John 9
True Blindness
1-2 Walking down the street, Jesus saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked, “Rabbi, who sinned: this man or his parents, causing him to be born blind?” 3-5Jesus said, “You’re asking the wrong question. You’re looking for someone to blame.
Jesus, it is so natural to try to blame people and things for problems. I have wasted so much time and energy on this over the years. Help me Lord, not to care about the blame, and just solve the problem if that is Your will. No more blaming Lord – help to love, not blame.
There is no such cause-effect here. Look instead for what God can do. We need to be energetically at work for the One who sent me here, working while the sun shines. When night falls, the workday is over. For as long as I am in the world, there is plenty of light. I am the world’s Light.”
Wow Jesus, so much to learn in just a couple verses! First You tell me to stop looking at the problem, even the cause of the problem, and to look at what God can do. There are so many areas of my life that I can apply this to. It is so powerful. Stop blaming and worrying and trust You.
Then You tell me to work energetically for the Father. At one time I would have said I didn’t know what Your will for me is, but that isn’t true. I know I am to give You glory in how I live, day in and day out. I know You want me to give to charities abundantly. Give me energy and inspire me to work so hard.
And then, You remind me that You are the light. Light is how we see, and if we do not see, we can’t work, or travel, or do much at all. Lord, flood my life with light. Without Your light to see the real truths in life, I am lost and useless. Please Lord, open my eyes and heart. Change me.
6-7He said this and then spit in the dust, made a clay paste with the saliva, rubbed the paste on the blind man’s eyes, and said, “Go, wash at the Pool of Siloam” (Siloam means “Sent”). The man went and washed—and saw.
8Soon the town was buzzing. His relatives and those who year after year had seen him as a blind man begging were saying, “Why, isn’t this the man we knew, who sat here and begged?”
9Others said, “It’s him all right!”
But others objected, “It’s not the same man at all. It just looks like him.”
He said, “It’s me, the very one.”
10They said, “How did your eyes get opened?”
11“A man named Jesus made a paste and rubbed it on my eyes and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ I did what he said. When I washed, I saw.”
Jesus, help me to do what You say. Had this man not obeyed, he would not have had his eyes opened. Help me to obey You in small things, like this man did, so my eyes can be opened. Help me Lord for I am a sinner.
12“So where is he?”
“I don’t know.”
13-15They marched the man to the Pharisees. This day when Jesus made the paste and healed his blindness was the Sabbath. The Pharisees grilled him again on how he had come to see. He said, “He put a clay paste on my eyes, and I washed, and now I see.”
16Some of the Pharisees said, “Obviously, this man can’t be from God. He doesn’t keep the Sabbath.”
Others countered, “How can a bad man do miraculous, God-revealing things like this?” There was a split in their ranks.
17They came back at the blind man, “You’re the expert. He opened your eyes. What do you say about him?”
He said, “He is a prophet.”
18-19The Jews didn’t believe it, didn’t believe the man was blind to begin with. So they called the parents of the man now bright-eyed with sight. They asked them, “Is this your son, the one you say was born blind? So how is it that he now sees?”
20-23His parents said, “We know he is our son, and we know he was born blind. But we don’t know how he came to see—haven’t a clue about who opened his eyes. Why don’t you ask him? He’s a grown man and can speak for himself.” (His parents were talking like this because they were intimidated by the Jewish leaders, who had already decided that anyone who took a stand that this was the Messiah would be kicked out of the meeting place. That’s why his parents said, “Ask him. He’s a grown man.”)
24They called the man back a second time—the man who had been blind— and told him, “Give credit to God. We know this man is an impostor.”
25He replied, “I know nothing about that one way or the other. But I know one thing for sure: I was blind . . . I now see.”
26They said, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”
27“I’ve told you over and over and you haven’t listened. Why do you want to hear it again? Are you so eager to become his disciples?”
28-29With that they jumped all over him. “You might be a disciple of that man, but we’re disciples of Moses. We know for sure that God spoke to Moses, but we have no idea where this man even comes from.”
30-33The man replied, “This is amazing! You claim to know nothing about him, but the fact is, he opened my eyes! It’s well known that God isn’t at the beck and call of sinners, but listens carefully to anyone who lives in reverence and does his will. That someone opened the eyes of a man born blind has never been heard of—ever. If this man didn’t come from God, he wouldn’t be able to do anything.”
34They said, “You’re nothing but dirt! How dare you take that tone with us!” Then they threw him out in the street.
35Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and went and found him. He asked him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
36The man said, “Point him out to me, sir, so that I can believe in him.”
37Jesus said, “You’re looking right at him. Don’t you recognize my voice?”
38“Master, I believe,” the man said, and worshiped him.
39Jesus then said, “I came into the world to bring everything into the clear light of day, making all the distinctions clear, so that those who have never seen will see, and those who have made a great pretense of seeing will be exposed as blind.”
40Some Pharisees overheard him and said, “Does that mean you’re calling us blind?”
41Jesus said, “If you were really blind, you would be blameless, but since you claim to see everything so well, you’re accountable for every fault and failure.”
Jesus, this is a long and wonderful story about seeing and blindness. The people with wealth and position in the story are blind, and refuse to see. The poor beggar truly does see and understand and worships You. When I look at my life I know I have the material possessions and worldly respect that the Pharisees in this story had. I know I could so easily be that blind. I have been that blind. Please Lord, open my eyes, rather continue to open my eyes. Do not let me be such a blind fool.
And Lord, thank you that You choose the lowly Thank-you so much. To give hope the hopeless is so awesome. Help me to be charitable. Help me to seek the wisdom of those You have touched and change.
*John9*
