Presented to TSA Warehouse Mission, 19 March
2017 by Captain Michael Ramsay
9:1-3 As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.
His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that
he was born blind?"
Jesus
answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so
that God's works might be revealed in him.
Corporately through tradition, the scriptures and experience
we have seen future generations of societies suffer significant consequences
related to previous generations' actions.[1]
Christian debates around war, the environment and immigration relate to this –
if we don’t have a large enough population, we can’t provide income for our
retirees and disabled and if we don’t have an environment, it doesn’t matter
because we’re all dead anyway. Those with Jesus here seem to have been trying
to either stretch or reduce this concept to a one-to-one correspondence.[2]
If you do good, good will happen to you; if you do bad, bad will happen to you.[3]
Jesus tells them this is wrong. A person is NOT blind because he (or his
parents) are bad people and this particular person was born blind for a GOOD
purpose. The wrong idea, the heresy (particularly common in the USA and South
Korea apparently) that good things happen to good people and bad things happen
to bad people has a name, do you know what it is…? The prosperity gospel. Jesus
quickly dispatches this error and chats about what he in going to chat about
here. Jesus says,
9:4-5 We must work the works of him who sent me while it
is day; night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I
am the light of the world."
Much of the Gospel of John is about light. Here we have a
man born blind, who can only see dark and thus Jesus speaks about light. He
says we must all work when it is light out because it will soon be too dark to
see. As long as we are with Jesus we can still see because He is the one makes
the light in the world. Then Jesus reinforces his message about light and
darkness through a miracle: he lets light shine in this man’s life.[4]
9:6-8: When he had said this, he spat on the ground and
made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man's eyes, saying to him,
"Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). Then he went and
washed and came back able to see. The neighbours and those who had seen him
before as a beggar began to ask, "Is this not the man who used to sit and
beg?"
Jesus replaces the darkness in his life with light and
everyone who knows this man notices. Who wouldn’t notice? Many of us know
Randall – a good faithful man who comes to soldier classes, Bible study and
prayer walk, and who plays his instruments for us at every opportunity.
Randall, maybe like this man, was born blind. Do you think we’d notice if
Randall showed up here for church of for lunch today and he could see?
9:9 Some were saying, "It is he." Others were
saying, "No, but it is someone like him." He kept saying, "I am
the man."
Again thinking of our friend Randall: Can you imagine how
frustrating this would be… some of us who know him would vouch for him but
others who don't know him may not and still others unkindly may have fun at his
expense. And some people who don't know Randall at all, who don't know us, and
who don't know Jesus might even deny either that this is Randall or else that
Randall was ever blind in the first place because., quite simply, the blind do
not just open their eyes and see one day.
9:10-13 But they kept asking him, "Then how were
your eyes opened?"
He
answered, "The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said
to me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' Then I went and washed and received my
sight."
They
said to him, "Where is he?"
He said,
"I do not know."
They
brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
So this is interesting...they keep asking him questions
trying to figure out how a blind man can suddenly see. He tells them that
someone spit on the ground and rubbed mud in his eyes. This doesn’t sound
right. Is this supposedly once blind man mocking them? Who was the man that
spit on dirt and rubbed it on your face to make you see? He tells them the name
of the man and all the relevant information that he can recall. They aren't
satisfied - I assume it isn't his friends here who aren't satisfied; I assume
it is people who never really knew the gentleman in question. When he tells
them Jesus healed him and he doesn't know where Jesus is, whether they believe
him or not, they figure they should go to the Pharisees.
So who are the Pharisees and why would they bring this man
to them? They’re not doctors. Who were the Pharisees? The Pharisees were a
religious group of Judeans. The Apostle Paul was a Pharisee and so was
Nicodemus in the Bible. The Pharisees were known as a moral evangelistic
holiness movement. At their best they were probably like a much earlier John
Wesley or John Calvin and at their worst they were probably like a much earlier
Oliver Cromwell or today's Westborough Baptist. At any rate, these people want
a religious opinion on what has just happened. They run and ask the pastors,
priests, the captains, the Pharisees to see what they think.[5]
9:14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and
opened his eyes.
This is important. Saturday is the Sabbath and to this days
Jewish worshippers, to varying degrees, aren’t supposed to do things on the
Sabbath but this is certainly a miracle so they think they should get some more
information as to whether it is okay or not: when and how this healing
happened.
9:15-16 Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he
had received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes. Then I
washed, and now I see."
Some of
the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not observe the
Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner perform
such signs?" And they were divided.
It seems that their questioning gets them nowhere. There is
a moral judgement to make here and the religious authorities are divided.[6]
Some say that God commanded the Sabbath to be made holy and so anyone who would
profane the Sabbath by doing something on Saturday that could easily be done on
Monday would be disobeying or even insulting God; so how could Jesus come from
God if he did this? Others argued that he performed the will of God on the
Sabbath by restoring or granting sight to a man. This is not disrespecting God;
this is a miraculous sign from God. The religious leaders are divided.
9:17 So they said again to the blind man, "What do
you say about him? It was your eyes he opened." He said, "He is a
prophet."
This really doesn’t settle anything. I imagine those that
already came to this conclusion agreed and those that didn’t, didn’t. They must
really be getting into this debate and they must think this is really important
because they go to great effort to try to resolve this.
9:18-23 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 sight and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born
blind? How then does he now see?"
His
parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born
blind; but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened
his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself." His parents
said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed
that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the
synagogue. Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."
