I Can’t See Him Right Now

Sermon Title: I Can’t See Him Right Now

Main Text: John 9: 1-11

John 9:1–11 ESV

1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 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 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing. 8 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?” 9 Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10 So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 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.”

For the next few moments I want to speak under the subject entitled:

I Can’t See Him Right Now

Prayer

Father, we need a word from the Lord. Just one word from the Lord, will move all doubts

And cause the sun to shine And give peace of mind Speak Lord.

Open up our ears that we may hear your word,

Open up our eyes that we may see your word,

Open up our minds that we may understand your word,

And open up our hearts that we may receive your word.

It’s your time father, do what you do, in Jesus name, Amen.

Introduction

As we step into the Gospel of John, you must recognize that it’s not like the other three Gospels. Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell you the story of Jesus almost like history unfolding — moment by moment, miracle by miracle.

But John sits you down at the table, looks you in the eye, and says, “Let me show you who He really is.”

John writes with a preacher’s heart and a poet’s touch. Every page of his Gospel is soaked with signs, symbols, and sights that draw us deeper into who Jesus is — the Son of God. He doesn’t just want you to know what Jesus did, he wants you to feel who Jesus is.

Imagine yourself standing on the cobblestone streets of Jerusalem. The air is filled with the sounds of merchants crying out their prices, sandals scraping across the stone, children laughing in the background. And then you hear it — a voice cutting through the noise.

It’s Jesus saying words that no one else dared to say: “I am the Bread of Life. I am the Light of the World. I am the Good Shepherd. I am the Resurrection and the Life.”

That’s the heartbeat of John’s Gospel. He writes so you can see Jesus not just as a man from Nazareth, but as the eternal Word made flesh.

The One who was with God in the beginning and the One who is God. The One who stepped into dusty roads, and into broken lives.

Where the other Gospels may leave you watching Jesus, John invites you to walk with Him. To feel the splash of the water turning into wine at Cana. To hear the whisper of Nicodemus asking, “How can these things be?” 

To stand with a woman at the well whose thirst runs deeper than the bucket she carries. To rub the mud from your own eyes as light breaks into your darkness.

John tells us in John 20:31 why he wrote his Gospel: “These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”

So every miracle, every conversation, every tear, and every touch in this Gospel is not just history — it’s invitation.

John is saying to us: “Step closer. Don’t just read about Him — believe in Him. Don’t just see Him from afar — trust Him for yourself.

Transition - Background of John 9

And here in our sermonic text for today, we arrive at John chapter 9 and Jesus has already shaken Jerusalem to its core.

He has been teaching in the temple, standing toe-to-toe with religious leaders, and declaring things no man had the right to declare.

He had just finished saying in John 8:12, “I am the Light of the World; whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Now picture it: the sun is high in the Middle Eastern sky, its heat pressing down on narrow streets filled with voices, footsteps, and the smell of dust rising with every step.

And in the midst of that crowd, sitting by the roadside, is a man who has never seen the light of day.

No colors. No faces. No sunrise or sunset. Just darkness. He lives not by sight but by sound — the shuffle of feet, the jingle of coins, the occasional mercy of a stranger dropping bread into his hand.

Every day, he sits in the same spot, defined by his condition, and dismissed by his community.

And it’s right here — in the middle of darkness, questions, and rejection — that Jesus walks by. The Light of the World steps into the life of a man who has only known night.

The Bible tells us that Jesus saw the blind man as they passed by. And Jesus looks upon this man with concern.

And it’s important to understand that when Jesus looks upon you, He sees you differently than how others may see you. 

I wish I had a witness right there…

See, if you’ve read verse two, you’ll see that the disciples also saw this man, but they saw the man as someone who sinned his way into a bad situation.

See in verse 2, the disciples asked who sinned, him or his parents, that he was born blind. Now, as I read this, I was disturbed at how the disciples were so curious about the reasons for the result of this man being blind.

See, the disciples in this verse seemed to play the role of some of us. We look at certain people and we are questioning what wrong they did or why they are in the position they're in.

See, people saw this blind man as a waste to society. They saw him as someone who pestered everyone’s nerves by begging. But I thank God that Jesus doesn’t judge us and leave us hanging in our disposition.

See, the remarkable thing is that the blind man could not see Jesus, but Jesus saw the blind man.

And for many of us, we need to shift where we allow our focus to make its bed.

