John 9:1-3, 40-41

 

1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

 

It happened again. Gail asked me to get the ketchup bottle from the cupboard. I looked, and looked, but could not find it. So, as a last resort, I admitted I was at a loss in my mission of discovery. So, Gail took over. And wouldn’t you know it? “Dale, are you blind? It is right here, in the very front of the cupboard. In plain sight.”  Has that ever happened to you? If you are male, the answer is an unqualified yes. Females on the other hand are the ultimate finders for adult males.

However, for the approximately 1million who are physically blind, and the 7-8 million whose vision is severely impaired this is no laughing matter. It is a serious handicap that has broad implications for the individual’s life.

            When blindness occurs, we want to know why. For a newborn, we ask, Is it a genetic problem? Is it something the mother did or did not do while pregnant? Could it have been prevented? For an older person who slowly or suddenly becomes blind, the questions persist. Could something have been done to prevent the blindness?

            Such is the case this morning. The text gives a report of a man born blind. The people surrounding Jesus asked, “Who sinned? The man born blind or his parents.” That’s a reasonable question. Even today people ask the same question when an affliction, natural disaster, or a tragedy occurs.

A comparable situation is recorded in Luke, and the same question was raised.

“Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish’” (Luke 13:1-5 NIV)

            Jesus could have gone into a long explanation that all illnesses and disabilities are caused by sin. After all, sin is at the root of all maladies in creation. But our Lord was not distracted by such a theological discussion, as interesting and helpful as it might be. In stead, he gave a different response: “it was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

            As John wrote the gospel, one of his goals was to show how the miracles of Jesus displayed the works of God. Look at the first miracle in Cana when Jesus turned water into wine. John wrote, “What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory” (John 2:11).

Next week’s gospel has the same theme but for a different reason. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead to give God the glory for bringing a dead man to life. Jesus used the miracle to solicit a confession of faith.

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; “and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

The miracle in the text was performed to demonstrate the work of God.

The story about the tower of Siloam has still another reason for disasters. That is, to call people to repentance.

But there is another side to today’s reading. That is, blindness is not only a physical malady. It is also a spiritual illness. The Pharisees clearly proved that truth.

From Jesus’ explanation of why he cured the blind man, we can see that all along Jesus wanted to demonstrate a spiritual truth: people can see but still be blind. Blind, that is, to the work of God. When one is cured of an illness, the normal response is to thank the care giver who facilitated the healing. From a human perspective, that is the correct response. But from a spiritual perspective, all glory belongs to God, for he gave the medical professional the ability to “cure” diseases. When one avoids a car accident, it is correct to say, my driving skills (or just plain dumb luck) saved me from bodily injury. But from a spiritual perspective, one could say it was God at work to bring him glory.

            In fact, the Old Testament reading points out that one of the signs of the promised Messiah’s arrival was his ability to bring sight to the blind:

 And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them (Isaiah 42:16).

            The Pharisees, and no doubt other bystanders, could not believe God would heal someone who was blind. As John points out, no one had ever been cured of blindness before Jesus’ miracle. Therefore, the Pharisees remarked, Jesus must be from the Devil. For not only did he perform the miracle, but he did also healed the man on the Sabbath, a day in which no work could be done, not even an action to improve a blind man’s blindness.

            The blind man did not have any problem giving credit to God for the gift of sight. “Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ 36 He answered, ‘And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?’ 37 Jesus said to him, ‘You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.’ 38 He said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshiped him” (John 9:35-38).

            Jesus performed miracles that they would bring glory to God; faith might be brought to unbelievers and to show how God works. Miracles were performed so that Jesus’ that “all people would be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). That is true for you and me, as well. Give glory to God, for he has done marvelous things!

            That the Pharisees excommunicated the blind man is clear evidence that they did not believe Jesus healed blind man; that they did not appreciate the blind man giving glory to Jesus for the supposed healing, and third, that the Pharisees themselves did not believe Jesus to be the son of God. “Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, ‘Are we also blind?’ 41 Jesus said to them, ‘if you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, We see, your guilt remains’” (John 9:40-41)