So this is an interesting exchange with his parents for a
few reasons. 1) The parents do confirm that he is their son and that he was
born blind 2) they are intimidated by this whole thing – I know if I was called
before a whole bunch of my bosses, who could throw me out of the church, my
work, and my life; I would be nervous too and 3) This man is an adult. He can
speak for himself. The parents say – why are you asking us? We weren’t even
there. Ask him yourself. Now, I don’t know if those Pharisees who decided
earlier that this man was of God have left or not but those that remain seem
more than a little antagonistic. They start provoking and arguing with the man.
9:24-26 So for the second time they called the man who
had been blind, and they said to him, "Give glory to God! We know that
this man is a sinner."
He
answered, "I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that
though I was blind, now I see."
They
said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
This is a great comeback that the man has. They accuse and
ask him AGAIN, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes…?"
9:27 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?"
That would be the last thing they want!
9:28 Then they reviled him, saying, "You are his
disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses,
but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from."
The man has undoubtedly had enough now; I guess he figures
if they are going to throw him out of church they have already made up their
minds to do so.[7]
9:30-33 The man answered, "Here is an astonishing
thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know
that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him
and obeys his will. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone
opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, he could
do nothing."
The Pharisees are totally backed into a philosophical corner
here with nowhere to turn – and they know it - so they fall into the trap of
the prosperity gospel; the heresy that good things happen to good people and
bad things happen to bad people. Instead of addressing this man and responding
to the requested theological interpretation of the events that God performed in
this man’s own life, they insult him. They choose to be wrong rather than to
admit that they were wrong.[8]
If they had believed this heresy than none of this conversation would ever had
taken place in the first place. They can’t actually believe it but still…
9:34 They answered him, "You were born entirely in
sins, and are you trying to teach us?" And they drove him out.
How many times do we do that? How many times do we know what
is right but defiantly lash out wrongly instead?
Now Jesus enters the story again. It appears that news of
this encounter had gotten out and so Jesus was seeking him out.
9:35 Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when
he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"
Do we know what the ‘Son of Man’ is? He is the Messiah. He
is the leader who is going to deliver God’s people from exile and oppression
and establish his kingdom here. Jesus said, "Do you believe in the Son of
Man?"
9:36-38 He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me,
so that I may believe in him."
Jesus
said to him, "You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is
he."
He said,
"Lord, I believe." And he worshiped him.
This man has found his salvation and this is extremely
important for this man and for everyone else but this story is about much more
than his personal salvation. The gospel of John has a much larger story to tell
about the whole world and light and darkness and seeing and not seeing. You
see, salvation is not just offered to this man; salvation is offered to us all.
9:39-41 Jesus said, "I came into this world for
judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become
blind."
Some of
the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, "Surely we are not
blind, are we?"
Jesus
said to them, "If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you
say, 'We see,' your sin remains.
There are some of us who have never seen the light, like the
man in this story and when he finally does, he basks in it. He lets the love
and the light of Jesus fill his whole being. If that is you, Jesus wants you to
see and feel what you have been missing – the access to joy in the midst of
troubles.
Sadly, however, even when we have felt or heard of the
light, some have chosen the darkness of separation from God’s comfort and
grace; we claim we can see quite well enough without him in our lives (cf. Mark
3:29).[9]
We claim that we know, do, and can explain things well enough; we don’t need to
be enlightened by Jesus. Some of us in our blindness claim we have gone to
school or we have gone to the school of hard knocks so we know how the world
really works;[10] some of us
continue to walk in the darkness of self-reliance or something else rather than
in the light of Jesus and this is sad because this does not need to be.
Jesus has come into our life and our world to lead us all in
his light; those who are in darkness; we who have so much going on that we
can’t see any way out, we who can’t see any relief for our predicament; God is
here to shine His light in our own life so that we might find relief from pain
and so that we may experience the joy
of His life eternally. If you haven't done so yet, if you are still walking in
the dark, I invite you to step into the light of God's love and experience His
Salvation today.
Let us pray.
---
[1] Cf. William
Hendricksen, John (New Testament Commentary: Baker Academic: Grand
Rapids, Michigan: 2007), 72.
[2] Cf. N.T.
Wright, John for Everyone Part 1 (Louisville, Kentucky, USA: WJK, 2004),
134.
[3] Apparently
some Rabbis thought some babies could sin in the womb; cf. Cf. William
Hendricksen, John (New Testament Commentary: Baker Academic: Grand
Rapids, Michigan: 2007), 73.
[4] Cf. Andrew
T. Lincoln, The Gospel According to Saint John (Black's NTC: Hendricksen
Publishing, Peabody, MA, USA: 2006), 279-80 for a discussion of John 8:12
pertaining to light and darkness in the man's life.
[5] Pharisees
could have been acting on behalf of the Sanhedrin; cf. William Hendricksen, John (New
Testament Commentary: Baker Academic: Grand Rapids,
Michigan: 2007), 79
[6] For a good
discussion of the Syllogisms A and B, cf. William Hendricksen, John (New
Testament Commentary: Baker Academic: Grand Rapids, Michigan: 2007), 82-93
[7] Gail R.
O’day, John. (TNIB 9: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1996), 660.
[8] cf.
Bultmann, The Gospel of John, 337, referenced from Gail R. O’Day, John.
(TNIB 9: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1996),660
[9] Rodney A.
Whitacre, John (IVP Academic: Downers Grove, Illinois: 1999), 251. He
likens it to Mark's 'blasphemy against the Holy Spirit'
[10] Cf. Gerard
Sloyan, John, (Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and
Preaching, Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1988), 123. Our own religious
rules and regulations can cause this same blindness if we let it.
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