The Key to Sharing the Gospel
John 9:35-41
* Review chapter 9:1-34
* Remember, he followed the light he had. He obeyed the instructions he was given.
* Read text.
* I want to talk about three things this morning found in this passage.
* I. Serving the Lord.
* II Seeking the Lost.
* III. Shedding the Limitation.
III. Serving the Lord. (35)
* Lessons in reflection: 1) Sometimes ministry to the physical needs create a path for some to find salvation. It creates opportunity and openness.
* 2) I believe one of the lessons here is that meeting physical needs is not the primary goal. But for some, it can be.
* Jesus met this man’s physical needs with a deeper purpose in mind.
* It wasn’t about his blindness, but about his “lost-ness”. Therefore, he went looking for the man.
* Some have reduced Christianity and religion to service to our fellow man.
* This is as much of a danger as not utilizing physical needs to reach people.
* The catch phrase is “Social Gospel”.
* According to Wikipedia, “The Social Gospel movement is a Protestant Christian intellectual movement that was most prominent in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The movement applied Christian ethics to social problems, especially poverty, inequality, liquor, crime, racial tensions, slums, bad hygiene, child labor, weak labor unions, poor schools, and the danger of war. Above all they opposed rampant individualism and called for a socially aware religion. Theologically, the Social Gospel leaders were overwhelmingly post-millennialist. That is because they believed the Second Coming could not happen until humankind rid itself of social evils by human effort.[1]… After the Social Gospel movement was discredited around 1950, many of its ideas reappeared in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. “Social Gospel” principles continue to inspire newer movements such as Christians Against Poverty.
* Don’t get me wrong. The church is to be concerned with the disadvantaged and hurting.
* However, never should the meeting of physical needs overshadow our true purpose.
* Jesus gave His final instructions to the Church in Matthew 28.
* Vss. 19-20 – ““Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
* Our primarily goal is to prepare souls for the next life, not make this life easier.
* We can use their physical needs to express love, open the door for further ministries and the message of God.
* However, we need to keep our priorities in order.
* Sometimes, the difficulty lies when we see all the pain, suffering and injustice we see.
* Those with the gift of mercy and compassion hurt with the suffering.
* It seems we ought to do something.
* That is why our Church is called to depend upon a balance of gifts.
* Mercy calls us to community service, while the gift of prophecy holds us to the priority of the spiritual
* Although they seem in conflict, neither is wrong. They are both evidence of the Spirit operating in the body of Christ.
* God designed it so we would need each other to remain balanced and focused.
II. Seeking the Lost. (35)
* The second lesson I see in this passage is that Jesus sought out the man.
* After receiving sight, it is reasonable to expect that the man would have sought out Jesus.
* But the text clearly states, “Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”
* The truth is, God doesn’t expect us to do the reasonable when it comes to seeking Him.
* Paul quoted Psalms 14:1–3; 53:1–3; Ecclesiastes 7:20 when he wrote Romans 3:10-12 - As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; 11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.”
* Matthew 18:10-14 describes Jesus as a “seeking shepherd”.
* In Luke 19:10, Jesus states, ““for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
* It stands to reason, if mankind does not have the tendency to seek God, we would need a Savior who seeks us.
* Praise His name, He seeks us. That was our only hope.
* Let’s take it a step further. Look at II Corinthians 5:18-20. “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.”
* This passing of the torch was a theme in Jesus’ teaching.
* We mentioned the Great Commission.
* Acts 1:8, Jesus said, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
* In Matthew 22 and Luke 14, Jesus used a parable about a wedding to emphasis we are to go out to the highways and woods to compel them to come in.
* In Luke 10, Jesus sent 70 of his followers out to reach others for the kingdom.
* Jesus went to find. Now He sends us to go out and find.
* Our Christian life can be weighed by how much we go out of our way to reach others for Jesus Christ.
III. Shedding the Limitations. (35-38)
* When Jesus found this man, he introduced him to the saving message of God.
* He gave the man an opportunity to believe, and the man did.
* Then the man worshipped Jesus.
* It is important to see how the man got this far.
* 1) He was healed from the barrier of blindness. God healed him. He saw things clearly, physically and spiritually.
* 2) He was healed from the barrier of religion. The established faith system threw him out of the synagogue.
* I believe this is further evidence of God working in and around his life to bring him to the truth.
* 3) He was healed from the barrier of ignorance.
* He expressed ignorance when he asked, “Who is He, that I may believe in Him (the Son of God).”
* Jesus identified Himself as the Son of God. With ignorance gone, he believed and worshipped.
* I have great news for you.
* Hebrews 13:8 - Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
* God is working in and around your life today to bring you to greater truth.
* God is working in and around the life of the loved one you are praying for to bring him or her to the truth.
* God worked to remove the barriers from this man, and He is working to remove barriers today.
* Do you see God working in and around your life?
* Are you surrendering to Him? Has He called you again today?
* Hebrews 3:15 - “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion (as in the day of provocation, or the day you provoke God to anger).”
Summary:
Jesus used the physical to reach the spiritual needs of men, gave us the pattern for evangelism, and allowed God to work around Him to accomplish His purpose.
* There are some recurring themes in this passage we should not miss. (39-41)
1. Jesus separates. Some are spiritually blind and refuse to see, while others respond with worship.
* Either you respond to God with surrender and worship, or you are blind to the truth.
2. Sometimes the ones with the most confidence are in danger.
* Confidence and faith are different. Pagans are confident in their religion.
* Our confidence must come from faith in Jesus Christ alone to seek us, break down the barriers and save us.
3. Until we come to complete surrender and faith in Jesus Christ, we will not have the vision or wisdom to really know the truth.
* The evidence we seek will come after salvation, not before.
* Hebrews 11:6 - But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
* Those who have faith and seek God are rewarded with clear understanding, daily evidence of His reality and presence, and His power to live upright in a wicked world.
* What barrier is holding you back from another step towards God?
* God is working to remove it. Perhaps He has opened a door for you today.
* Will you step through it, or pass it by?