Because life is probably exactly what you are experiencing. It is difficult, it is overwhelming. And yes, most of the time, it may feel like you are all alone and fighting by yourself.

But many of us need to shift our focus from the reality that we can’t see and to the blessing that Jesus can see us.

Pause

And just like this blind man, many of us have been dealing with situations that has caused disappointment. Situations that have resulted in difficulty. Situations that has pushed us to the brink.

There are people under the sound of my voice who look better than what they are going through. You’re sitting in these pews or watching online saying to yourself, Pastor, you don’t even have a clue how difficult, how overwhelming, how rough life has been.

There are people under the sound of my voice who have screamed out “I Can’t See You Right Now God!”

And you’re wondering whats going on because the God you’ve learned about doesn’t match the situation you are going through.

And as a result, your spiritual life has been waning day after day. You’re not praying as much. You’re not showing up to church as much.

You are metaphorically sitting on the side of the road of your thoughts begging for life to drop favor into your hands.

Just like this blind man, there are many of us who are in this same predicament spiritually, and we are frustrated with our blind process. 

But on today, I believe there are some gem under the dirt of this text that we can clean off and make shine for us today.

Because what we find in our text today is that when we can’t see Christ in our situations, He can see us and He has already mapped out what needs to take place in your life.

God is not caught off guard, like you and I are. God is not walking back and forth trying to figure out what do I do in this situation. Instead, God is waiting on us to say, have your way Lord.

And here’s the central truth or main idea of this whole sermon. You might want to write this down…

God will place us in uncomfortable places, so that we and others can see His extraordinary purpose and power. (x2)

Subject

So, the question must be asked today, what are we to understand when we are in situations where we can’t see God?

I believe that we can find two specific gems that can enhance our ability to press forward when we are going through life situations.

So, lets get to work. Are you ready? Write this down…

When we are in situations where we feel we can’t see God, we must, number 1…

Compliments

Understand Our Assignment

If you look at verse 3 Jesus tells the disciples the reason for this blind man being in the state he’s in.

Jesus says neither has this man sinned, nor his parents but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

See this man was put in this particular situation for God to show his great power.

Catch this, everyone has a calling on their life. God calls everyone to do a work for Him, regardless if you are in the traditional model of ministry or not.

See one thing I've learned in this text is that some of us have been called to be born in uncomfortable situations. 

See some of us are mad at God because of where we are right now or how life has been for us up to this point.

But you have to realize that some of us have been called to the places we are at or have endured so that the works of God be made manifested in our lives.

See some of us were born into a divorced home,

Some of us were born into tough neighborhoods,

some of us were born into debt,

Some of us were born into pettiness,

Some of us were born into cheating,

Some of us were born into lying…

Don’t look at anybody on your row…

But we have to understand that some of us were put into these situations or rather born blind so that God works be made manifested in our lives. 

See sometimes God has to use our disposition to lead us and others to Christ. 

See my God is capable of taking you out of anything. You might be one of those people who were called into tough circumstances and did not know it and you feel like giving up but I wanna tell you to hold on because God is using you so that his works be made manifested in your life. 

In John 11, Jesus best friend Lazarus had died and Jesus showed up to the funeral super late. So late that Lazarus was already buried. 

And when Jesus showed up he was approached by his crew and homies with disgust at the fact that Jesus would show up days later after the funeral.

And in John 11: 4 Jesus told them, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified.

And church family, I’ve come to realize that some of us are in certain situations just to be living testimonies. 

See the devil wants to trick us into thinking that God doesn’t care for us or He doesn’t like us because of where we are. But some things happen just to allow testimony later of how the Lord brought you out! 

And as a result, some of us can say I was on the road and fell asleep but somehow I made it home without any accident,

Some could say I was in the streets of Indianapolis, doing everything you can think of but God rescued me and brought me back home,

The Senior Saints would say I was sinking deep in sin far from the peaceful shore, very deeply stained within sinking to rise no more, but the master of the sea heard my despairing cry and from the waters lifted me, now safe am I!

Some of us are where we are so that the works of God be made manifested in us.

So don't get mad as a result of being in certain situations because God is using you in a useless situation to prove to you and others that He can make useful what other people may count as useless.

Pause

But it gets deeper than that. See the Greek suggests something really interesting here. See when God say, “that his works may be manifest in him”,

He also means that not only does he call people to certain dispositions so his works can be manifested but also that there are others that put themselves in dispositions and as a result, He can still use their situations for His glory. 

Let me break this down. 

