Focal Passage: John 9:1-11; 30-33
Many people have eye diseases, but only about 4 out of every 10,000 are born blind. Today’s study from John chapter 9 tells about one such rare individual. He became even more rare by being healed of congenital blindness. His story was the sixth of seven ‘sign-miracles’ that the Apostle John selected in his Gospel to prove Jesus’ deity and authority.
In our focal passage, John 9:1-11, 30-33, the Apostle introduces several persons who illustrate four ‘categories of seeing:’
1. A Sighted One Who Could See ‘Beyond,’ Verse 1: “As Jesus was passing by, He saw a man who was blind. Jesus saw this man like no one else had ever seen him. Aren’t you glad Jesus saw you and me like we’d be — AFTER His miracle work in us?
2. A Blind One Who Had Never Seen, Verse 1: “…blind from birth.” He never saw his mother’s face, a sunrise or sunset, a blue sky or starry night. Our hearts go out to anyone who’s never seen ‘what a wonderful world.’
3. Sighted Ones Who Were Spiritually Blind, Verses 2-10. Notice:
• The DISCIPLES, Verses 2-3: “Rabbi, who sinned….?” They were blinded by tradition. Most people in that day thought that any trouble someone faced was in proportion to their wrongdoing. (Remember Job’s friends.) The disciples thought, “somebody surely messed up, for this man to be in such a condition.” People still think like that today, don’t they?
Mike Dawson
Renowned scholar Dr. G. Campbell Morgan maintained that the punctuation in Jesus’ answer to His disciples might be different from the accepted rendering. Dr. Morgan suggests a period — and a comma — change: “Neither did this man sin, nor his parents. But that the works of God should be manifested in him, we must work the works of Him who sent Me…” A very unusual interpretation, but it’s worth pondering.
• The WORLD, Verses 4-5: “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
The world is blinded by darkness itself. In Columbia where I live, this is Mule Day weekend. I’ve heard that mules who work in dark Kentucky mine shafts every day are brought out into the light each Sunday — to prevent them from going blind. On Sundays are we shining The Light of the World to those living in darkness?
• The NEIGHBORS, Verses 8-11: The neighbors were all sighted persons, but their questions revealed their blindness: “Isn’t this the man…?” They were blinded by familiarity.
“How were your eyes opened?” They were also blinded by skepticism.
• The PHARISEES, Verse 30: “This is an amazing thing,” the man told THEM.” The religious leaders were blinded by an unwillingness to see. The old saying is true: “There are none so blind as those who will not see.” (See Jeremiah 5:21.)
4. One Born Blind Who Could Now See ‘Beyond,’ Verses 6-7; 30-33: John had told the miracle story very simply, “He went and washed, and came back seeing.”
But in the rest of the story, this man reveals a depth of understanding that saw beyond the healing. Look at his spiritual perception of who Jesus was. Verses 30-33: he saw Jesus as “marvelous … One who was NOT a sinner … but was the miracle-working Man from God!”B&R — Dawson is pastor emeritus at First Baptist Church, Columbia, and has served as transitional interim pastor at numerous churches across the state since his retirement from full-time ministry.
