After being thrown out of the synagogue, the man that Jesus had healed was approached by Jesus.
click here for an online Bible John 9:35-41
Notice how Jesus approached the man. He didn’t say, “I’m sorry the Pharisees threw you out of the synagogue.” He said, “Do you believe?” Jesus was seeking believers. John explains why he wrote this gospel at the end of chapter 20, so that you can believe.
So what does it mean to believe? It means much more than just agreeing with a statement or a set of facts. Biblical belief is always associated with transformation. It means believing something to the extent that your life is changed. Jesus came with a life-changing message. When you say that you believe that message, then your life should be changed. If there is no life-change, then the belief doesn’t seem so believable. That is why belief is associated with terms like born again. Jesus also used phrases like, “follow me.” To believe in Jesus is to follow him – to be a disciple.
That is the reason for this blog and reading through the gospel of John, to grow as disciples. We are not just looking for information, we are seeking encounters with God in order to grow.
As I read today’s passage, I ask God to show me how this affects me. What transformation is he seeking in my life. I am struck by the difficulties faced by those who follow Jesus. The blind man was abused by the religious leaders. Following Jesus can be hazardous to your health. Expect problems. It is easy to fall into the expectation that God wants me to be healthy, wealthy, and successful. God wants me to be a believer, a follower of Christ, a disciple.
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4 comments:
I was about to type of something very similar but the Barnes commentary says concisely what I was still mulling over and composing in my mind:
Joh 9:41 -
If ye were blind - If you were really blind had had no opportunities of learning the truth. If you were truly ignorant, and were willing to confess it, and to come to me for instruction.
No sin - You would not be guilty. Sin is measured by the capacities or ability of people, and by their opportunities of knowing the truth. If people had no ability to do the will of God, they could incur no blame. If they have all proper ability, and no disposition, God holds them to be guilty. This passage teaches conclusively:
1. that people are not condemned for what they cannot do.
2. that the reason why they are condemned is that they are not disposed to receive the truth.
3. that pride and self-confidence are the sources of condemnation.
4. that if people are condemned, they, and not God, will be to blame.
We see - We have knowledge of the law of God. This they had pretended when they professed to understand the law respecting the Sabbath better than Jesus, and had condemned him for healing on that day.
Your sin remaineth - You are guilty, and your sin is unpardoned. People’s sins will always be unpardoned while they are proud, and self-sufficient, and confident of their own wisdom. If they will come with humble hearts and confess their ignorance, God will forgive, enlighten, and guide them in the path to heaven.
Chapter Nine is a lovable chapter of the book of John. I think it parallels quite nicely with the struggles of believers. I like how we have broken the chapter up, it makes it much easier to see that Christ came, left and comes back again. You see? The religious leaders are given another opportunity to believe, it is ironic that it is the religious leaders that are stagnant in their growth. The last statement of Christ is to provoke them to change, but they can't do it because they feel they have to win. Jesus says if you had come to me for your sight you would have been healed. It is very simple for them -- they have all of the law and the prophets, they just need to look at the scripture with a different vantage point. For them to come to Jesus for their sight would mean there conversion; the previous chapters must have been too complicated an exhortation: cometo Jesus for truth and freedom(chapter eight); cometo Jesus for rivers of living water(chapter seven); cometo Jesus for food(chapter six); cometo Jesus for water and healing(chapter four); come to Jesus for a bath or to be born again (chapter three); do whatever Jesus says (chapter two); simply come to Jesus (chapter one); ...
this reminds me of the loved baptist hymnal "Come to Jesus."
Be blessed,
EJ
This passage show the spiritually blind state of those without Christ. Pondering this, I wondered how this could be paralleled by believes who, at times, seem blind. At the risk of carrying an illustration too far, this is what came to my mind.
In the physical sense, no amount of light can help a truly blind person see. Spiritually, until God opens one’s eyes (draws them to Himself in Christ) they are blind. No amount of “light” will help. Once one is a believer and their eyes have been open, we have spiritual sight. However, just like in the physical world, a person with sight must still have light to see. In the spiritual sense, Christ is the light of the world. When I draw near to Him, I am in the light (have fellowship with Him, see His vision and direction, see sin and entanglements to avoid, etc.). However, I can distance myself from the light (being out of the Word and prayer, avoiding fellowship, choosing to sinful behaviors, etc) and visibility decrease. So, if thing are becoming unclear, maybe I need to get closer to the light.
JeffB<><
As I have grown in my walk with Christ, my approach has changed. I'm reminded of this when I look at the Pharisees reaction. They are looking for the Messiah to come and fit into their religious world. Their prayer might be something like, "I'm going to be working here...please come join me". I've prayed like that so much in my life. "Please show me your will for my life" or "I'm going to do this and if it is your will, then I know it will work out." God doesn't work that way and Jesus is trying to tell them that. He's not following along with them, he's working "over there" and saying you believe in me and you come join me. Not the other way around.
If we want to have an encounter with God, we need to purposefully have our eyes open to him and we need to pursue a right relationship with him. Then we need to ask him, "Show me where you are working and lead me there." It's not about God's will for my life, it's about how my life fits into God's will.
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