Was Blind But Now I See

John 9:1–7 CSB

As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him. We must do the works of him who sent me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” After he said these things he spit on the ground, made some mud from the saliva, and spread the mud on his eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So he left, washed, and came back seeing.

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 9

As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him. 4 We must do 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 After he said these things he spit on the ground, made some mud from the saliva, and spread the mud on his eyes. 7 “Go,” he told him, “wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So he left, washed, and came back seeing.

Introduction:

When we started our study of the Gospel According to John last year I told you that the Apostle organized his account by highlighting seven signs – or miracles. We’ve already looked at five, so this is miracle number six. Let’s review them. Jesus turned water into wine to remind us that He is the solution for every deficit. Then He healed a Nobleman’s son, revealing that He is the answer to our doubt. Then Jesus healed the paralyzed man to show us He is the answer to every disability. He feed 5,000 hungry people to let us know He can meet our deepest desires. Then He walked on water to a boatload of terrified disciples to remind us that He is the answer to despair. This miracle is about giving sight to a blind man which proves that He is the answer to our darkness. We have a record of Jesus giving sight to the blind more than any other ailment. But of all the miracles of Jesus this is the only one that is performed on a man who was born blind. Every time Jesus healed the blind He was fulfilling the Messianic prophecy from that predicted, “The eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf shall hear.”

Notice First:

“a man blind from birth”

I have known people who lost their sight and also people who were born without the ability to see. It must be a devastating thing to experience. As we consider this blind man in , we must remember there were no safety nets for people like him at the time. No seeing-eye dogs or braille - no one to help care for him, to guide him. Verse 8 helps us understand this. He begged. He had no prospects for his future at all. All hope is gone for him. He is just like the paralytic we read about in . This condition led to a brief theological discussion between Jesus and his disciples in verse 2-3

“who sinned, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?”

The Mistake of Assigning Blame

As human beings, we love to discuss abstract subjects and in so doing we miss out on the real issues. In the case of this man born blind, Jesus makes clear:

“neither this man nor his parents sinned” but that “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him.”

This statement by Jesus should give us pause - to stop us from trying to place ourselves in the seat of judgment concerning human suffering.

Warren Wiersbe has helped me here and I feel it will help us all:

“Certainly both the man and his parents had at some time committed sin, but Jesus did not see their sin as the cause of the man’s blindness. Nor did He suggest that God deliberately made the man blind so that, years later, Jesus could perform a miracle. Since there is no punctuation in the original manuscripts, we are free to read this way:

Neither has this man sinned nor his parents. But that the works of God should be made manifest in him, I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day.”

God doesn’t cause suffering, but the Bible teaches that He can use suffering to deepen our faith and make us more dependent on Him. The great writer C.S. Lewis wrote: “Pain insists upon being attended to; God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

The Purposes of God

When we are constantly focusing on causes we miss out on purposes. All physical problems are a result of sin, but it is a mistake to state a specific disability is always the result of some specific sin. God’s ways are not our ways - his thoughts are not our thoughts - let’s be humble and look for God’s purposes and stop trying to assign blame or figure out the cause.

Warren Wiersbe has helped me here and I feel it will help us all:

“Certainly both the man and his parents had at some time committed sin, but Jesus did not see their sin as the cause of the man’s blindness. Nor did He suggest that God deliberately made the man blind so that, years later, Jesus could perform a miracle. Since there is no punctuation in the original manuscripts, we are free to read this way:

Neither has this man sinned nor his parents. But that the works of God should be made manifest in him, I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day.”

God doesn’t cause suffering, but the Bible teaches that He can use suffering to deepen our faith and make us more dependent on Him. The great writer C.S. Lewis wrote: “Pain insists upon being attended to; God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

People like this blind man were cast off by society - those with disabilities were seen as being cursed or judged by God and as such were set aside to fend for themselves. Jesus rejects the philosophy of men and instead of being a judge - he expresses care and compassion on this blind man. Jesus is a living demonstration of the grace of God to a world in need. This man’s tragic situation would be a means of demonstrating God’s glory and grace. “the works of him who sent me” - God’s purpose is in view here.

“God’s works” or “God’s Purposes” are Jesus’ concern and the day is referring to the limited time Jesus had before the Cross and the night, or the difficult time for the disciples as they would feel that hope had been lost after his death and prior to the glorious resurrection. Later in this same Gospel, Jesus would explain this more fully to his disciples, but for the moment, it is high noon.

The Ultimate Tragic Condition - Spiritual Blindness

It must not be missed the spiritual truth in this chapter. The miracles are “signs” that point a greater spiritual reality and need. In this case, blindness is meant to relate to us that apart from Christ - the light of the world - all men are blind spiritually. The end of the chapter points out this ultimate tragedy. That men who could see physically were actually worse off than this man who could not see physically. In the end, the Pharisees remain blind in the most tragic way while the physically blind man is able to see both physically and spiritually. It is high noon - and yet men are groping around in the dark. This is the reality of our time. People are wandering around dead and in the dark - no hope and in a tragic situation due to sin and rebellion against God.

