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1 As he walked 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 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." 6 When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man's eyes, 7 saying to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. 8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, "Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?" 9 Some were saying, "It is he." Others were saying, "No, but it is someone like him." He kept saying, "I am the man." 10 But they kept asking him, "Then how were your eyes opened?" 11 He answered, "The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, "Go to Siloam and wash.' Then I went and washed and received my sight." 12 They said to him, "Where is he?" He said, "I do not know." 13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see." 16 Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?" And they were divided. 17 So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened." He said, "He is a prophet." 18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19 and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?" 20 His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself." 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23 Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him." 24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, "Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner." 25 He answered, "I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see." 26 They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?" 27 He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?" 28 Then they reviled him, saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from." 30 The man answered, "Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. 32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing." 34 They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?" And they drove him out. 35 Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" 36 He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him." 37 Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he." 38 He said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind." 40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, "Surely we are not blind, are we?" 41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, "We see,' your sin remains. (John 9 NRSV)
Happy Monday, dear Friend. I pray the calm and peace of the Lord Jesus be with you and yours especially in the light of all that is being shared and broadcast minute by minute of this horrible virus. Our faith is in He who made all things and Who holds us in the palm of His hand. I know that many churches were empty while dedicated preachers and musicians shared worship through live-streaming. The truth is, the church buildings were empty, not the Church! We are the Church, and we are filled with God's Holy Spirit. And no one nor no thing can empty us of that divine presence in us!
Okay, the Gospel writer of John was, in some places, a bit long-winded. He did that to us last week in the story of the Samaritan woman and again today in this powerful story. Please don't let the length of this story stop you from enjoying all of what God is trying to share with you through this story. Every part is important. I felt sorry for the sign interpreter where I was to preach yesterday, because she was, rightly so, concerned about the length. I was worried about her hand muscles and all she would have to do for sharing the gospel in that way. She was spared. Let us get back to our story. It's one that perhaps you have read or heard preached. The title for the devotional is my favorite verse in the chapter because it sums up the power of Jesus in that one verse. Let us make our way to it.
One can only imagine the burden in those days for a man born blind. The cause of blindness was not fully understood by anyone and it becomes easy for the disciples to buy into a common misconception that any illness was caused by sin. And the sin, it was thought, was one that could have been done by someone related to the person with the disability. So, the question raised by them to Jesus was, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus tells them that it was neither the man nor the woman who sinned; he adds, "he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him." He also shares that He is the "light of the world," at which point He spits on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man's eyes, instructing him to go and wash in the pool of Siloam. This he does and returns able to see. This causes quite a stir in that small community. Needless to say, no one believes that he is the same one who can now see. They finally ask him and he says, "I am the man." How in the world then can you see? The man explains the simple thing Jesus did, and they want to know where they can find Jesus. These so-called "friends" take the man to the Pharisees, who pounce on the reality that this healing took place on a Sabbath. That was enough for them to say that Jesus could not be from God because He did not respect the keeping of the Sabbath. Some did not buy this; if He is a sinner, how can He do these miracles? The now able to see man is asked who they thought Jesus was, and he simply said, "a prophet." The parents are dragged into the legal dispute as well, being asked if they were sure he was born blind. Their response, "We know this is our son, and that he was born blind; but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes." Then the classic, "Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself." They knew the Pharisees were ruthless, and they did not want to risk being expelled from the synagogue. The Pharisees demand to know about Jesus; "Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner." The young man answered, "I do not now whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see." They demand, again, how did He do this? The man further rebuked them for their lack of faith. (Re-read verses 30-34). The Pharisees drove the man out of the synagogue. Jesus comforts the man by asking if he believes in the Son of Man, and the man asks, "And who is He, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in Him." Jesus replies it is He, and the man believes and worships Him. To the Pharisees he informs him of His purpose and how they remain in their sin.
It becomes easy to lose sight of sin. In this passage the basic message was that Jesus can open the eyes of the blind. The only one in this story who understood most of what was happening was the blind man. He knew for all those years what it meant to be blind. And then, what it meant to encounter Jesus who brought him sight. He then learned what it was like to go from being blind to being fully sighted. He learned that not everyone celebrates miracles that upsets their daily expectations of others. He learned of the hatred and meanness of the Pharisees when they hear of this miracle taking place on a Sabbath. He learns what it means to have your parents afraid for something they had nothing to do with. But, the most important thing he learned is that the same man who gave him sight, gave him life. Do you find yourself somewhere in this story? Which character or situation do you find you're closer to? Are you aware of your sin? John as he wrote this story knew its power and importance and so uses the verses that he shared so that we would not miss out on what Jesus still offers to us.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, this is a serious time in our world. There is fear, uncertainty, panic, and sadness about this mysterious virus. Remind us and lead us to be more cautious and compassionate. May we place our complete trust in You and we pray that You guide those working on a cure or vaccine to be blessed so that that blessing be passed on to those in greatest need. Please bless our families, our friends, our enemies and all who need You now. We pray that we might receive sight to see our faults and sins and to let Jesus remove them from our lives. And it is in His name that we pray, amen.
Friends, the CDC (The Center for Disease Control) last night issued a recommendation that gatherings of more than 50 people not be allowed to meet for the next eight weeks. This directly affects our churches, and thinking practically about it, that's two months that most churches will go without offerings and tithes to be shared. I would lovingly urge you to consider sending your regular tithe and offering by mail to your local church every week or in the manner in which you are accustomed. This still counts as worship on your part and it ensures that our churches will remain financially strong to respond to the many needs it faces during this time.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord. Love others from a distance, but still show love in powerful ways!
Receive my blessings of peace and love,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