*High School class example*

When I started high school there was this one class that I just straight up slacked in. You know in high school there is a certain season where you are just enjoying this new season of life and partial independence (depending on your upbringing)… And I was more focused on having fun than getting good grades all around.

And I don’t know about anybody else but when the end of the grade period is coming and you look at your grades and you see that you are on the road to failing a class, that’s when life get real. 

So there was this class I was about to fail so I had to get my act together. So I met with the teacher and told him I’m sorry but I’ve been slacking but realized I have to take things more seriously… I told him I got my act together and I need to pass this class.

The problem was that we were about three weeks away from the end of the class and he explained to me that there was no way I could pass this class. 

And as my head dropped and the tears began to rip through my eye lids, he said something that changed everything.

He told me and I quote “I’ll make an exception.” And he gave me a ton and I mean a ton of extra assignments and papers that I had to complete in a week on top of the regular work and as a result, I could boost my grade and pass the class!

See, church family, I put myself in that situation! Like the old song says, it was nobodies fault but mine! But the teacher said, I’ll make an exception for you.

And church family, there are many sitting here saying to yourself I put myself in my disposition and you have disqualified yourself but I came by to let you know that Jesus is saying, “I’ve made an exception for you.” 

Has anybody ever been there before?

See I don’t know about you but I’m so glad that God made an exception for me. 

He didn’t have to do it but he did!

Elaborate if needed

So don’t let the devil discourage you! God has made an exception for you so that His works can be manifested in your life!

So, when we are in situations where we feel we can’t see God, we must, number 1… Understand Our Assignment.

But then, number 2, we must…

2. Understand Christ Authority

I want you to look at verse 6. The bible goes on by saying in John 9:6-7

John 9:6–7 ESV

6 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 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

Now Church family… I know you all are Holy people with no motives of questioning God…

However, I’ll be honest. I was questioning Jesus' approach to healing this man. 

Just let me explain myself…

I didn't understand why Jesus would spit on the ground, and then mix spit and dirt together and put it in this man's eyes.

I would think to heal a blind man something must be taken out of his eyes.

Elaborate

So why would Jesus put something in His eyes instead of taking something out.

Well church family, could it be, that Jesus had to make this man feel his blindness. 

Let me explain… 

See if you look closely at this text here, you will see that this blind man never asks Jesus for any help or healing. This blind man never says in the text, “Jesus, son of David heal me.” 

We never see this man call Jesus for a miracle.

Remember this man has been blind since a came out the womb. So could it be that Jesus had to make the man feel uncomfortable in his blindness by making him feel his blindness.

See some of us are in this state of mind. We are so comfortable in our own spiritual blindness that we don’t even see the necessaity for God to step into our situation. And because so, we don’t even ask God for help, or healing. 

But thanks be to God, Jesus sees fit to help us anyway and for some of us Jesus had to spit on the ground, mixed it with clay and anoint us in our situation so that we can feel our blindness.

See we must understand that Jesus didn’t have to use this method to heal the man. 

Jesus could have spoke healing into the man.

Jesus could have looked healing into the man.

Jesus could have thought healing into the man but he chose to spit on the ground, mix it in clay and put it in the man’s eyes just to make him uncomfortable with his blindness.

Notice, his uncomfortable nature is what leads him to the pool to wash.

Read John 11: 8, 9

His life is transformed (He’s unrecognizable) 

Read John 11: 10

A man named Jesus

Closing

For the Bible says, He shall supply all my needs according to His riches in glory,

The Bible says, He who began a good work in you, will perform it till the day of Jesus Christ,

My Bible says, He’s the rose of Sharon; He’s the lily of the Valley,

My Bible says, No weapon formed against me, shall be able to prosper,

My Bible says, God is my refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble,

My Bible says, Ye though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me!

My Bible says, If God before me, who can be against me.

My Bible says, Greater is He that is in me, thank he that is in the world,

The Bible says, all things work together for the good of those who love Christ Jesus,

The Bible says, the battle is not yours, it’s the Lord,

The Bible says, He never leave you, nor forsake you,

The Bible says, they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as an eagle. They shall walk and not be weary, they shall run and not faint.

Is there anybody in here who can testify, if was only Jesus who made the difference!

Expound in need be….

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Prayer

Challenge: Reflect on the following questions 

How can God get the glory from what I am going through?

What instructions has God given me on what to do in my space of discomfort?

How can I point people to Jesus in my situation?