John 9:1-7,13-17,34-39 (NIV) As he went along, 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,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. 4 As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. 7 “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.
13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a Sabbath. 15 Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied, “and I washed, and now I see.” 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others asked, “How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?” So they were divided. 17 Finally they turned again to the blind man, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” The man replied, “He is a prophet.”
34 To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out. 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. 39 Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”
Dear friends in the name of Jesus, the world’s light,
“While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” This is a bold statement that Jesus here makes. When someone is your light, what do you think of? When someone is your light, do you think of a person who lights up your life? Do you think of a person that fills you with joy and happiness when you around that person? How can it be that Jesus is the light of the world? How can it be that Jesus can bring light and life to every person in this world?
Last Sunday there was a show on that featured a young man that had been born blind. His parents decided that, rather than focus on his inabilities, they would focus on his abilities. From young on, this boy loved music, and is a talented singer and musician. The family made many sacrifices in order for this young man to explore and use his talents. His father even took a night job so that he could be his son’s eyes during the day and help him get around. His father even helped him become part of the marching band at his school, pushing him around in formation just so the young man could participate in something he may never see.
When we look at a situation like this, what are we to think? The question may come, “Why was this boy born blind?” Maybe we should be asking a different question. Maybe we should be asking the question, “Why can we see?” As we continue in this Lenten season on the road with Jesus to his suffering, death and resurrection, why is it that we can see Jesus as our Savior and friend? This all happens because of who Jesus is:
JESUS CHRIST IS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
1. He gives physical sight
2. He gives spiritual sight
As we see Jesus in the Gospel of John, we are easily able to see how it came to the point that Jesus was crucified. One of the first things that Jesus does, after changing water into wine, is to clear the temple building in Jerusalem of those changing money. When this upset some people, they asked him by what authority that he did these things. Jesus answered: “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” Jesus was referring to his death and the fact that he would raise himself to life again. Then Jesus speaks with Nicodemus, one of two who believed that Jesus was indeed the Christ. Nicodemus had said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous sings you are doing if God were not with him.” Although two of the Pharisees from the Jewish ruling council believed that Jesus was indeed the Christ, most of them rejected him. Later, during a feast, Jesus was in Jerusalem again. This time he healed a man who had been an invalid for 38 years, another miracle that showed that Jesus is God. Because Jesus healed this man on the Sabbath, he was persecuted. When he was confronted, Jesus gave a clear testimony of who he was and why he had come into this world. He even said that he would come back to this earth and raise the dead. Because of their rejection, Jesus also went to Galilee, where he fed 5,000 from a few loaves of bread and two small fish, and where walked on water. Jesus again decides to go to Jerusalem for the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles, where everyone was now looking for the man who had cleansed the temple, healed the invalid and taught many things. The question was, “Is Jesus the Christ?” The majority of the Jewish ruling council had determined that Jesus was not the Christ, and they even went so far as to determine that he was sinful for healing on the Sabbath.
Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” The Pharisees again challenge Jesus, claiming to be the children of Abraham. Since they refused to listen to Jesus, since they refused to believe in him, Jesus said to them, “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling you the truth, why don’t you believe me? He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not belong is that you do not belong to God.” This Jesus said to the Pharisees who refused to believe in him.
They accused Jesus of being demon-possessed, and asked him if he was greater than their father Abraham. Jesus said, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” They said, “You are not yet fifty years old, and you have seen Abraham?” Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was born, I am!” For claiming to be God, they tried to stone Jesus.
It is at this point that Jesus does a miracle which again shows who he really is. This miracle will be put right in front of the Pharisees who have repeatedly rejected him. Jesus not only says that he is the great “I am,” he proves it by what he does here. Let’s see how they respond.
As Jesus was going along, he saw a man that had been born blind. The blind man was sitting by the side of the road, begging from the people who passed by. The disciples ask an interesting question: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” The disciples assumed that either he or his parents had done something wrong, were living in some kind of sin, that caused this blindness. But in this case, they were mistaken. Listen to what Jesus says: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” Some might think that it wasn’t fair that this man had been born blind and grown up blind, but those who think that way would miss what a great privilege this blind man was given. He would be given the opportunity to demonstrate the work of God by the fact that he was born blind, and the same God who has given sight to each one of us had the power to give this man sight when he was fully grown.
Jesus said, “As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” Then Jesus spit on the ground, made some mud, and put it on the man’s eyes. The blind man obviously couldn’t see Jesus, and this could have been Jesus way of making sure the blind man knew who was healing him. Although Jesus could have given sight to this man immediately, Jesus had a reason for this man to gain his sight later, after he had washed in the Pool of Siloam. When the man went to the pool, he washed his eyes, and then he went home, able to see. Can you imagine what that must have been like for that man? He had never seen the sun or the moon, never seen flowers or trees, never seen animals or birds, never even seen the faces of his father and his mother. And now he could see! What a glorious gift he had been given.
After the neighbors wondered whether this was the same man who had been blind, he was brought before the Pharisees. These are the same Pharisees that have seen miracle after miracle that fulfilled the description of the promised Messiah: “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy (Isaiah 35:5-6 NIV).” These are the same Pharisees who time and time again rejected Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah. Now this man, who was blind but now could see, was brought before the Pharisees who had a different kind of blindness.
Again, Jesus had opened this man’s eyes on the Sabbath. When the Pharisees asked how he could he see, the former blind man replied, “He put mud on my eyes and I washed, and now I see.” This caused a big argument amongst the Pharisees. Some seized on the fact that he had made this mud and healed on the Sabbath: “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” Others asked, “How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?” Finally they turned to the blind man and asked, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” The man who had been blind said, “He is a prophet.”
