I Was Blind But Now I See

Biblical Text: Isaiah 42:16

“And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.”

Jewish hierarchy at the time of Christ were like the blind leading the blind. The High Priest, the Sadducees and the Pharisees were all embracing and teaching a corrupt form of the Old Testament Covenant filled with dishonesty and the depraved ideas of men. They had contaminated the purpose of the covenant and were using it, not to make people obey GOD, but to make people obey THEM. The Jews had become blind to their perverted motives, and instead of rebelling against these man-made rules of faith, they embraced them out of blind obedience.

Now, don’t think the Sadducees and Pharisees were on the same page. They had their major differences…sort of like Democrats and Republicans. These two sects had different interpretations of the Jewish law and traditions. The Pharisees believed in the oral law, which was a set of man-made rules and traditions that were added by them to the written law of the Torah (the first five books of the Bible). The Pharisees taught that these rules were necessary to protect the people from breaking the written law. They added thousands of rules and traditions that were not found in the Torah. These man-made rituals and traditions made it impossible for anyone to keep. We call this ‘legalism’.

The Sadducees, on the other hand, only believed in the written law of the Torah, and they rejected the oral law. They believed that the written law and priestly privileges dating back to the time of Solomon were sufficient to guide the people. Of course, they alone considered themselves the perfect interpreters of that law.

The big thing was that they did not believe in the resurrection of the dead to life eternal (Mark 12:18). These two factions of the religious hierarchy, the Sadducees and Pharisees, were complete opposites… yet they found common ground in the persecution of a preacher from Galilee.

By the time Jesus arrived on the scene, the Jews were desperate for the arrival of their promised Messiah to deliver them from the yoke of Roman oppression. Isaiah’s prophecy promised that the Messiah “shall not fail nor be discouraged, till He have set judgment in the earth: the isles shall wait for His law.” (Isaiah 42:4). And the Jews were waiting…and waiting.

I Was Blind But Now I See

The Jews were waiting, but they were waiting for the wrong thing. They were waiting for a mighty warrior to slay the Romans. They were waiting for their restoration to power. They were waiting for what they believed would be a utopian life of salvation without sacrifice.

But Isaiah spells out a different message. Here, in the 16th verse of his chapter 42, Isaiah tells us what we can expect of our Messiah.

First, Christ came to lead us in a new direction.

The Jews were way off track in their expectations of a Messiah. They were thinking inside the box the Romans had put them in. And the Sadducees and Pharisees weren’t making it any easier for them, with their rigid rules and ridiculous interpretations. No matter which way they turned, they were surrounded by a ‘roadmap’ of dead ends. Isaiah delivers the Messiah’s message that “I will lead them in paths that they have not known.”

That’s what they needed. A new direction. A fresh start. An escape from the rat race. There would be no deliverance unless they could hit the delete button and start all over again with a map that would lead to true deliverance. It meant that they would have to erase all their preconceived understanding of their awaited Deliverer and open their minds to receive a new interpretation of mankind’s desperate needs and necessities.

If someone asked you right now, “What do you need?”, you’d say something like,

I need a good job. I need a house. I need a low-interest car loan. I need the government to stay out of my pocket. I need, I need, I need.

That’s how we think. We think in terms of the here and now. We seldom think in terms of the hereafter. How else can we explain man’s sinful lifestyle, his poor choices, and his selfish motives! But God had a better plan…a plan that would remove the terminal effects of our sin and replace it with a roadmap to eternity. Christ came to deliver us from our sins and show us the way to eternal life. It may not have been what the Jews were waiting for, but it was exactly what they needed. Remember saints, the choices you make today will affect your tomorrow.

Christ came to lead us in a new direction.

Second, Christ came to turn darkness into light.

The Jews were living in darkness; a darkness caused by their failure to adhere to their Old Covenant relationship with the LORD. The Sadducees were misinterpreting the covenant, and the Pharisees were trying to improve on it. Neither one desired to enlighten the people they served. They only sought to oppress them and keep them under their thumb, so to speak. They were rulers of the darkness.

You know what it’s like when you are standing in a dark room. It takes forever for your eyes to adjust to your surroundings, and only just a bit. Your peripheral or marginal sight only lets you see what’s right in front of you. You can’t get the big picture. You have no idea what lurks ahead that could cause you to stumble and fall. So you allow yourself to be lead by the unknown, to feel your way through the darkness, until you can get to the light.

