(CEV) As Jesus walked along, he saw a man who had been blind since birth. 2 Jesus’ disciples asked, "Teacher, why was this man born blind? Was it because he or his parents sinned?" 3 "No it wasn’t!" Jesus answered. "But because of his blindness, you will see God work a miracle for him. 4 As long as it is day, we must do what the one who sent me wants me to do. When night comes, no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
6 After Jesus said this, he spit on the ground. He made some mud and smeared it on the man’s eyes. 7 Then he said, "Go and wash off the mud in Siloam Pool." The man went and washed in Siloam, which means, "One Who Is Sent." When he had washed off the mud, he could see.
We’re in the series on Jesus’ encouraging conversations that took place prior to each of the seven miracles recorded by John in his Good News account. We’re finding that the words of Christ provide great hope and help. We’re finding God’s Word is the great force behind the miracles he performs.
Whenever God speaks there is power and provision for our needs. When God speaks, great things happen!
For example God’s creative acts are often spoken.
Genesis 1:3 (KJV) And God said, "Let there be light": and there was light.
Light was precisely what the recipient of this miracle needed. He was born blind. He didn’t know what a rainbow or a flower looked like. He had never held his breath at the sight of a sunset. The face of his parents was a mystery to him. The world was colorless and formless. It’s really hard to imagine what that is actually like.
The good news is that when Christ’s path intersected his life there was an unprecedented change! He received the gift of sight and he later received the gift of eternal life by believing in Jesus! The miracle not only met his physical need but more importantly it met his great spiritual need of a Savior!
From this miracle we gain several important insights that produce a positive outlook for facing big problems in life.
The first insight this story opens our eyes to is:
1. Look for blessing, not blame.
One of the greatest keys to winning in life is a good attitude. This biblical narrative contrasts the winning attitude of Jesus with the various examples of bad attitudes around him. The first attitude that needed correcting was that of the disciples.
Verse 2 (NLT) "Teacher," his disciples asked him, "why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?"
Sin does have consequences but problems aren’t always punishment. Jesus pointed out a better mindset than that which the disciples’ question portrayed. Instead of finger pointing when you face big problems, you have another option. Here’s how Jesus replied.
Verse 3 (Msg) "You’re asking the wrong question. You’re looking for someone to blame. There is no such cause-effect here. Look instead for what God can do."
Here you have specific instructions from the Lord Himself on what to do when you encounter a big problem - look for what God can do! See problems as opportunities for God to display his love and power.
It’s a shame that the disciples didn’t look at this man with a desire to help him in his trouble – instead they wanted to start a theological discussion. People don’t need a gabfest when they’re facing big problems. They need help. Who cares as much about why they’re hurting as the fact that they are hurting.
"If you were in a car accident and were bleeding to death in the Emergency Room, how would you feel if the doctor came in and wanted to talk about the Greek word for hospital or the history of the stethoscope? All he said to you could be true but irrelevant because it doesn’t stop your hurt. You would want the doctor to begin with your pain." (Pastors.com)
You don’t always have to have neat explanations as to why problems occur. Don’t waste your time in the blame game when you need to be more involved in working toward solutions. Don’t get caught up in the often-vain pursuit of answering the question "Why?" "Why did God let this happen?" "Why do good people suffer?" "Why do hurricanes hit our shores?" "Why this?" "Why that?"
When Jesus described his own ministry he showed us the value of looking for blessing and not blame. He quoted a prophecy from Isaiah chapter 61 and applied it to Himself.
Luke 4:18-19 (NCV) The Lord has put his Spirit in me, because he appointed me to tell the Good News to the poor. He has sent me to tell the captives they are free and to tell the blind that they can see again. God sent me to free those who have been treated unfairly and to announce the time when the Lord will show his kindness.
When you’re facing big problems in life your time can be more efficiently spent doing the works Jesus did - telling the Good News to the poor and seeking solutions to your problems instead of bemoaning the fact that your problems exist - lighting a candle instead of cursing the darkness.
Jesus continues answering the question of the disciples by telling them how to live out this winning attitude.
Verses 4-5 (NLT) "All of us must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent me, because there is little time left before the night falls and all works comes to an end. 5 But while I am still here in the world, I am the light of the world."
