Recovering Sight

TT: A blind man was cast out.

The man was born without the ability to see.

What grief his parents must have had, coming to know their child was born blind.

Anyone would ask, “What is the cause of his suffering?”

Like the disciples, many assume that someone is to blame.

Some believe, as the Pharisees taught, a physical problem of a child could have been the result of the parent’s sin or even caused somehow by the child in the womb.

We should avoid speculation and instead use the time God has given us to fulfill his commands - Cyril of Alexandria

What good are the works of God “beyond life, there is no more opportunity for work, faith or repentance” – Chrysostom

Miraculously, Jesus gave sight to man.

The man did not seek Jesus; Jesus sought him. – Chrysostom

They came across the blind man in passing, but Jesus would not pass him by without changing his life.

Jesus did not only provide light to souls, but he also provided sight to the blind.

The man did as Jesus instructed him to do as an act of faith, and he was healed.

Some of the neighbors were confused, asking many questions, and they disagreed about who he was and whether they should believe what he was saying.

The neighbors took him to the Pharisees to investigate the event.

They probably brought the blind man to them by force.

This was not the Sanhedrin.

They tried to disguise their cynicism with a dogged pursuit to find blame.

If they were simply trying to find out the truth, they might have believed those who witnessed it.

They questioned the man who was formerly blind and didn’t believe him.

They questioned his parents, but the parents were no help; they simply protected themselves.

The man told them simply what happened, but he had no idea who Jesus was.

All he knew was “a man called Jesus” gave him sight.

The Pharisees declared that Jesus was a sinner for healing this man on the Sabbath.

In their interpretation, Jesus violated the Sabbath, therefore, he could not by from God.

They were blinded by their own interpretation of Scripture and were quick to judge.

They were cynical, suspicious, and they rejected the testimony.

They were blind to who Jesus was, where he came from, and his good work, but still they condemned him.

TW: We are often blinded by our own cynicism and pride.

Some people simply cannot believe what anyone says, even when they weren’t witness to the event.

Sometimes we say, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

Well, the blind man’s neighbors saw it and still didn’t believe it.

It stands to reason every witness might remember things differently, but it would be near impossible to deny that someone who could never see received their sight.

To cynically reject the witness of God’s work in someone’s life will always leave us empty of empathy and of unbelief.

Turning a blind eye to the work of God always leaves us with a spiritual deficit.

May our eyes be opened to the work of God, so that we can ask like the blind man “who is he?”

GT: Jesus gave the man both physical and spiritual sight.

The Sabbath day was meant for rest, not just for physical rest, but also to find rest in the presence of God. What better day is there for someone to receive healing?

Jesus is “the light of the world” while he walked on the earth, the one true work of God active in the world.

Neither the blind man, nor his parents, were to blame.

Jesus proposed a greater purpose behind this situation.

The man was born blind, so that God might be revealed.

Wait… it sounds like you are saying that God caused the man to be blind for his own glory. What kind of “good” God would to that?

In fact, the Scripture says, “he was born blind,” not “God caused the man to be blind.”

Let us be careful about what we read into the text.

We can conclude that suffering comes from sin but not that all suffering is the result of sin.

He was born blind, and God’s glory would be revealed by giving him his sight.

God’s glory is often revealed through the miraculous.

The world’s limitations reveal the limitlessness of God, especially his love.

Jesus gave the blind man sight.

Jesus made mud from ordinary dust and transformed it into something miraculous, something more than can be seen, and after his washing, he could see.

Jesus used dust from the ground and water from himself, through his own spit.

Sending the man to the pool at Siloam (Shiloh) was significant, as the first place where Joshua and the Israelites established the Tabernacle after the Exodus (Jos. 18:1); and Shilonites were among the first to return from Babylonian captivity.

The blind man might have drawn a crowd for making such a journey.

But, the water of the pool did not bring the man sight.

Shiloh was also represented as a person who goes to his people and restores them.

The blind man obeyed Jesus and received the blessing of sight and believed.

His obedience was credited to him as righteousness.

Jesus gave him Spiritual sight such that the man could defend himself before the accusing, cynical Pharisees.

The judgement of the Pharisees served to push the man to believe in Jesus Christ even more.

When he found the man again, Jesus revealed that he was the one that healed him, and that he was Son of Man/God revealed in the Scriptures.

When Jesus revealed himself, the man believed in him, called him Lord, and worshipped him.

In verse 39, Jesus says he came into the world for judgment, that those who admit that they do not see will come to know Christ as Savior/Redeemer, and all who claimed to see will be confirmed as indeed blind.

Anecdote: One of my favorite scenes in movies is from The Greatest Story Ever Told when the formerly blind man shouted, “I was blind, and now I see,” imagining a tear in his eye, and when asked, he said “His name is Jesus” with the brightest eyes and smile on his face.

No one could take away what he knew to be true. It was Jesus who gave him sight, and he must have come from God.

Jesus’ time walking on earth was soon to be done, but God would send his Spirit to continue the work among the church at Pentecost.

GW: God creates all things new and reveals their true nature.

Honestly admitting that we cannot see, in an act of pure humility, opens our hearts for a true revelation of God.

God’s mission of salvation overcomes any power that suffering would otherwise have over us.

God reveals himself to us and fills us with his Spirit that his work might continue through us.

Together, we are sent like the blind man into the world, and God blesses us with sight to see the light of God, Christ, at work in the world that we would join him.