Spiritual Blindness

Introduction

The Background

As we come to the beginning of chapter 7 we will notice a transition in the ministry of the Lord. There is an ending of his Galilean ministry and a beginning of open and militant opposition.

The Brothers

Mary had other children with Joseph and they would have been half brother to Jesus and we find an interesting conversation they have with Jesus at the beginning of this chapter.

Matthew 13:55–56 KJV 1900

Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?

Mark 6:1–6 KJV 1900

And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house. And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

Declaration: Although Jesus’ brothers were familiar with him, they were still blind to his power and his person!

Preposition: Could we be guilty of the same “Spiritual Blindness”?

Transition: As we consider this conversation between Jesus and his brothers I want us to notice some striking characteristics of their relationship and attitude toward their brother, the “only begotten son of God” and how these may parallel our own heart at times.

I. Notice their Relationship

As we look at this passage it is amazing that a group of brothers who grew up with our Lord and were so familiar with him, yet they were so blind to his glory. They were blind to who he was.

Question: Can you imagine what it must have been like to grow up with Jesus in your house?

Philippians 2:7 KJV 1900

But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

Illustration: Young people who grow up in church and yet they are blind to Christ- Many young people grow up in church leave as soon as they are older and choose not to serve God with their lives? They are familiar with God and with Christian principles but yet they are really blind to the glory of Christ and to his message!

Application: We can be just as blind! Just being a Christian does not exempt you to the problem!

Proximity does not equal Perception!

2 Peter 1:3–9 KJV 1900

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

“is blind and cannot see afar off”

1 John 2:11 KJV 1900

But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.

II. Notice their Reasoning

“depart hence, and go into Judea”

A. They Observed His results

The crowds had left Jesus at this point and it would have been easy for his brothers to draw the wrong conclusion from what they were seeing. We

Illustration: In the late 1800s, doctors and scientists believed in something called spontaneous generation. Spontaneous generation was the idea that living organisms could suddenly pop up anywhere from non-living organisms, and this pretty much how they explained disease in the late 1800’s.

The assumption was that these diseases just popped up and that it was completely random. And there was no investigation to determine how these diseases were related or how diseases were transmitted, because it was assumed, because of spontaneous generation, that a non-living organism could just suddenly produce some sort of living organism that would turn into a disease.

Then Louis Pasteur came along and he said that there are invisible organisms that you cannot see that actually carry these diseases, and they can be carried by the wind. They can be passed on by touching someone’s skin. They can live in food. They can live on different surfaces. And that these diseases are not just popping up randomly from non-living organisms, but there are invisible organisms, there’s an invisible world that’s impacting the visible world, and it’s the invisible world of germs (as they would eventually be called).

And this unseen world is impacting the seen world and has the potential to destroy lives, families, communities, and create all kinds of pestilence that goes all over the world and kills hundreds and thousands of people, all because of something you just can’t see. And so he put forth what became known as The Germ Theory of Disease- the idea that invisible micro-organisms could impact the seen world.

Well, this caught on pretty quick among the close-knit group of the medical community he was a part of, and they began washing their hands. They began separating people from each other. They began quarantining. They began watching to see if there was a transmission from one person to another of a common disease. But many people in the medical and scientific community, and people outside the medical and scientific community, thought it was crazy. "You’re telling us that there’s something we can’t see that impacts what we can see? You’re telling us that something that’s invisible can float through the air, land on food, and infect food? That something you can’t see can float through the air and land on a person’s skin and impact . . . you’re telling me there’s something that I can’t see that could be on my skin that gets transmitted to somebody else’s skin? That there’s an invisible world, that we’re surrounded by all these invisible, living organisms that impact our visible world?" To which Louis Pasteur said, "Absolutely."-

Things are not always what they seem to be! This rejection of the Lord was exactly what the Bible said would happen and his brothers were trying to fix the “problem”

Application: What may look like a departing crowd in our life may be a work of God. Medical Problems, Financial Setbacks, Job Difficulties all of these things situations can cause us to doubt God and wonder if he is really at work.

B. They Offered Him Advice

“depart hence, and go into Judea”

Here these brothers were - blind to who Jesus was and completely unable to scripturally evaluate His ministry, yet they were willing to offer advice!

Romans 2:19 KJV 1900

And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness,

Application: We need to be careful when we are getting advice. Many people are just like Jesus brothers, they are spiritually blind to the glory of God, they are spiritually blind to the working of God and yet they are quick to give their advice on how to handle the situation.

Quote: “Don’t take financial advice from your broke uncle” - Dave Ramsey

III. Notice the Root

“neither did his brethren believe in him”

Their spiritual blindness was a result of their unbelief!!

Why were they so blind? Unbelief!

2 Corinthians 4:3–6 KJV 1900

But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Conclusion:

Review

We noticed their Relationship - brothers- they were close- that didn’t guarantee spiritual sight

2. We noticed their Reasoning - Reasoning that lacked spiritual discernment

3. We noticed the Result - Everything in our spiritual life comes back to believing God