The light of love-the response of the man born blind

Story about the difference love makes to understanding

When I was a teenager, I fell in love with cars. I would spend hours annoying the local newsagents by standing in their shops “browsing” the car magazines. Sometimes I would even buy them. As a result, I could tell the difference between all the different types of cars on the road. Even though I have lost this infatuation, and I no longer obsess over car magazines or even websites, I still have a great fondness of cars, and can still recognise most models at a glance.

My wife and daughter, on the other hand, struggle to find our own car in the carpark, relying on the badges and number plate!

What makes this difference? It’s simple: I love cars, they view them merely as a tool in order to get from A to B.

Love is the difference.

Here’s another example. Who could name these breeds of horses? You’d have to be a horse lover, right? If you love horses, they suddenly get much more varied and interesting and recognisable.

These are real breeds, by the way, and here are their names. Don’t worry if you can’t read them, there won’t be a test afterwards. But if you loved horses you’d ace the test.

My point is that love makes all the difference in understanding something. I love computers and software, and I’ve invested tens of thousands of hours into the field. As a result, I’m pretty good at understanding such things, even when they are behaving bizarrely, as they often do.

This truth applies to people, too. If you love someone you will naturally invest in understanding them. Sometimes, it’s true, we think we’ve learnt all there is to know about someone, particularly our spouse, and we think we can stop learning. But that, of course, is a mistake. There’s always more to learn. It is true to say that only love has the power to drive us to keep investing for decade after decade.

The account that the apostle John recorded in chapter 9 of his gospel is a story that explores the difference that attitude makes in our relationship with God. Specifically, the difference in attitude towards Jesus.

Introduction to the passage

First, a little context.

Remember that in chapter 8, Jesus had said,

John 8:12 NLT

12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

We often think of Jesus’ “light” in purely intellectual terms. And certainly, the rational understanding of God’s word is a major part of how Jesus lights up the world. After all, a few verses later we read,

John 8:31–32 NLT

31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

But is this all that Jesus means when he says he is the light of the world? Is it only about intellectual knowledge? If Jesus had stopped making this claim at the end of chapter 8, we might think so. But then, in chapter 9, he continues to unpack what it means to be the light of the world through a practical demonstration.

He performs the sixth sign recorded in John’s gospel: he demonstrates his power over blindness, even a built-in blindness, a blindness that was present from birth. But that’s just the catalyst for what follows.

Let’s read this chapter and explore how Jesus shines light into dark souls.

The miracle and its meaning

John 9:1–7 NLT

1 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. 2 “Rabbi,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?” 3 “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him. 4 We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work. 5 But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Then he spit on the ground, made mud with the saliva, and spread the mud over the blind man’s eyes. 7 He told him, “Go wash yourself in the pool of Siloam” (Siloam means “sent”). So the man went and washed and came back seeing!

This sign seems to have taken place in Jerusalem, based on Jesus instruction to wash at the pool of Siloam. The blind man in the story does not seek out Jesus, but rather Jesus approaches him. Nonetheless, Jesus does ask the man to participate in his healing by sending him to wash in the pool. John’s explanation that Siloam means “sent” emphasizes how Jesus is the one sent from God to save the world.

The details of the healing, the spit and the mud, are vivid and much discussed, but there’s not a lot we can conclude from them, other than that Jesus’ power works however he wants it to work. There is no magic ritual that Jesus must perform in order to heal, but at the same time he can choose to work through the most humble of materials. That is still true today.

The actual miracle is almost anticlimactic: “the man went and washed and came back seeing!”

But despite John’s simple rendition, there is no way such a profoundly astonishing healing could go unnoticed. The first to notice it are the neighbours.

Reaction 1: Skepticism of the neighbours

John 9:8–12 NLT

8 His neighbors and others who knew him as a blind beggar asked each other, “Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some said he was, and others said, “No, he just looks like him!” But the beggar kept saying, “Yes, I am the same one!” 10 They asked, “Who healed you? What happened?” 11 He told them, “The man they call Jesus made mud and spread it over my eyes and told me, ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash yourself.’ So I went and washed, and now I can see!” 12 “Where is he now?” they asked. “I don’t know,” he replied.