The light of the world has revealed himself and yet as states, “This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.”

19 This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil

Notice secondly:

People like this blind man were cast off by society - those with disabilities were seen as being cursed or judged by God and as such were set aside to fend for themselves. Jesus rejects the philosophy of men and instead of being a judge - he expresses care and compassion on this blind man. Jesus is a living demonstration of the grace of God to a world in need. This man’s tragic situation would be a means of demonstrating God’s glory and grace. “the works of him who sent me” - God’s purpose is in view here.

The Ultimate Tragic Condition - Spiritual Blindness

We need to shift our focus when we read these passages containing miracles. So often we focus on the miracle and miss the message of the miracle. The miracle here is not for the comfort of the blind man but for the glorification of God and his purposes. To teach a spiritual truth. Man is blind spiritually and only Jesus can give the miracle of spiritual sight.

It must not be missed the spiritual truth in this chapter. The miracles are “signs” that point a greater spiritual reality and need. In this case, blindness is meant to relate to us that apart from Christ - the light of the world - all men are blind spiritually. The end of the chapter points out this ultimate tragedy. That men who could see physically were actually worse off than this man who could not see physically. In the end, the Pharisees remain blind in the most tragic way while the physically blind man is able to see both physically and spiritually. It is high noon - and yet men are groping around in the dark. This is the reality of our time. People are wandering around dead and in the dark - no hope and in a tragic situation due to sin and rebellion against God.

The light of the world has revealed himself and yet as states, “This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.”We need to shift our focus when we read these passages containing miracles. So often we focus on the miracle and miss the message of the miracle. The miracle here is not for the comfort of the blind man but for the glorification of God and his purposes. To teach a spiritual truth. Man is blind spiritually and only Jesus can give the miracle of spiritual sight.

The Miracle of Giving Sight

In the four gospel accounts Jesus gave sight to several blind individuals. Each of them using different methods. This is the only blind man who had mud from spittle put over his eyes. On another occasion Jesus spoke a word, and the blind received sight. At other times He would touch the person and they would be healed. In Jesus touched a blind man and he couldn’t see clearly. He said, “I see men as trees walking.” So Jesus touched him again—and then he could see clearly.

Jesus chose the method here I believe for a purpose. To mix mud on the Sabbath would have broken a rule of the religious elites and it also was unique for this man as opposed to the others. Not everyone has the same experience when they come to faith in Christ. When some people come to the Lord, they cry and weep for joy. And there are others who quietly receive Jesus as their Lord. Others say you have to have some other kind of an experience.

Vance Havner stated concerning this: He said just imagine that three of the blind men healed by Jesus got together to compare their experiences. One man said, “I was blind and Jesus touched me once. So if you want to have the right experience with Jesus you should be touched once.” The second said, “No, that’s not right. I was blind and Jesus touched me, and everything was blurry, so He touched me again. So if you want to be correct, you need to be touched twice.” The third guy says, “Both of you are wrong. You didn’t have the right experience. I was blind and Jesus spit in the dirt and made mud and place it on my eyes and I washed it off and I could see. So if you want to be truly orthodox, that’s what must happen to you.” Vance Havner said, “If those three guys were around today we’d have three new churches by Friday. The once-touched church. The twice-touched church, and the spit-in-the-eye church!”

Again, it is so easy for us to lose focus…we want to focus on the manner or the method and miss the most important message - faith in Jesus.

The Obedience Factor

In order to experience the powerful work of God in his life, this man must obey Jesus’ instructions concerning going to the pool of Siloam and washing his eyes. Connecting once again the water used in the ceremony during the Festival of Tabernacles celebration and the water of life found by faith in Jesus Christ.

What we discover later in the chapter is that this man’s salvation occurred not because he gained physical sight - but spiritual sight - the miracle was for a purpose - so that this man may believe. You will see this in verses 35-38. Remember the key verse in , “But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Conclusion:

If we are to receive sight spiritually, we must accept the fact of our blindness and the hopelessness of our condition. We must then have faith, and biblical faith is an operative word - not just an intellectual agreement to a creed or tradition - but a personal trust and reliance on the Lord Jesus characterized by obedience.

Hymn:

Holman New Testament Commentary: John III. Conclusion: Anonymous Theology

My faith has founding a resting place—not in device nor creed;

I trust the ever living One—His wounds for me shall plead.

Enough for me that Jesus saves—this ends my fear and doubt;

A sinful soul I come to Him—He’ll never cast me out.

My heart is leaning on the word—the written word of God;

Salvation by my Savior’s name—salvation through His blood.

My great Physician heals the sick; the lost He came to save;

For me His precious blood He shed; for me His life he gave.

I need no other argument, I need no other plea;

It is enough that Jesus died, and that He died for me.