But even then, even with the proof that Jesus is the Creator God standing right before them, even then they did not believe that this man had been blind and that he had received his sight. So they called in the man’s parents. Now everyone was afraid of this Jewish ruling council, because they said that anyone who said that Jesus is the Christ would be thrown out of the church. So the parents of this man who had been blind were a little afraid when they were asked about this situation. “We know he is our son, and we know he was born blind. But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don’t know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself.” No, this wasn’t a fake. He had been born blind and grown up blind, and this great miracle had happened, but the Pharisees continued to reject it.
So they talked to the former blind man a second time. Now comes the time for an amazing testimony. The Pharisees said, “Give glory to God. We know this man is a sinner.” The man replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind, but now I see.” There it was before them again, as clear as could be. One who had been born blind now had his sight restored. It showed that he was no sinner at all, but that he was really God. What the Pharisees could easily see right before their eyes they refused to see.
“What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” If you were this man, what would you think and say at this moment? The man said, “I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again?” Then a question that demonstrated the obvious: “Do you want to become his disciples too?” This caused the Pharisees to hurl all kinds of insults at him. Then they drew the same false conclusion that the disciples originally had drawn. “You are this man’s disciple. We are disciples of Moses! We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.” The man who had his sight restored just couldn’t believe what he was hearing: “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners (the impenitent). He listens to the godly man who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” The evidence was right there in front of them. The Pharisees could have plainly seen that Jesus was who he claimed to be, the great I am. What was their response? “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.
Amazing, isn’t it? The Pharisees had heard Jesus claim to be God, then they thoroughly investigated a miracle that easily should have convinced them that he was as he claimed to be, and they refused to believe it. Amazing, isn’t it that they couldn’t see? Isn’t it even more amazing that we can? We also were born blind, perhaps not physically, but spiritually. We couldn’t see that we were sinful, and we couldn’t see that Jesus had died for those sins. But Jesus sent his Holy Spirit to open our spiritually blind eyes. The Holy Spirit has turned us from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God, so that we could see Jesus as the one who has saved us from the consequences of our own sinfulness. What was true for this man born blind is also true for us who were born blind. It is God’s amazing grace that causes us to see Jesus as our Savior. The more we see how stubborn these Pharisees were in refusing to see that Jesus truly was the Christ, the more it is amazing that we see that he is the Christ, the Son of God. We too can join with the blind man and say, “I was blind, but now I see!”
Jesus hears that this man who had been blind was thrown out of the church, so Jesus looks for him. Remember, this man has never seen Jesus, yet he had given a beautiful testimony of his faith to a crowd of people that refused to believe in Jesus. The Pharisees have seen Jesus, seen many of the miracles that he has done, but they refuse to see who Jesus is. This man, who was once blind, believed and confessed who Jesus was before he ever saw him at all. Now Jesus stands before this man who can see and says, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” Certainly this man, who had just given this beautiful testimony of his faith before a hostile crowd, needed to have his faith strengthened. The man asked, “Who is he, sir? Tell me so that I may believe in him.” Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.” It is truly amazing that this man who had never seen Jesus gave such a beautiful testimony of who Jesus was and what Jesus had done. He’d been blind spiritually also, and now he could see Jesus, the one who had given him eyes to see, both in his head and in his heart.
The man responded, “Lord, I believe.” Then he worshiped Jesus, falling on his knees and acknowledging Jesus as his Savior. What an appropriate response to the one who gives sight to the blind. The man could see the birds and the trees and the faces of his parents. The man could see Jesus as his Savior from sin. The man fell down at Jesus’ feet and gave credit to the one who had given him all these things.
Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.” The Pharisees, who claimed that they had all spiritual insight as children of Abraham and disciples of Moses, really did not believe what Abraham and Moses had taught them. If they had, they would have been glad to see Jesus. They claimed to see, but Jesus was showing them in a very direct manner that they were really blind, leading people into eternal separation from God in hell. When Jesus returns in glory, all who do not believe in him now will suffer forever there.
Today also, many people claimed to be enlightened, claim to know something better, different than what God’s Word says. But those who do not lead people to see Jesus are blind guides, leading people into the eternal darkness of hell. That’s why you and I have such a privilege. Because of God’s grace, we see that we sinners have a Savior. We understand that without a Savior, we would join those who suffer God’s anger forever. We see that Jesus died in our place and has given to us the glories of heaven. We see all these things because God has opened our spiritually blind eyes because he loves us. Isn’t it amazing that God has opened our eyes through the message that we have heard?
This same Jesus, who suffered and died in our place, still wants to work through us. Remember what Jesus says in connection with this miracle: “As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” The eternal night of hell sets day after day on those in hell. There, in hell, they can no longer hear the Gospel message, they can no longer believe in Jesus, they no longer have the opportunity to believe and be saved. Now is the time. Today is the day. Let us do all we can, while it is still day, to be about the work that God has given us to do. Let us thank God that someone told us about Jesus, that the Holy Spirit opened ours so that we could see that all our sins are forgiven in Jesus. Let us pray tonight, “Lord, it is still day. There are many who are trapped in spiritual blindness and are on their way to hell. Help me to see how I can open their eyes by sharing you with them. Jesus, you are the Light of the World. May your light shine into all the corners of spiritual darkness that many may be brought to the Light of Life. Amen.”