Why are the neighbours so skeptical about the identity of the once-blind man? Are they not expecting miracles? Well, clearly not. This is one of the ironic things about the gospels. There are many skeptics today who think the miracles recorded in the Gospels are simply the delusions of ignorant ancients who would believe anything. We enlightened, scientific moderns know better than this!

But, of course, the people in the Gospels are themselves skeptical, even when they see the evidence of miracles with their own eyes, as in this case. Some of the once-blind man’s neighbours are so skeptical that they find it easier to believe that an identical twin has suddenly appeared, than that the man’s sight has been granted! That is some pretty serious skepticism!

This skepticism blinds the neighbours to the miracle and its witness. But what motivates their skepticism? What always motivates skepticism? Isn’t it a reluctance to lose control, to take risks, to be forced out of one’s comfort zone? That is certainly the case today, and it looks to me much like that in Jesus’ day.

Skepticism is less a demand for a high standard of evidence and more a demand for a more predictable and less challenging world! And so the skeptic remains in the darkness because the light demands growth and change.

But this is not the only reaction to this astonishing sign. Let’s read on...

Reaction 2: Hatred of the Pharisees

John 9:13–17 NLT

13 Then they took the man who had been blind to the Pharisees, 14 because it was on the Sabbath that Jesus had made the mud and healed him. 15 The Pharisees asked the man all about it. So he told them, “He put the mud over my eyes, and when I washed it away, I could see!” 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man Jesus is not from God, for he is working on the Sabbath.” Others said, “But how could an ordinary sinner do such miraculous signs?” So there was a deep division of opinion among them. 17 Then the Pharisees again questioned the man who had been blind and demanded, “What’s your opinion about this man who healed you?” The man replied, “I think he must be a prophet.”

The Pharisees are introduced into this story and immediately John explains that it was a Sabbath when Jesus performed this healing. It seems apparent, at least to John, that the two are related. And the majority of the Pharisees certainly seem to think the same way. Their immediate response to the man’s testimony is to accuse Jesus of working on the Sabbath, and to conclude that he is therefore not from God. The only problem with their logic is that their premise—that Jesus was sinfully working on the Sabbath—relies on their own judgement, not God’s word. Jesus has already scolded them about this when he healed the lame man and again at the feast of booths, but the Pharisees are not for turning. Rather, Jesus’ rebuke has hardened their hearts into bitterness and murderous hatred.

By choosing to dispute with the Pharisees over the Sabbath, and to rub their noses in this again by healing the man born blind on the Sabbath, Jesus has picked a fight over the authority of the Pharisees. Do they have the authority to dictate what work is and is not where Moses himself was silent or, at least, vague? Jesus says no, they have no such authority. And so, they hate him.

Hatred blinds us. When I first moved to Brisbane from a farm in North Queensland, I hated the city. That hatred blinded me to the many delights of any city, and Brisbane in particular. It was only as I let go of that hatred that I could begin to understand how I could live happily in Brisbane. If I had held on to that hatred, my life would have been so much more constrained and difficult. And this is the doom of most of the Pharisees.

Notice the contrast between the blind man and the Pharisees. When they ask this uneducated man what he thinks of Jesus, he declares that Jesus is a prophet. This is probably the greatest authority that the man could grant Jesus, and he declares it boldly against the Pharisee’s clear disagreement.

Why is he so bold? We’ll talk about that in a moment, but first, we turn now to his parents.

Reaction 3: Fear of the parents

John 9:18–23 NLT

18 The Jewish leaders still refused to believe the man had been blind and could now see, so they called in his parents. 19 They asked them, “Is this your son? Was he born blind? If so, how can he now see?” 20 His parents replied, “We know this is our son and that he was born blind, 21 but we don’t know how he can see or who healed him. Ask him. He is old enough to speak for himself.” 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, who had announced that anyone saying Jesus was the Messiah would be expelled from the synagogue. 23 That’s why they said, “He is old enough. Ask him.”

