SIGHT TO THE BLIND AND BLINDNESS TO THOSE OF SIGHT
John 9:1-41
Sermon # 20 in the Gospel of John 2021
Greenmount and O’Leary Churches of Christ
June 13, 2021
Video Link To message: https://youtu.be/uSxsZOOyq4U
INTRODUCTION:
1.) In our message two weeks ago, Jesus made the declaration that he is the “Light of The World.
A.) As we come to our text today, there has been debate if today’s account of Scripture is still at the Feast of Tabernacles or if it is a couple of months later at the Feast of Dedication.
B.) While we are not sure which time this was, Jesus picks up the same theme he had addressed that He is the Light of the World.
C.) As we get into the Word of God today, Jesus finds a man who has been blind right from birth.
D.) In the miracle of healing this man, Jesus showed himself to be the Light of the World by giving to him physical light and eyesight.
E.) Through that miracle, Jesus did an even greater work by giving him the Light of the world in a personal manner.
ea.) This man to see and understand that Jesus is also the spiritual light of the world.
I. THE HEALING OF THE BLIND MAN (9:1-7)
• In the opening scene of our text Jesus and his disciples are walking along the road.
• They happen to come across a blind man, which brought the disciples to question Jesus.
1.) Who sinned? This man or his parents? (9:2)
A.) There are times in life when pain, suffering, and illness are the direct result of sin or sinful actions.
aa.) In the healing we looked at in John 5 it was the man’s sin that had been responsible for his physical condition.
ab.) There are times when illness, handicap, or even death can come as the result of the sins of either the person affected, or of another person.
aba.) Certainly, the death of my sister would be an example of that.
abb.) When Jane was killed in that car accident it was because a man had become intoxicated with the drug of alcohol and passed out at the wheel of the car he was driving.
abc.) Certainly, there are countless numbers of examples we could give where an individual’s sin causes sickness, suffering, or death in another individual.
B.) With this man in our account the disciples of Jesus asked him who had sinned: “That he was born blind.”
ba.) In that day it was concluded that any such illness or condition was the direct result of sin.
baa.) Even today that kind of mind frame still exists.
.01) I have known a few Christian couples who for whatever the reason have been unable to have children.
.02) It has broken their as well-meaning Christians have told them there must have been some sin in their relationship for which God was punishing them.
.03) I know of churches who like the friends of Job have told Christians suffering various afflictions there must be some sin in their lives for which they need to repent before God.
.031) While there are times that may be true, it is not a universal fact of any affliction or illness.
.032) Jesus made that clear in this account of Scripture.
2.) Neither this man nor his parents (9:3)
A.) In some ways this was new teaching that Jesus was giving.
aa.) I say it was new, though in reality it was teaching that was consistent with the entirety of the Word of God.
ab.) Just the same it was somewhat new in that almost every generation had looked at sickness, and the like as a curse or punishment from God.
aba.) It is true that all man’s afflictions are from a curse, but the curse is not necessarily something that has happened now but when sin first came into the world.
abb.) Jesus goes on to clear up their misunderstanding.
3.) “But this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.”
A.) This does not mean that God had caused this man’s blindness so that He could be glorified by it.
B.) Rather it means that Jesus used the blindness of this man to bring glory to God, and to help them understand that He is the light of the world.
4.) Jesus again affirms himself as the light of the world. (9:4-5)
A.) By bringing light to this man’s world Jesus shows himself not only as the physical light of the world, but also the one who brings spiritual light into this world.
B.) John 9:6-7
II. THE QUESTIONING OF THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS. (9:8-34)
1.) The neighbours of the blind man. (9:8-13)
A.) Those who knew this man the best were confused.
B.) Could this be the same man they had seen day after day begging?
C.) In that day there were many who were blind, probably far more than there are today.
ca.) In that day if someone had been born blind, he was blind for the rest of his life.
cb.) The people were naturally confused and bewildered that this man could now see.
cba.) John 9:9-12
D.) These friends and neighbours of the blind man bring him to the Pharisees.
da.) As I read this account of Scripture, I have to say what wonderful friends!
daa.) This man had been blind, and now that he is healed, they report his healing to the religious leaders.
2.) The Pharisees and the blind man. (9:14-17)
A. It was the Sabbath. (9:14)
aa.) To be honest, this was the biggest issue to these Pharisees.
ab.) Forget the greatness of the miracle that had just been performed.
aba.) It was totally unheard of such a healing, and in a man that had never once seen a sunrise or sunset, had never seen a baby, or a tree, or the beauty of a flowing brook or river.
abb.) Even still, the only thing they saw and focussed on was that this man had been healed on the Sabbath day.
B. They asked him on his healing. (9:15)
ba.) “He made some mud with saliva”.
baa.) Jesus did not have to spit on the ground and make some salve from the clay; he could have just given the word and this man would have been healed.
bb.) “I washed”.
bba.) Jesus had done his part, but the man also had a part in the healing.
bbb.) After Jesus left the scene, the man obeyed the words of Jesus and went to the pool of Siloam to bathe himself.
bbc.) It was at that point in time when this man was made to see.
