Living Miracles: The Journey to Understanding
Notes
Transcript
Bible Passage: John 9:1-12
Bible Passage: John 9:1-12
Summary: In John 9:1-12, Jesus heals a man born blind, unveiling profound truths about spiritual and physical sight. The passage explores the journey of the healed man as he moves from darkness to light, encountering opposition from the religious leaders while testifying to the transformative power of Jesus.
This passage encourages us to examine our own spiritual blindness and to embrace the journey toward understanding and faith. It serves as a reminder that sharing our testimonies can shine light into others’ lives, particularly when faced with skepticism or doubt from the world around us.
Today we will see Jesus address a societal norm and something that everyone had just simply adopted. Society at this time believed that if you had an infirmity then it was your fault or the fault of one of your parents. This is an idea that is not particularly far from us today. There are still people who share this view and opinion. What we will see in this passage is that Jesus provides sight not only for the blind man but also His disciples.
Jesus, reveals Himself as both the healer and the source of spiritual enlightenment, fulfilling the prophetic vision of the Messiah who brings light to those in darkness. This is woven throughout Scripture, emphasizing Christ's role as the ultimate revelation of God to humanity.
Today I pray that you are able to find the truth in some of your suffering, To free yourself from the absolute that if you have something wrong it must mean that God is punishing you. I pray you can step back from that view and understand that sometimes the things you are going through are so that God will receive glory He is due. Now do not hear me say that there are not those who suffer because of their sin, that exists and is real. Those people however understand that their suffering is caused by their sin, it is no surprise to them.
Turn with me in your Bible to John 9:1-12
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.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”
In this scripture we will see 3 things. First, Purpose in Pain. Second, Steps to Sight. Third, Witness with Wonder. Let’s pray and we will get started.
1. Purpose in Pain
1. Purpose in Pain
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.
As Jesus and His disciples walked by this man, His disciples asked Jesus, who sinned? Who caused this man to be born blind? Did he sin or did his parents sin? What I notice here is that just like us the disciples were looking for someone to blame, someone that they could look at and try to compare themselves too. We all do this to some extent. When we see someone who is struggling with homelessness, we ask what did that person do wrong. Sometimes we see someone struggling with a physical ailment and we ask what they did to deserve the struggles in their lives. We are not much different than these disciples that walked with Jesus. What Jesus did though is to take a common thought and philosophy and changed the narrative to it. The question that I have is what would our world look like if we took this very approach that Jesus introduced. Look again at what Jesus said.
3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.
Jesus told the disciples that neither the man or the man’s parents sinned. Now we know that in some context these people sinned, but Jesus was not saying that they had never sinned, what He said is that they did not commit a particular sin that lead to this man being blind, aside from being born into sin. Jesus stated that this man’s infirmity was there so that God might be displayed. What an amazing thought that the pain or suffering we are experiencing might be used to bring glory to God. If you were to frame your struggles in this manner, how might it change the way we approach struggles and pain. It might take us to a place of embracing the scriptures.
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
What if your struggles are not a punishment for you but rather a way to turn your life into a testimony of God? This week was a struggle for me and was one of the moments where I understood that the pain I am experiencing should be used to point towards our Father who loves us and gave His only Son for us. My pain should be used as a testimony of His glory.
15 The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous
and his ears toward their cry.
16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears
and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the Lord delivers him out of them all.
20 He keeps all his bones;
not one of them is broken.
21 Affliction will slay the wicked,
and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
22 The Lord redeems the life of his servants;
none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.
This passage is a prophecy of what would happen to Jesus but is also a picture of how God interacts with us.
We can rest contentedly in our sins and in our stupidities, and everyone who has watched gluttons shoveling down the most exquisite foods as if they did not know what they were eating, will admit that we can ignore even pleasure. But pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.
The suffering in our lives is not always the result of sin, although at times it is. There are times when God is simply using us for His glory. How will this cause you to reconsider where you are in your life today? Jesus though did not simply point out that this man and his parents did not sin leading to blindness. Jesus made the man an active participant in God’s plan for glory.
2. Steps to Sight
2. Steps to Sight
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.
There are 2 things I want us to see here this morning. First I want to see that Jesus was active in this mans life. The second is that Jesus called the man to action. Jesus took mud that He made with His saliva and He anointed the man’s eyes with it. Last week we saw that this happen and Jesus healed the blind man. This week though we will see that Jesus performed this action and it did not result in immediate sight. Jesus sent the man to was in the pool, scripture says that after he washed he came back seeing. This is a perfect example of how we are all to live. First we must understand that Jesus has already performed the work. Anything in our lives we will experience, Jesus has already handled it. In our lives we are called to the same thing. We must understand that there is nothing we can deal with that Jesus has not already had His hands in overcoming.
