The Gospel of John | Blind from Birth – John 9:1-41
Jesus makes those who were blind to see, physically and spiritually, as witnesses to His glory.
At first glance, John 9 seems to be about a story of a man, blind from birth, whom Jesus heals. We see the struggle of a man who had not been able to see from birth and people questioning whether it was sin or something else that caused this man to be blind. While we should not overlook this central to the story, there is more to this story that the simple healing of physical blindness. Jesus had been teaching and gaining authority and popularity among the people of Israel. Even when He actively challenged the people who believed His message, many still came to hear the teaching of Jesus as He proclaimed Himself the Messiah who would save humanity. The Pharisees, threatened by the authority He claimed and His growing popularity, had been called into question as to where their authority stemmed and whether they in fact actually followed God. So, seeing the blind man, Jesus spit into the dirt to create mud and rubbed the mud on the eyes of the blind man, sending him to was in the Pool of Siloam, which means Sent. When the man returned, his sight had been restored and the only cause was Jesus Christ. News of this quickly spread throughout the region and the Pharisees were enraged. Immediately, they sought to discredit Jesus by calling the miracle itself into question. Furthermore, anyone who sympathized with Jesus would be removed from synagogue, which, at the time, served as the connection with the community from their ability to congregate together to other’s willingness to engage in transactions with them. There the problem stood for the blind man. In order to talk about the miracle that had occurred, he would need to willingly align himself with the one the Pharisees sought to destroy.
The miracle of the blind man gaining sight is just the beginning though. Through this, Jesus would teach the people about more than mere physical blindness but spiritual blindness. As they asked to what extent this all had been due to sin, Jesus’ answer showed them something different. This man’s life would be to glory God and show the Gospel to the world. Thus, it was no coincidence that he washed in the Pool of the Sent as his life was one sent by God for the glory of God. The Pharisees would openly look to discredit the miracle as anything other than what it was, but they would not be able to discredit the story of the man. Ultimately, the story of Jesus healing the blind man reiterates our profound need of a Savior and a Messiah. We were spiritually in darkness and only when we cry out to Jesus will we receive the healing and restoration we need and all for His glory.
A Challenged Worldview
When the claim that the blind man can see gets brought to the attention of the Pharisees, their first move looks to discredit the miracle from having actually occurred. They attempted to discredit the validity of the healing by attacking the source of Jesus’ miraculous power. Ultimately, the claimed that since the healing occurred on the Sabbath and was a technical act of work, that the healing could not have originated form God. The Pharisees sought to force the rules and regulations they themselves created onto Jesus rather than submitting to the word of God. As the man told the story and gave the testimony of his healing, the Pharisees then sought to discredit the man himself. Calling his parents in, they chased the absurd notion that the man had not truly been blind since birth but merely had been faking the blindness in order to promote Jesus. The parents, fearing the repercussion of supporting Jesus, simply told the Pharisees to talk to the man. While the man was their child, he still could speak for himself and knew the details of the healing more than others.
The Pharisees sought to fit Jesus into their preexisting worldview to the detriment of the truth and evidence that stood right before them. In their searching for the truth, they ignored the truth right in front of them simply because they didn’t like the answer. As followers of Jesus, we often times read our bible or attempt to interpret the words of God according to our own desires and our own worldview. Jesus, as the way, the truth, and the life, defines our worldview as the author and perfecto of all creation. Experiencing the miracles and blessings of God come on the terms that God defines. Jesus, being fully Lord, defines truth, healing, and every aspect of our lives and we must be willing to submit to His word above our own thoughts. Everyone will be confronted with aspects of the faith they will find challenging or difficult. Coming out of our spiritual blindness means recognizing our spiritual blindness to begin with. We challenge our own personal worldview with the truth and light that comes from Jesus Christ.
- What does the Pharisees response to the healing of the blind man tell you about their motives?
The Power of Witness
The Pharisees called the second man in one additional time to question him about the supposed healing that took place, fully unsatisfied with the answer they received. The Pharisees appealed to their standard of understanding the Mosaic covenant, the Torah, and their status as having studying the word of God more than most. Thus, they made the appeal that the man should be able to appeal to that same standard of holiness. They challenged the man and his integrity by calling in to question his story. Yet, the man simply appealed to the authority of Jesus. They understood that God only listens to those who are righteous and that if Jesus healed him, then Jesus would be righteous enough to perform the miracle. For all the ways in which the man lacked theological training and depth, he understood the simplicity of his story. “He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” (John 9:25 ESV) The man and the Pharisees could have debated the authenticity of the miracle but the man could not deny the truth; once he was blind but now he saw.
The most compelling evidence and witness we have to offer comes, not from our ability to be theologically accurate, but simply to tell our story. Learning theology and studying the word of God are vital parts of theology, but our best witnesses will be to simply tell the story of God’s intervention in our life. Theology can be debated. Thoughts can be challenged. Our story, though, cannot be so easily dismissed by those around us. When we come to Christ, we experience a transformation where the old dies and the new comes alive. A spiritual rebirth occurs where we shed the blindness we once held and our eyes are opened to the truth of Jesus Christ. In the previous chapter, Jesus describe Himself as the True Light by which everything else is seen. Now, being able to see, we bear witness to the person of Jesus Christ. All of us at one point, felt we were fine in our sin, then, by the grace of God, we realized our blindness. Coming to Jesus, He heals our blindness so we can be with Him, forever.
- As the Pharisees questioned the man, what reasons and defense did he give for whether Jesus was sinful or not?
The Issues of Blindness
Throughout this narrative, the issue of blindness runs rampant. We stand in awe of the miracle of the man being made to see and scoff at the arrogance of the Pharisees who refuse to understand and submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. While, at first glance, the story seems to be one about God healing a physically blind man, the bigger issue is the one of spiritual blindness. “Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” 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 ESV) The issue of blindness runs deeper than our eyes being able to see but originates in our heart. The Pharisees experienced a blindness that they did not know they had. They had become blind to their spiritual condition of pride. While their outward behavior had shown to be good, their hearts remained far from God. They rested on the laurels of their own righteousness and stayed in their blindness in the process. To them, as the leaders of the people and of the temple, they did not realize they needed a savior. For them, their vision was fine where they needed the healing of Jesus to open their eyes to their spiritual condition.
Just as we cannot come to healing until we understand our blindness, we cannot come to righteousness unless we first realize we are in an unrighteousness state. Apart from God, the true light, exists in a state of spiritual blindness. No one can see the truth on their own and resting on their own ability and understanding of God will not produce the righteousness necessary for salvation. For those who don’t know Jesus Christ, they may think they can see, but the miss the truth and light of the world to bring people from death to life. We need to understand our need for sight as we come to Jesus asking Him to heal us of our spiritual condition. Sin keeps mankind blind, but the grace of God removes the sin from our lives and restores us to wholeness with Him. We must be willing to acknowledge our sin as we approach Jesus Christ in order to reach wholeness as those who are sent by Jesus Christ for the glory of God.
- What does it mean to be spiritually blind? Where have you seen this in your life?
Discussion Questions
- Why do you think the Pharisees resisting validating the miracles? What did they have to lose or gain if they did so?
- When have you confronted your own spiritual worldview with the truth that comes from God? Why is it important to challenge this process?
- How does our spiritual blindness affected the way we view the world? What comes from being healed of our spiritual blindness?
- What areas of your life do you keep in willful blindness? What is preventing you from bringing them to the Lord now?
- Why should we continue to tell our story to those around us of how we have been saved by Jesus Christ? What strength is there in our testimony?