The same is true of man’s future. Man can’t see what lies ahead. The darkness of this sinful world will only let man see what’s right in front of him, and even that is often distorted. Man is blind, even to his own potential, by his limited understanding of all God offers. But Christ came to turn on the spiritual light switch. God said, “I will make darkness light before them…”. God took all the darkness, balled it up, and put it on the back of His Son…and told Him to carry it to the Cross. On the day of the Crucifixion, the skies turned black at noonday as a reminder of the dismal plight of man without a Messiah. But on a Ressurection morning, the light switch was forever turned on, so that man would only need to follow the light to be redeemed.

Christ came to turn darkness into light.

But don’t shout yet. I’m not finished.

Finally, Isaiah says that Christ came to make crooked things straight.

Once the light was turned on, it revealed a new path…a straight path that led right to heaven. What would be the sense of turning on the light if man was going to persist in following a crooked path?

Let’s rewind a bit. When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to Zacharias at the age of two for a temple blessing, even the priest misunderstood the real purpose of Christ’s coming. Zacharias said, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for He hath visited and redeemed his people…that we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us.”(Luke 1:68 and 71). That was what the forefathers had prophesied…that Israel would “be delivered out of the hand of [their] enemies” (Luke 1:74). Then Zacharias revealed the true purpose of a Savior…”to give knowledge of salvation unto His people by the remission of their sins.” (Luke 1:77).

Man’s eyes were blinded by sin. Sin had made a mess, and Christ came to clean it up. He came to set the record straight, to point out all of man’s shortcomings, and to lay out a path that would lead straight to salvation and deliverance…not from the Romans, but from himself. Man was his own worst enemy. Flesh had blinded man to his real need. It was his own sin that was the problem…not the sins of others.

Many Jews who walked with Jesus and talked with Jesus, still did not believe that He had come to deliver them. They continued on their crooked path. Israel just kept waiting for a mighty warrior, and the religious hierarchy just kept oppressing their own. Everywhere Jesus taught, there were those who rejected His message of the need for repentance.

· When Jesus healed the man in the tombs possessed with devils, “the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw Him, they besought him that he would DEPART out of their coasts.” Tell your neighbor, ‘They ran Him out of town’. (Matthew 8:34)

· When Jesus revealed in the synagogue of his hometown Nazareth that the Messianic scripture had been fulfilled, the worshippers said, ‘Wait a minute. Isn’t this Joseph’s son?’ (paraphrased Luke 4:22). They were filled with wrath and rose up, and thrust Him out of the city…” (Luke 4:28-29).

· When Jesus told the parable of the vineyard to expose the Pharisees of their sins, the scripture says that “…they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that Jesus had spoken the parable against them…” (Mark 12:12)

· When the Pharisees saw Jesus heal the man with the withered hand on the sabbath day, “[they] went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him.” (Matthew 12:14).

Christ came to make crooked things straight.

It’s tough to make the crooked straight. The light has been turned on now for more than two millenniums; yet men are still groping in their own darkness as they choose to follow a crooked path.

What will it take to make the “crooked things straight”? Isaiah said it would take a Savior…a sacrifice without blemish. And that’s just what Almighty God did. Now you can praise God right there!

Christ took our heavy cross on His shoulders and He carried it all the way to Calvary. He took our crooked path and straightened it out with His own blood. Christ provided the cleansing for all that are polluted. Christ provided deliverance for all who are distressed. Christ provided blessings for all who are burdened.

Christ provided peace for all who are perplexed. He made the crooked places straight.

If you’re still traveling down a crooked path, it is of your own choosing. Christ stands with open arms to receive the repentant sinner… The vilest of sins is forgiven. The greatest of enemies is conquered. The worst of difficulties are overcome. The gravest of doubts are dispelled. The heaviest of burdens are lifted…when you accept Christ as your Savior and follow His path of redemption.

Jesus healing of a blind man in John chapter 9 deminstrated that Jesus came to open the eyes of the blind.(Tell the story)

Joh 9:25  He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see. 

If you’re blind, let Christ be your light. It’s not too late. While you still have breath in your body…SEE JESUS. See Him as your daring Deliverer. See Him as your strong Savior. See Him as your constant Companion. See Him as your faithful Friend. He'll never leave you nor forsake you. He offers a new direction. He'll turn your darkness into light. He'll give you a new direction.

One day, even the blind shall see Him “coming in the clouds with great power and glory” (Mark 13:26), but then it WILL be too late.

Christ came to lead us in a new direction.

Second, Christ came to turn darkness into light.

Christ came to make crooked things straight.