Don’t get so distracted in life trying to solve puzzles that you fail to stay busy doing what God assigned you to do!
What should you do in the midst of the big problems of life? You should keep on doing what you’re supposed to be doing! Keep on doing the tasks God assigned you to do. If he assigned you be a parent – be the best parent you can be. Don’t let down on your parenting because you’re facing problems at work. Don’t let down on your marriage because paying the bills is difficult.
Don’t sit around asking "why?" Use the gifts and abilities, the experiences, and the skills you have as an indication of what God wants you to do - then get busy and stay busy doing those things! You will find in so doing that your problems often work out in the midst of your positive attitude.
And while you keep on doing the things you’re supposed to do – look for what God can do!
Look for blessing, not blame. Don’t let negativity overcome you. Don’t let yourself sink into depression bemoaning your problems. Going through life as a bitter person won’t help. Always asking "why" isn’t going to solve your problems.
Roll up your sleeves and stay busy with your assigned tasks, and as you do so, God will add to your little strength His great strength! To your limited resources He will add His provision. (As we saw in the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000.)
While you’re looking for blessing and not blame, here’s the second insight that produces a positive outlook for solving big problems.
2. Look for God to work "outside the box."
Notice carefully how Jesus performed the miracle in this man’s life.
Verse 6 (NLT) Then he spit on the ground, made mud with saliva, and smoothed the mud over the blind man’s eyes. 7 He told him, "Go and wash in the pool of Siloam" (Siloam means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came back seeing!
The average person would probably have expected Christ to speak the words or place his hands on the man’s eyes and heal him. But Jesus did something a bit unusual, something unexpected.
Don’t expect God to be limited to helping you solve your problems in the conventional manner. Don’t limit God to your preconceived ideas about how he is going to solve your problem. God has ways of doing things you’ve never dreamed of. He has unlimited imagination and ingenuity, unlimited resources and intelligence. That’s why the Bible says,
Luke 1:37 (CEV) Nothing is impossible for God!
The only thing that limits God is your lack of faith in him.
Matthew 13:58 (CEV) And because the people did not have any faith, Jesus did not work many miracles there.
When you limit God because you want him to fit into the mold you have made for him you limit his problem solving abilities in your life.
Donald Miller writes, "I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn’t resolve. But I was outside the Bagdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for fifteen minutes, and he never opened his eyes."
"After that I liked jazz music."
He continues, "Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way."
"I used to not like God because God didn’t resolve. But that was before this happened."
(Taken from Blue Like Jazz, Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality)
Don’t try to make God resolve. Don’t try to make him do what you expect. Give him room to be God in your life! Give him room to do the unexpected! Place your trust in his abilities. Place your life in his hands. Do the tasks he has assigned you to do and then trust him to do the rest however he sees fit!
God does his own work in his own way. Don’t limit him to helping you solve your problems in the way you expect.
This is really a very exciting and encouraging thought! You can’t always think of ways of solving problems that God can think of because you are limited to the learning and experiences of your life. You’re limited in ability and resources. But just because you can’t imagine how you’re ever going to solve a big problem don’t despair. God has no such limitations!
Verses 8 through 34 of John chapter 9 cover the story of the blind man’s frustration of dealing with the Pharisees. If anyone was in the dark about Jesus - they were. And mainly it was because of their preconceived ideas of who the Messiah would be and what he would be like.
Verse 16a (NLT) Some of the Pharisees said, "This man Jesus is not from God, for he is working on the Sabbath."
Jesus couldn’t be God in their minds because he healed this man on a Sabbath day. How utterly uncaring and undiscerning! Like the disciples they missed the point. They were just more people with crummy attitudes.
Not only did they want to place blame – in this case they wanted to blame Jesus for breaking their Sabbath rules – but they also failed to respect and receive Jesus due to their unwillingness to let God work outside the box. To them, if Jesus wanted their blessing he had to work inside the parameters of their rulebook.
They didn’t receive Jesus as God for the same reason a thief can’t find a policeman!
Be careful about making the mistake of limiting God to your expectations. Have faith that God can work outside the box!
1. Look for blessing not blame.
2. Have faith that God can work outside the box.
Here’s the third insight that produces a positive outlook for overcoming life’s big problems.