The Pharisees, in their insistence to disprove this sign, call the man’s parents. But the man’s parents react in yet another way: they react in fear.

So far we have seen skepticism, born of a desire to stay comfortable, and hatred, born of a desire to maintain authority and power. Now we see fear, which is yet another way to maintain control of our lives. The difference with fear is that fear recognises that the threats facing one cannot be fought, and so retreat is required. In the case of the parents, they recognise that the Pharisees’ authority and hatred are terribly dangerous for anyone that gets in their way. They quickly pass the buck back to their son.

Fear is the desperate person’s skepticism. A skeptic is happy in their beliefs, and doesn’t want the inconvenience of new knowledge. But a fearful person can be miserable and unhappy in their beliefs. However, the fearful are certain that change will make things even worse, and so they flee from it. The parents can see that rejoicing in their son’s healing will cut them off from the synagogue, the centre of Jewish life.

When we were in Melbourne I asked a friend how their church handled the Victorian law that criminalises helping homosexual people to experience healthy sexuality. They replied that, if necessary, they were prepared to go to jail in order to obey the Gospel. That’s the sort of decision the blind man’s parents were facing, but, unlike my Melbourne friends, they chose not to affirm Jesus’ power in order to protect their lives.

This is all rather depressing so far. Apart from the bold declaration of the healed man, we have encountered skepticism, hatred and fear. But the Pharisees are really gluttons for punishment, and so they call the man back.

Reaction 4: Love of the healed

John 9:24–34 NLT

24 So for the second time they called in the man who had been blind and told him, “God should get the glory for this, because we know this man Jesus is a sinner.” 25 “I don’t know whether he is a sinner,” the man replied. “But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!” 26 “But what did he do?” they asked. “How did he heal you?” 27 “Look!” the man exclaimed. “I told you once. Didn’t you listen? Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?” 28 Then they cursed him and said, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses! 29 We know God spoke to Moses, but we don’t even know where this man comes from.” 30 “Why, that’s very strange!” the man replied. “He healed my eyes, and yet you don’t know where he comes from? 31 We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will. 32 Ever since the world began, no one has been able to open the eyes of someone born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he couldn’t have done it.” 34 “You were born a total sinner!” they answered. “Are you trying to teach us?” And they threw him out of the synagogue.

This is a wonderful example to us of how to testify to God’s work in our lives, isn’t it? The once-blind man doesn’t pretend to know more than he does. “I don’t know whether he’s a sinner,” he says, “but I do know that I was blind and now I see.” These are words that we all sing with great gusto, aren’t they?

The Pharisee’s demand that the man explain how Jesus did his work is met with a cheeky reply: do you want to hear this again because you want to follow him, too? The man throws caution to the wind and fully identifies himself with Jesus. He now publicly declares himself to be one of Jesus’ disciples.

And even when the Pharisees curse him, he responds with a calm apologetic, carefully arguing for why Jesus must have come from God.

You may be surprised to discover that a number of commentators believe that the argument the man presents here is faulty. They claim that, since some workers of evil, such as Pharaoh’s magicians, were able to perform miraculous signs, the man’s claim that God doesn’t listen to sinners is wrong. But these commentators (for whom I have great respect) are themselves getting confused. The man’s argument is simple:

God only performs miracles on behalf of holy people

Healing congenital blindness is a miracle from God

Therefore the man who healed me is a holy person

The Pharisees, too, can’t argue with either the premises or the conclusion, and so they simply cast the man out. The great fear of his parents is visited upon him, but he is not afraid.

Now, hopefully you can see that there is only one person responding reasonably and rationally in this story: the man who was healed. Why is he able to think clearly and coherently while the neighbours scoff, the parents quake, and the Pharisees rage? Is it not because his growing love for Jesus frees him to be reasonable?

There is a famous saying, I’m sure you know it, “love is blind.” This is, perhaps, one of the most misleading aphorisms in the English language. You will not find such a claim in the Bible, because it simply isn’t true. When this saying uses the word, “love” what is actually means is “lust.”

