"I See," Said the Blind Man
Notes
Transcript
John 9
As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.
And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.
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.”
Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud
and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
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?”
Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.”
So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?”
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.”
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.
Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.
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.”
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.
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.”
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 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.”
(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.)
Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
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.”
He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. 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?”
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?”
And 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 answered, “Why, this is an amazing 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 if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.
Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind.
If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.
Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?”
Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.”
He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”
Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?”
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.
The Purpose of John
The Purpose of John
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
The Sixth Sign
The Sixth Sign
(Review first 5 and look forward to 7th)
Water to Wine at Cana (ch. 2)
Healing of Official’s sick son (ch. 4)
Healing of Lame Man (ch. 5)
Feeding 5000 (ch. 6)
Walking on Water (ch. 6)
Giving Sight to the Blind Man (9)
Raising Lazarus from the Dead (11)
What did Jesus do for this man?
What did Jesus do for this man?
The sign:
Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
Jesus made mud, put it on the blind man’s eyes, and told him to go wash his eyes at the pool of Siloam. The blind man did as Jesus said, and this man who was born blind could now see, as he testifies several times later in the chapter.
Jesus demonstrates that he is the Light of the World (9:5; see also 8:12)
Jesus is the Christ (Messiah)
Jesus is the Christ (Messiah)
Healing the blind was one expectation of the coming Messiah, based on the text of Isaiah 61:1 in the Greek Septuagint.
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
The LORD has anointed me … to proclaim … recovery of sight to the blind (61:1, LXX)
Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it: “I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.
Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.” Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
Quoted by Jesus in Matthew 11 in response to John’s disciples, to assure them that he is the Messiah prophesied by Isaiah
Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.
Jesus’s healing of this man demonstrated that he was the Messiah.
Jesus is the Son of God
Jesus is the Son of God
textual issue in v. 35
KJV & NKJV have “Son of God” in v. 35, but all other translations have “Son of Man.”
Most likely “Son of Man” is the original text, and somewhere along the way someone changed it to “Son of God” because it seems to fit better with the theme of this Gospel.
The title “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used to refer to himself as the fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy in Daniel 7. It is a divine name, so to say that he is the Son of Man is to say that he is the Son of God. Who else would receive honor and glory from the Father and be given the right to sit at his right hand? The Son of Man is the Son of God — it’s the same person: Jesus.
So whichever your translation has, we’re talking about Jesus, who is the Son of Man and therefore the Son of God.
he healed a man born blind, a unique miracle (“if he were not from God...”)
The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing 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 if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
he receives worship from this man; who has the right to receive worship?
He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
Responding to Jesus
Responding to Jesus
The Stubborn Unbelief of the Pharisees/religious leaders
They cared most about their traditions which went way above and beyond what God had said
Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 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.” 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.
They refused to accept Jesus as the Messiah, and they kept others from accepting him as well
(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.)
They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.
They call Jesus a sinner
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.
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.”
They refused to humble themselves and admit their need of Christ
Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.
The Fear of the Parents (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 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.” (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.) Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
The Faith of the Blind Man
His journey to faith in Jesus:
A blind beggar with no knowledge of Jesus
As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.
He learns the name of Jesus and is healed by Jesus but hasn’t seen him yet.
Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 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.”
He tells what Jesus did for him
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.”
He thinks Jesus may be a prophet
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.”
He doesn’t yet know much about Jesus except for what Jesus did for him
He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”
He calls himself a disciple of Jesus
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?” And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.
He concludes that Jesus must be from God
The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing 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 if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
He is cast out of the synagogue because of his confession of Jesus
They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.
Jesus finds him and asks the man if he trusts in him.
Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.”
He does believe, and he worships Jesus — he has received Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God, and as John says, he has life in his name.
He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
If this man had not been born blind, he might never have met Jesus and turned to him. But because of his desperate situation, he recognized that he was in need of God’s grace, and he trusted in Christ.
How should we respond?
How should we respond?
You can reject Christ out of hatred, fear, or indifference, like the Pharisees, the parents of this man, and others.
Or
You can humble yourself and receive him for who he is — the Messiah and the Son of God —and believe him and worship him.
Trusting in Christ and worshiping him is the proper response to who he is.
Are you trusting in him?
Do you believe that Jesus is who he says he is and who his works demonstrate him to be, the Messiah and the Son of God?
Are you giving your life to him in worship?