3. Look to God for who He is, not just what He can do.
Verse 7 (CEV) Then he said, "Go and wash off the mud in Siloam Pool." The man went and washed in Siloam, which means, "One Who Is Sent." When he washed off the mud he could see.
You don’t want to make the Bible say things it doesn’t say – but neither do you want to miss the symbolism of Christ’s actions. Jesus never did anything that didn’t have purpose.
There’s a lot of symbolism in Scripture. God was always drawing pictures for man to be able to grasp His truth. In the Old Testament the tabernacle and the temple and the sacrificial system all painted spiritual truth pictures.
In the New Testament Jesus often spoke in word-pictures and parables, using things like fig trees and houses built on the sand for object lessons. He was the Master of the art of telling a story or proving a point in a way that made it easier to grasp. He knew what we’ve seen already – people have preconceived ideas about Him and about the truth – they need something extra sometimes to shake them loose from their biases.
So he makes this man go and wash the mud off his eyes. What would that say to the man? What did it say to the disciples? What does that say to you?
Maybe I’m too simple minded, but I’ll tell you what it says to me.
You can’t see if you have dirt in your eyes!
Not the kind of dirt we’re prone to think of. Not the dirt of sin, but more the dirt of a wrong outlook on life. Jesus clearly stated this man was not blind because of sin. He was a sinner to be sure. We’re all sinners. But this man’s blindness wasn’t a direct result of anyone’s sin. It wasn’t the dirtiness of sinful deeds that Jesus wanted this man to wash from his eyes.
Not only did the disciples and the religious leaders need an attitude adjustment, but this blind man did as well. Every one of us does.
I think the mud on his eyes represents the mud in all of our eyes. It is the dirt of a wrong vision that says, "what we need God for is what He can do for us." The truth is, we need God for who He is!
This man had an even greater need than being healed from blindness. He needed a Savior. You have more important needs than finding solutions to your problems. You too need a Savior. You need a captain. You need a leader in your life. Jesus is that perfect leader that you need. Jesus didn’t just want this man to see – He wanted him to experience the truth about God.
Jesus once asked the rhetorical question:
Mark 8:36 (NLT) And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process?
What would the blind man have gained if he had received physical sight but not spiritual sight? What do you gain if God solves your problems and you can’t understand spiritual truth?
The Pharisees challenged the man’s claim of having been given sight by Jesus. When he wouldn’t back off his story of being miraculously healed by Jesus, the religious hypocrites kicked him out of the synagogue.
John 9:35 (NLV) Jesus heard that the proud religious law-keepers had put the man who had been healed out of the place of worship. He found the man and said to him, "Do you put your trust in the Son of God?" 36 He said, "Who is He, Sir? Tell me so that I can put my trust in Him." 37 Jesus said to him, "You have seen Him. He is talking with you." 38 He said, "I do put my trust in You, Lord." Then he bowed down before Jesus and worshiped Him.
The miracle wasn’t finished until this man trusted Christ by faith and worshiped Him! It wasn’t complete until he had a relationship with God through His Son Jesus Christ.
You need to see that the plan of God is not just to solve your problems. The plan of God is for you to worship Him. You were created to serve God. It doesn’t matter if you solve all of your problems. If you fail to worship God you’ve missed the boat.
Put your trust in God for who He is not just what He can do. The greatest resource for problem resolution is having a personal relationship with God through His Son Jesus Christ!
Let’s pray together.
If you’re already a Christ follower maybe you’d like to ask God today to help you with your outlook, with your attitude. Ask God to give you the attitude Jesus had. Give Him room to work outside the box with your problems.
If you have never really made a faith commitment to Jesus would you do it right now? Don’t put it off until a "better" time. There will never be a better time than now. If you would like to receive Christ as your forgiver and leader, pray this simple prayer in your heart."
"Dear God, I realize that even if you help me solve all of my problems in life and I don’t have you as my Savior, I’m still spiritually blind. I’m not going to go on allowing myself to be distracted by asking "why". I know I’m a sinner and I ask you to forgive all of my sins. I want to start fresh in life by doing the tasks you’ve assigned me to do in life. I want to worship you with my life. In Jesus’ name. Amen."