25 “I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. 26 In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; 27 for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. 28 I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”
29 His disciples said, “Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! 30 Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God.” 31 Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32 Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me.
Jesus is preparing His disciples for a time when their faith will be tested, when they will not understand the struggles of their lives. However He has told them that He has already overcome everything they will experience. Can I tell you no matter what you are dealing with today, Jesus has already dealt with it. The second part to this is the concept of walking in that healing and blessing before seeing it. Notice again what Jesus did with this man.
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.
Jesus sent the man walking with mud in his eyes to bathe in a River. Now I have had some bad ideas as a dad. Some of us have discussed these ideas. This though seems like it tops any of my bad ideas. Jesus puts mud in the eyes of a man who is blind then tells the man to go and bathe in the pool. How will this man get there? How will this man know that he is not stepping in to the end of the pool that is not too deep for him? Can I tell you the prospect of gaining his sight caused this man not to care about any of the obstacles in his way? What would happen if we were so excited about being used by God for His glory that the obstacles that we face, did not really deter us or stop us? What would that cause your life to look at? See the idea of being healed allowed this man to walk in obedience in his life, even when it was difficult. This would not have been easy for the man. Could you imagine what doubts could have captivated this man? I am blind, I will never find my way to the pool. Even if I find my way I will drown because I do not know my way around the pool. There were so many reasons this man could have walked away and not walked in obedience. Yet he knew walking in obedience and displaying the glory of God would restore his sight. What would walking in obedience do for you today? How would not looking at your surroundings and simply walking in obedience change the outcome of your situation?
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old received their commendation. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
Hebrews 11 goes on to continue this path of by faith, Abraham, by faith Moses, by faith the people of israel, by faith Rahab. through all of chapter 11 we are introduced to these people of faith. Then we get to Hebrews 12.
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
We are told, look God came through for them. He will come through for you! We must walk in faith as those before us have. We are called to take part in the blessing of God in our lives. This is not a sit and collect, its a walk and bless. Jesus pointed out that there was purpose in pain. He showed that there are steps to sight. Lastly He shows us that we are to be Witnesses to Wonder.
3. Witness with Wonder
3. Witness with Wonder
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.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”
Because this man walked in faith, he was used by God to bring about a wonder that no one could explain. He did not care about the doubts of those around him, he knew what God had done for him. We will never rid ourselves of those who will and want to doubt. Some of those types were Jesus disciples. Yet in the face of that doubt we can be resolute and stand firm being the witnesses to the wonders of God. This man did not know where Jesus was, he only knew that he was healed and Jesus did not have to be right in front of him. When we walk in faith through our struggles we will experience the blessing and while the world around you may doubt or laugh, or mock you. You can stand with confidence in what Jesus has done in your life. Are you ready to walk in that confidence?
I remember hearing of a man at sea who was very sea-sick. If there is a time when a man feels that he cannot do any work for the Lord it is then -- in my opinion. While this man was sick he heard that a man had fallen overboard. He was wondering if he could do anything to help to save him. He laid hold of a light, and held it up on the port-hole.
The drowning man was saved. When this man got over his attack of sickness he was up on deck one day, and was talking to the man who was rescued. The saved man gave this testimony. He said he had gone down the second time, and was just going down again for the last time, when he put out his hand. Just then, he said, some one held a light at the port-hole, and the light fell on his hand. A man caught him by the hand and pulled him into the lifeboat.
It seemed a small thing to do to hold up the light; yet it saved the man's life. If you cannot do some great thing you can hold the light for some poor, perishing drunkard, who may be won to Christ and delivered from destruction. Let us take the torch of salvation and go into these dark homes, and hold up Christ to the people as the Savior of the world.
In the middle of your storm or sickness, hold the light, be a witness of what God can do even in the midst of your struggles. Others are looking towards you for the light. We are to lead others to Christ and be a witness of His wonders in our lives.
Consider discussing the aftermath where the once-blind man boldly shares his story, undeterred by skepticism. You could highlight that in sharing our personal experiences of Christ’s transformative power, we illuminate the truth for others and challenge societal blind spots. Thus, believers are called to witness Christ’s work in their lives, even amidst doubt and opposition.