And so the real claim is “lust is blind,” which is far more accurate. Love, which is a very different thing, is, rather, enlightening.

In his first letter to the churches, the apostle John writes:

1 John 2:10–11 NLT

10 Anyone who loves a fellow believer is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. 11 But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness.

What is love? Love is to value another as much as or more than oneself. The healed man sacrifices his position in society for Jesus’ sake because he values Jesus’ holiness over his own comfort. He loves Jesus. Jesus himself loves each of us and so gives up his very life so that we can be restored into relationship with the Father. Love requires a humility that the Pharisees did not know, it requires a courage that the man’s parents didn’t have, and it requires a sacrifice that the neighbours couldn’t give.

But in the light of love, everything makes sense, and humility, courage and sacrifice become possible.

Of course, when we love Jesus, it is not a one-way thing. There is no such thing as unrequited love when it comes to God. And so the epilogue of this story is important.

Epilogue: Eternal consequences

John 9:35–41 NLT

35 When Jesus heard what had happened, he found the man and asked, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 The man answered, “Who is he, sir? I want to believe in him.” 37 “You have seen him,” Jesus said, “and he is speaking to you!” 38 “Yes, Lord, I believe!” the man said. And he worshiped Jesus. 39 Then Jesus told him, “I entered this world to render judgment—to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind.” 40 Some Pharisees who were standing nearby heard him and asked, “Are you saying we’re blind?” 41 “If you were blind, you wouldn’t be guilty,” Jesus replied. “But you remain guilty because you claim you can see.

To the response of love, Jesus seeks out the man and reveals himself to him. When we love and obey Jesus he will never turn his back on us. He will reveal himself to us, and our relationship will grow deeper and deeper.

But, and here’s the kicker, when we reject him, and especially when we claim to reject him in full knowledge, we will lose everything.

Jesus reveals a secret, a hidden truth: those who claim to see in their own strength will be revealed as blind. When we set ourselves up as the ultimate authority on the world, we cut ourselves off from the source of reality; from God. But those who recognise their blindness, the way their sinful nature distorts and hides reality, will receive the perfect perspective of God.

It is tempting to think of Jesus in purely intellectual terms. He is the light of the world, so if I understand his teachings then I can obey them and receive my reward. But this story reveals the lie in that idea. Light is not just understanding, it must include love. We can only be bathed in the light of Jesus when we love him.

Our world thinks that we can think clearly without Jesus—we can discover the truths of creation through the disinterested practice of purely rational science or religion. But nothing could be further from the truth, and the accelerating collapse of science and intellectualised religion is brute testimony to this reality.

Jesus says,

John 14:15 ESV

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

and

John 15:10 NLT

10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.

Love is active. It enables us to live holy lives, and it is the fruit of living holy lives. And holy love connects us with the ground of all reality.

An ancient saying claims:

Proverbs 9:10 ESV

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

This is still true, but for us, hidden in Christ, this has changed. The apostle John points out:

1 John 4:18 ESV

18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

And so we can rightly recognise that the love of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom.

Like the church of Ephesus in Revelation 2, when we lose our first love we lose power, our minds and lives become darker. It doesn’t matter how hard we study the Bible in such times. We must rediscover our first love for Christ. I know many of us Aussies don’t like showing our feelings, but God made us to feel, to love, to care. We must not let our heads be separated from our hearts. When we read God’s word, it should move us. When we come to God in prayer it must be with groans of pain and cries of delight. When we share Jesus with others, they must see our love for him burning in our eyes and lips.

It is only in love that we engage rightly and productively with the maker of all that is.

So let us love our Lord with all our hearts so that we can proclaim with the healed man,

I once was blind, but now I see.

Let’s pray:

Lord, we were once lost in darkness, but you shone the light of your love into our lives, and we have been set free. Help us to love you with all our hearts, and to love our neighbours as ourselves. Let your light blaze in our lives as we show our love by obeying you.

This world is terribly dark, and there is no source of light within it. You are our only hope.

Kindle our love, in your name we pray, Lord Jesus,

Amen.