be asked of you today, or any day really.  Do you believe in Jesus?  Do you believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior or do you believe in Him just for miracles that you can see?   
• If you aren’t sure how you believe take a moment and pray.  Ask the Lord for the kind of faith that trusts Jesus with all things.  Surrender to His authority and ask him to help you believe.  Be like the man in Mark 9 who said, “Lord, I believe help my unbelief.”

Are You Even Listening?

Have you ever heard something, but not really registered what was truly said or understood what was meant?  I am sure this happens to more than just me.  I often will be in a conversation where someone tells me something and I respond with, “oh wow, that’s interesting…” and they say, “Yeah, I told you about this last week.  Don’t you remember?”  To be honest, sometimes I remember and sometimes I don’t have a clue what they are talking about.  I certainly will not be winning any awards for memory.  

How many times does God have to say something to us before the truth finally sinks in?  How often do we come across a passage or a promise of God and say, “oh wow.  I have never heard that before…” and God responds, “I told you this like 15 times in the last month and you have read this passage 100 times.  You have heard this before, but obviously you needed the reminder.”  Not sure God would talk like that, but the point stays the same. 😊  We need to be reminded of things often.  Today in our passage I want to look at the three times it is recorded that Jesus tells his disciples about his crucifixion and resurrection.  They were told at least these three times, yet when the event took place they seemed unprepared as if they had never heard the plan.  Maybe we can learn something from the disciples. 

Mark 8:31-38

³¹ And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. ³² And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ³³ But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

³⁴ And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ³⁵ For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. ³⁶ For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?³⁷ For what can a man give in return for his soul? ³⁸ For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Mark 9:30-32

³⁰ They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, ³¹ for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.” ³² But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Mark 10:32-34

³² And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, ³³ saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. ³⁴ And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”

Things to think about:

• Do you think Jesus was trying to hide the truth about what was going to happen to him?  It seems pretty straight forward to me. 
• After hearing all of these predictions, and with such specific detail, why do you think the disciples were so shocked to hear that Jesus had risen from the dead? 
• What was the reaction of the disciples when they heard this incredible news?  See Mark 9:32 – How often do we hear promises of God and fail to believe them because they seem confusing or hard to understand?  If God says it – we should believe it – even if we don’t know how it is going to work.
• What are some promises of God that you have heard before, but need to be reminded of again today?  Here are a few; do you believe them?
• You are loved (John 3:16)
• If you believe in Jesus you are his child (John 1:12)
• You are a fellow heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17)
• You will receive a glorified body and live forever with God (1 Corinthians 15:50-58)
• God is your strength (Isaiah 40:31)
• You can do all things through Christ you strengthens you (Philippians 4:13)
• And the list could go on…do you believe him today? 
• See it never hurts to be reminded.  Whatever situation you find yourself in today, whatever struggle you face, may the Lord remind you of his promises and make them come alive in your mind.  Let’s not be like the disciples and be caught off guard when God’s promises come true. He is a faithful God and will always keep his promises.

God is Near

In light of many tragedies and suffering, both globally and personally, I thought it would be useful to meditate on a promise of God.  Instead of looking at one passage and thinking about the implications of how that truth applies to our lives, today I want to look at multiple verses so we are reminded of a great promise of God.  What promise?  God is with you and will sustain you!  I will let God’s speak for himself:

Psalm 55:22a

“Cast your burden on the Lord,
    and he will sustain you…”

1 Peter 5:6-7

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, ⁷ casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”

Lamentations 3:22-24

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
    his mercies never come to an end;
²³ they are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
²⁴ “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”

Lamentations 3:55-57

“I called on your name, O Lord,
    from the depths of the pit;
⁵⁶ you heard my plea, ‘Do not close
    your ear to my cry for help!’
⁵⁷ You came near when I called on you;
    you said, ‘Do not fear!’”

Psalm 34:18

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
    and saves the crushed in spirit.”

James 4:8

“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. “

Psalm 145:18

“The Lord is near to all who call on him,
    to all who call on him in truth.”

And the list could go on.  Meditate on these words today.  No matter what you are going through.  No matter what is happening in the news.  Whether you understand it, agree with it, or have the courage to face it, remember this truth;  God is with you!  Call on him today and find rest for your soul, peace for your mind, and comfort for your heart.  Salvation, satisfaction, and joy are in the Lord – Praise God; for, he is near!