In John 9, we have a narrative which demonstrates the very teaching Jesus had been presenting to the Pharisees in Jerusalem in the previous chapter. John had recorded that Jesus claimed to be the “light of the world” and that he had come to open men’s eyes to the truth of God. So, we see this played out in dramatic fashion as Jesus heals a man who was born blind.
To recall the story, Jesus was asked to comment on the reason for a certain man’s blindness. This man had lived a life as a beggar in his town. ”Who sinned, this man or his parents?”, was the question put to the Lord. His response was that neither had affected this man’s sight – instead, he had been born blind so God might demonstrate his power through him. With that, Jesus spat on the ground, formed some clay, and put it on the man’s eyes, sending the man to the pool of Siloam to wash. Ironically, “Siloam” means “sent”. Not only had the man been “sent” to wash, but he had met with the one whom God “sent” to heal the world of spiritual blindness and sin. The man returned with his sight intact and told his neighbors about how Jesus had healed him.
Amazed and confused, the people bring him to the Pharisees (the religious “experts”) to get their opinion on the matter. The Pharisees were a sect (sort of a denomination) of Judaism with certain beliefs and traditions within the law of Moses, and they were fastidious rule-keepers. Some scholars believe they were the prominent sect in Judaism in the 1st century, often holding the role of rabbi in local synagogues. With this heritage, the Pharisees went on the attack in John 9 in typical fashion, summarized as follows:
1. Discredit Jesus for healing on the Sabbath
The Pharisees were the “stick to the authority of God’s word” people. They believed in keeping the letter of the law, and used this philosophy to attack Jesus on more than one occasion. In this case, they reasoned like this: The law says not to work on the Sabbath. Miraculous healing of the blind is work. Therefore, it is wrong to heal the blind on the Sabbath. Jesus constantly berated the Pharisees for holding to legal and traditional technicalities over godly principles.
2. Discredit the man as a fraud
The Pharisees then moved to attack the blind man himself, stating he was not really born blind. They sent for his parents, who confirmed he had been blind from birth. However, his parents failed to mention Jesus because of fear they might be excommunicated from the synagogue.
3. Discredit the miracle itself
The Pharisees then turned to the man again and said, “Who did this?” and “How did he do it?”. Having already explained the miracle, the man could see the game they were playing and became sarcastic with the Pharisees, asking them, “Do you also want to become disciples of Jesus?” He also demonstrated pure logic, stating, “If he is not from God, he could not have healed me at all!”
4. Discredit Jesus as a sinner
The Pharisees summoned the man again and said, “Give God the glory! This man is a sinner!” In this statement, the Pharisees were dealing with this man just as Joshua approached Achan about his sin in taking the spoils of Ai, demanding an admission of fault:
Now Joshua said to Achan, “My son, I beg you, give glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession to Him, and tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.” Joshua 7:19
However, the Pharisees simply could not force this man to confess anything but the works of Jesus!
5. Discredit the man as a sinner
At this, the Pharisees simply said, “You are a sinner! How dare you lecture us!” and threw him out of their presence.
This amazing story asks the questions: “Who can truly see?” and “Who is truly blind?”. Jesus shows that those who can truly see are those who believe in the Son of Man. Those who are blind are those who are convinced of their own righteousness and thereby feel no need to believe in Jesus. In short, the story presents a picture of what it means to be Christian.
A Christian Sees
A Christian is a person who was a blind beggar from birth but whose eyes have been opened by Jesus. All people are born into a world where they inherit Adam’s nature of sin. Spiritually, we are all blind beggars until we meet the light of the world – Jesus. As John wrote in chapter 3:20, “Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.” Only when we are exposed to the light of truth can we see our own sin and feel the need for reconciliation with God through belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ. We can also begin to see (as this man did) the pretense of self-righteous and empty religion.
A Christian Confesses
A Christian becomes a confessor of our own sin and a confessor of Christ. From the moment this man was healed, he did not hesitate to recall his previous blind condition and to credit Jesus for his sight. Even when bullied and threatened by the Pharisees, he stood firm in what he knew to be true. This is the call of every true believer – to be a confessor of Christ. So we confess our blindness and sin, and we credit Christ with opening our eyes to our sinful condition and to his act of grace on the cross. John wrote:
8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us” 1 John 1:8
As we saw in this story, sometimes confessing the truth of Christ sets one at odds with unbelievers, sometimes with other “religious” people, or even with one’s own family. Jesus taught this very clearly:
34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn
“‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
36 a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. Matt. 10:34-36
A Christian Worships
A Christian is compelled to become a worshipper of the one who opened his eyes to truth and set him free from darkness and the guilt of sin – just as this blind man worshipped Jesus:
35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
36 “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
37 Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
38 Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. John 9:35-38
The Christian is compelled to worship Christ – not by command, but by choice. If we were truly blind and now see, who could stop us from confessing and worshipping our healer and savior?
- Lesson by John Summers
