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The Healing of the Blind Man: A Deeper Truth 0:11 Good morning. Welcome to Stand on the Word. Thanks for joining me this morning as we turn to John chapter 9. How can a blind man see and seeing men be made blind? Verse0:22 39, and Jesus said, for judgment, I have come into this world that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind. Now in chapter 9, John0:34 records 1 of the 7 signs, that, he highlights in his gospel. Remember, he only highlights 7 of the miracles that Jesus did. And this 1 is the healing of the man who was born0:45 blind. The entire chapter centers around this 1 miracle, which John uses as a basis for revealing a deeper spiritual truth here about seeing and0:57 believing. And it's consistent as we've talked about before with John's theological focus in his gospel. Verse 1. Now as Jesus passed by, he saw a man who was1:09 blind from birth. And his disciples asked him saying, rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind? And I wanna focus on this question that the disciples asked Jesus, which1:21 was essentially why. Why was this man blind? Now just an interesting note on this healing. This is 1 of, if not the only recorded healing of a specific1:32 congenital condition. He was blind from birth. Now who sinned that brought about this blindness? That's what the disciples were asking. Now this question acknowledges an1:44 understanding that sin often has consequences in this life, and they're often physical in nature. Verse 3, Jesus answered, neither this man nor his parents sin,1:57 but that the works of God should be revealed in him. Now Jesus' answer was this, there was no sin. This was for the glory of God to be seen in the healing of this man. Now this may2:08 be really hard for us to accept, you know, for several years. We don't know for how many, but however old this guy was, he was an adult. This man could not see. More important than this man's sight,2:20 and I don't say this lightly for I can only imagine what it would be like to not have the ability to see, but greater than this man's ability to have sight was for the world2:32 to see the power of God at work in his life. You see, it's not about us. It is really about God and his glory. There are times when we don't understand the circumstances2:44 that are surrounding us, the things that we're going through, the things that we experience in this life. Could be health issues, could be relationship issues, or a host of other challenges that quite frankly we face in2:55 this fallen world. And and I think it is right for our first response to to look internally. Did did I do something? Did I make a choice that brought this about? Now let let3:07 me be clear. I'm not talking about God standing in heaven with a lightning bolt in hand, just waiting for someone to color outside the line so that he can zap them. That's not what we're talking about. There are natural3:19 consequences that flow from the choices that we make. The moral law of God. He he gives us in his word an understanding of if we want to3:31 prosper and and this, by the way, benefits both believers and unbelievers. Unbelievers who abide by the word of God are going to benefit by the truths of God because he's the 1 that made the universe. He's3:43 the 1 who set the law in place. He's set in the moral law of God, which is written on the hearts of men. It's there for a reason. So, you know, many young people, by the way, have have found their lives a3:55 wreck because they dishonored their parents and chose to do their things their own way despite what God said to honor parents and obey them. There are many people, in fact,4:07 based on the latest statistics, about a third of Americans suffering from sexually transmitted diseases to 1 degree or another because many, if not all, rejected God's guidance. Paul4:19 Paul's declaration that the wages of sin is death is not just spiritual death. Sin comes at a price even in this life, but that was not the case here. Okay?4:32 This man and his parents had done nothing to precipitate this condition. So let's continue reading. I want to, to point out a couple more aspects of this passage. Verse 4, I must work the works4:43 of him who sent me while it is day. The night is coming when no 1 can work. Now this is a fascinating statement. Alright? Jesus, his entire life in ministry was focused and it was intentional.4:57 And I think of when I read this, I thought of Moses. When Moses, pinned a Psalm in in Psalm 90, which was a prayer, he was asking God for help in, in in in understanding5:09 the shortness of this life. He said, verse 12 of Psalm 90, so teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Life is short. Time is passing.5:21 May we be like Jesus and not waste a single moment or an opportunity to serve God. Verse 5, as long as I'm in the world, I am the light of the world. When he had said these5:32 things, he spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And then he said, go wash in the pool of siloam, which is5:44 translated sent. So he went and washed and came back seeing. Therefore, the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, is this not the 1 who sat and begged? Some said,5:56 this is he. Others said, he is like him. He said, I am he. Therefore, they said to him, how were your eyes opened? He answered and said, a man called Jesus made clay and anointed my6:08 eyes and said to me, go to the pool of Siloam and wash. So I went and I washed and I received sight. Then they said to him, where is he? He said, I do not know. Now let me ask you a question.6:21 What restored the man's sight? Was it the clay? Was it the water from the pool that he washed in? It wasn't the method. As we see Jesus employing different6:33 methods in his various miracles. It was faith in the messenger, the 1 sent by God in Jesus. The man's obedience to go to the pool was6:45 an act of faith even though even though we see the progression of this man's faith and his understanding in this encounter with Jesus. Verse 13, they brought him who formerly was6:57 blind to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. I think we see a number of the miracles that were done on the Sabbath. In fact, there's 7 miracles Jesus did on the Sabbath, and7:08 I think it was intentional. It and it challenged the religious rituals that were being used by the religious leaders to keep people spiritually blind. The7:20 Sabbath, as Jesus said in Mark 2, we've looked at this, was made for man. Man was not made for the Sabbath. Verse 15. Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He7:32 said to them, he put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see. Therefore, some of the Pharisees says, this man is not from God because he does not keep the Sabbath. Others say, how can a7:44 man who is a sinner do such signs? And there was a division among them. They said to the blind man again, what do you say about him because he opened your eyes? He said he is a7:56 prophet. Now notice this progression. First, a man named Jesus, now he identifies him as a prophet. Verse 18. But the Jews did not believe concerning him that he had been blind8:07 and received his sight until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. And they asked them saying, is this your son who you say was born blind? How then does he now see? His parents answered them8:19 and said, we know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But by what means he now sees, we do not know, or who opened his eyes, we do not know. He is of age. Ask him.8:31 He will speak for himself. Look look at this. His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, the rulers. Again, remember I mentioned that last, before about John identifying the rulers8:43 as the Jews. For the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confess that he was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. He would get kicked out of the church, out of fellowship. Therefore, his parents said, he is8:53 of age, ask him. Unfortunately, the parents of this blind man were more fearful of the cancel crowd than they were thankful to the creator who healed their son of his9:04 blindness. Verse 24. So they called so they again called the man who was blind and said to him, give God the glory. We know that this man is a sinner. Look at this. I love this. He answered and said, whether he is a9:16 sinner or not, I do not know. 1 thing I know that though I was blind, now I see. You can't argue with the results of the9:28 the the touch of God. You know, you can't argue with a life that's been transformed by the truth of God's word. This account of a man who was blind from birth, given his sight by9:39 Jesus is a perfect illustration of each human being. Where we are spiritually, we're blind. We're lost. We're in darkness. But when Jesus comes into our life, he is the light9:51 of the world, and he opens our eyes, and we're able to see. The formerly blind man reveals that he gained more than his physical sight. Look at verse 30. Then the man answered and said10:03 to them, why? This is a marvelous thing that you do not know where he is from, yet he has opened my eyes. Now we know that God does not hear sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God10:15 and does his will, he hears him. Since the world began, it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of 1 who was born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.10:27 They answered and said to him, you were completely born in sins and you are teaching us, and they cast him out. Nothing will open the eyes of those who have determined10:39 in their hearts to reject the truth, to reject Jesus, to reject his word, and the evidence of his works. And I love how this ends. Look at verse 35. Jesus heard that they had cast him10:51 out. And when he had found him, he said to him, do you believe in the son of God? He answered and said, who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him? And Jesus said11:03 to him, you have both seen him, and it is he who is talking with you. Now notice that you have both seen him, and it is he who is talking with you. Then he said, Lord,11:15 I believe, and he worshiped him. So from a man from from the beginning, he called him he called him a man named Jesus. Then he went to he was a prophet. And then the progression11:27 brings him to the place that he calls him Lord, and he worships him. What a beautiful story of, of a man whose eyes were open. But, again, John minds much deeper11:39 than just the physical healing of this man and shows the progression of the spiritual sight that this man gained in the midst of a people who were blind. Father, we11:51 thank you for your word, and thank you for the the fact that Jesus is the light of the world. And, spiritually, as we were once in darkness, unable to see, our eyes are open12:03 when we come to the truth of the word of God and accept Jesus Christ as lord and savior. And so I pray, father, that if there are any whose eyes have not been open to that truth, that, lord, that their12:15 eyes would be open and they would see that Jesus is not just a name, not just a man, not just a good prophet, but he is Lord. And may they make him Lord and savior12:26 of their lives even this day. We thank you for your word and thank you for the Holy Spirit. For it's in his name we pray. Amen. Alright. Thanks for joining me this morning, and until next time, keep standing on the word.Invitation to Spiritual Growth 12:41 Today's study comes from the stand on the word bible reading plan available for free at frc dot org slash bible. By following along in just a few minutes a day, you12:53 can read through the entire Bible in just 2 years. Learn more and request the free reading guide at frc dot org slash bible.In this video 0:00 The Healing of the Blind Man: A Deeper Truth12:38 Invitation to Spiritual Growth94K followers
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