.01) I believe this may have been a test of this man’s faith.
.02) Would this man have the faith to take Jesus at his word, and obey the command Jesus had given to him?
.03) Scripture tells us he in fact did have the faith to take Jesus at his word, and once he had washed at Siloam for the first time in his life could see.
bc.) “Now I can see.”
C.) Conclusion of the Pharisees was split:
ca.) John 9:16
cb.) He is not from God because of working on the Sabbath.
cc.) He must be from God because of doing the miraculous signs.
3.) The bind man himself is questioned.
A.) John 9:17 ? He is a prophet.
aa.) This passage of Scripture will show a steady progression in this man’s understanding of Jesus.
aaa.) Verse 11 “the man they call Jesus”.
aab.) Verse 17 “He is a prophet.”
aac.) Verse 28 The blind man has become a disciple of Jesus.
aad.) Verse33 This man is obviously from God because of the miracles he performed.
aae.) Verses 35-38 Confesses Jesus as the Son of man and worships him.
4.) The parents of the blind man are questioned. (9:18-23)
A.) “We know he is our son, as to “how he can see, or who opened his eyes Ask him, he is of age” (9:18-20)
aa.) The parents of this man were not willing to give an answer because they did not want to be excommunicated from the synagogue.
ab.) By this time, the religious leaders had agreed that anyone who acknowledged Jesus as the Christ would not be welcome in the house of God.
aba.) As I read this my mind is taken back to Psalm 118:22-23 where it was prophesied that the “the stone which the builders have rejected has become the cornerstone.”
abb.) On this day God’s cornerstone was being rejected by the builders, the religious leaders.
5.) The former blind man is questioned a second time. (9:24-29
A.) The religious leaders challenged the man:
aa.) (9:24) “Give glory to God …we know this man is a sinner.
aaa.) Jesus was called a sinner because he had healed this man on the Sabbath.
B.) The blind man is not so convinced that Jesus was a sinner.
ba.) John 9:25
bb.) He was not one to judge the heart of Jesus.
bba.) The man who had been blind said he did not know if Jesus was a sinner or not.
bbb.) The only thing he knew was that he had been blind, but now he could see.
.01) That caused this blind man to put his faith in Jesus, as a disciple of Christ.
.02) His testimony resulted in further mockery by the religious leaders.
.03) Again the religious leaders said they did not even know where Jesus had come from, which we looked at a bit
last week, in the charges of being born outside of marriage.
C.) This blind man challenged the religious leaders that this miracle should be ample evidence that Jesus had come from God.
ca.) John 9:31-33
D.) The religious leaders did not like that.
da.) The religious leaders go back to the original charges that either this man or his parents had been sinful to cause the blindness.
db.) John 9:34-35
E.) This was both the best day and the worst day of this man’s life.
ea.) It was a great day in that for the first time he had physical eyesight.
eb.) More than this it was the greatest day of his life in that he had come to gain the spiritual eyesight that Jesus is the Light of The World, and the Messiah of God.
ec.) But it was also the worst day of this man’s life.
eca.) His new faith in Jesus resulted in being excommunicated from fellowship with the people of God.
ecb.) The fact that he knew Jesus was the Messiah of God meant he was no longer welcome in the house of God.
.01) It seemed like a spiritual contradiction.
.02) The temple worship, and the teachings of Scripture all pointed to Jesus as the Messiah, yet by coming to that truth, he was excluded as apostate from the faith.
III. SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS. (9:35-41)
1.) The blind man received not only physical light, but spiritual light.
A.) John 9:35-38
2.) Jesus came that the blind might see.
A.) John 9:39a.
aa.) Truly Jesus became the Light of the world to this blind man.
aaa.) He gave light to his physical body.
aab.) He gave spiritual light to the man’s heart.
3.) Jesus also came that those seeing might become blind.
A.) Jesus did not come to bring spiritual blindness to anyone.
aa.) It was always the mission of Christ to bring light to all mankind.
B.) While Jesus came as the Light of the World, those who rejected the Christ remained in darkness.
ba.) The sad part of that is that many who became spiritually blind had known the truth but rejected it.
C.) The Pharisees asked: “Are we blind too?” (9:40)
ca.) John 9:41
cb.) If they were truly blind, they would not be guilty of sin.
cc.) The pharisees and religious leaders claimed to see, and in fact many of them knew that Jesus is the Christ.
cca.) Jesus told them that now that they knew the truth, they remained in their guilt because they had rejected the Christ.
ccd.) What a sad reality that people could know the truth, and yet from their pride and jealousy of Jesus reject the truth of God.
cce.) Yet I have seen more than one person who has known the truth of God yet refused to allow the truth to make them free.
CONCLUSION:
1.) If you have come to know the truth, has the truth of Jesus Christ set you free?
2.) There is nothing worse than to go into eternity without Jesus Christ, especially if you have come to know the truth of God.
