No One to Blame

John 9:1–3 NKJV

1 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.

John 9:5–6 NKJV

5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.

Title

The Gospel of John is one of the Four Gospels

The Four Gospels are

++Matthew

++Mark

++Luke

++John

All four Gospels

++Have one common subject

++Have different perspectives

++Write about the man called Jesus

The Synoptic Gospels

The word synoptic means to see alike

The Synoptic Gospels

++Matthew

++Mark

++Luke

Same Subject Different Perspective

Jesus in the Book

++Matthew - _Was the King_, _Lion of the Judah_

++Mark- _Was the servant_, _to seek and save the lost_

++Luke- _Was a Man_, _though which redemption would come_

Matthew saw Jesus as a king-like figure. He was the figurative Lion of the tribe of Judah.

Mark Saw Jesus as the servant that would seek and save the lost. There is much he had to say about what Jesus did for a servant has very little to say and no audience that would listen.

Luke saw Jesus as a man, like you and I, yet without sin.

Ezekiel 1:10 NKJV

10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man; each of the four had the face of a lion on the right side, each of the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and each of the four had the face of an eagle.

Ezekiel vision could very well be a preview of the Gospel record

The being he saw had four faces

++A Lion- _His Authority_

++An Ox- _His Humility_

++A Man- _His Humanity_

++An Eagle- _His Divinity_

The Gospel of John is unique in comparison to the other Gospel writers.

John 1:1 NKJV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

He saw Jesus

++As the Word

++As coexisting with God

++As God

John 1:3–4 NKJV

3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Jesus was

++Not made by God

++At the the center of all that was created

++The source of life

++The light of men

John 1:14 NKJV

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Jesus Christ is the most pivotal person in the the History of mankind.

In creation man

++Walked in communion with God

++Lived in harmony with the world

++Had a family that existed in perfection

Genesis 1:31 NKJV

31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Genesis 3:8–10 NKJV

8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

Because of sin man’s relationship with

++God was broken

++The world was fracture

++One another was strained

Man no longer walked with God and sin and death were the prevailing forces in the earth.

Genesis 3:12–13 NKJV

12 Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” 13 And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

The Blame Game

When confronted with our sin

++We seek a reason

++We seek someone to blame

++Anyone, anything but me

There is something comforting about having

++Someone to blame

++Some reason I am where I am

++Some reason I am stuck

++Some reason you are stuck

John 9:1 NKJV

1 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.

For those who are stuck

++Jesus is passing by

++Jesus sees you

++Jesus knows your condition

John 9:2 NKJV

2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

What happens when there is no one to blame?

Preaching from the Old Testament

In the Old Testament it is easy

++To identify the bad guy

++To see the person at fault

++To find someone to blame

Adam blamed Eve

Eve blame the serpent

Cain blamed Able

There was always somebody to blame

When Israel turned away from God the problem

++The Canaanites

++The Midianites

++The Philistines

++The King of Babylon

New generation blames old generations

We easily pass down

++The mistakes of the pass

++The struggles of yesterday

Ezekiel 18:2–4 NKJV

2 “What do you mean when you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, And the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3 “As I live,” says the Lord God, “you shall no longer use this proverb in Israel. 4 “Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.

The writer is dispelling the assumption

++The son bears the guilt of the father

++We don’t have a choice

Joshua 24:15 NKJV

15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

We all have a choice

If serving the Lord

++Seems evil for You

++Is not what you want

You can serve

++The gods of your fathers

++The gods of this land

As for me

++I don’t have to think about this

++I know what the LORD has done for me

++I speak for my whole family

++We will serve he LORD

John 9:3 NKJV

3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.

There is nobody to blame

This condition is

++Not because of the man

++Not because of his parent

++For the work of God

This condition will reveal God’s work

John 9:4 NKJV

4 I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.

Jesus recognized

++His time was short

++The work of God had to be reveal

John 9:5 NKJV

5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

Jesus was

++In the world

++The light of the world

John 1:5 NKJV

5 And the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

Light moves at 299,792,458 meters per second

One thing

++Moves faster than light

++Cannot contend with light

When light comes

++Darkness has no place

++Darkness must flee

Bring the Light

John 9:6–7 NKJV

6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. 7 And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.

This is the work of God

Those that sit in darkness

++Can run to the light

++Can find life in the light

John 8:12 NKJV

12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Ephesians 5:8 NKJV

8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

1 John 1:7 NKJV

7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

God’s Work in Us

Ephesians 2:10 NKJV

10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.