Saturday, August 16, 2008

The healing of the man born blind

Part I
John 9:1-5
1 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.
2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"
3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.
4 I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.
5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
Hidden in this passage is a picture of the salvation of man. A man born blind sees darkness from birth. He is in this darkness from birth. David says that he was already a sinner at the point of his conception.
Psalm 51:5 (NIV)
5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Every man is born in this state of darkness not because he sinned nor because his parents sinned, but because of Adam's sin.
Romans 5:18
18 Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life.
But Jesus is the "light of the world" (verse 5). He brings man out of this darkness into His light. He opens our blind spiritual eyes.
1 Peter 2:9
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;


John 9:39
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."


Part II

But why was this man born blind? So that "the work of God might be displayed in his life" (NIV). What is the "work of God"? Salvation!
John 6:29
29 Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."
Everyone is born (albeit in sin) for this purpose of God -- to be gloriously saved. That is God's will. You were born that you may be saved, that God may be shown in your life!


Part III
John 9:6-7
6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.
7 And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.
At creation, man was plunged into blindness and darkness (mud on the eyes) through Adam's sin. This Adamic sin and blindness can only be washed off at the pool of "Sent", implying the washing away of our sins by Jesus, who is sent by God (verse 4), through His Word and shed blood, so that we can come home seeing.
John 9:4
4 I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.

Ephesians 5:25,26
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,
26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,

Titus 3:5
5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

1 John 1:7

7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.


Part IV
John 9:8-9
8 Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"
9 Some said, "This is he." Others said, "He is like him." He said, "I am he."
Your friends and relatives may not recognise you after you are born again because it is a new you!
2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.


Part V

The blind man who was healed didn't know who Jesus was. In verse 36, he says, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?"

This tells us that salvation is truly a grace gift. Jesus did not save us because we knew who He was. In fact, He saved us while we were yet sinners.
Romans 5:8
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
But our knowledge of Jesus after our new birth will increase. The healed man's confession of Jesus progresses from "a man called Jesus" (verse 11) to "He is a prophet" (verse 17) to "If this man were not from God, He could do nothing" (verse 33) to "Lord, I believe" (verse 38).
2 Peter 3:18
18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.


Part VI
John 9:16,24,28,29
16 Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them.
24 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."
28 Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples.
29 We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from."
The religious who are concerned with laws, customs and works will question and doubt the simplicity -- salvation apart from the law (Jesus healed the blind man on the Sabbath) -- of your salvation. They also seem to focus on sin and who is a sinner. They are sin-conscious and not Son-conscious.



Part VII
John 9:32
32 Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.
Salvation is the unique work of Jesus. No one else can save man.
Acts 4:12
12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."


Part VIII
John 9:34
34 They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" And they cast him out.
The Pharisees scolded the man for lecturing them. And yes, we were all sinners at conception.
Psalm 51:5 (NIV)
5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
But now that we are made the righteousness of God in Christ (our righteousness is from Jesus), we can "lecture" those who question our righteousness in Christ!
Isaiah 54:17
17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is from Me," says the LORD.

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