“As He was passing by, He saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples questioned Him: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him. 4 We must do the works of Him who sent Me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 After He said these things He spit on the ground, made some mud from the saliva, and spread the mud on his eyes. 7 “Go,” He told him, “wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So he left, washed, and came back seeing. 8 His neighbors and those who formerly had seen him as a beggar said, “Isn’t this the man who sat begging?” 9 Some said, “He’s the one.” “No,” others were saying, “but he looks like him.” He kept saying, “I’m the one!” 10 Therefore they asked him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So when I went and washed I received my sight.” 12 “Where is He?” they asked. “I don’t know,” he said.”
John 9:1-12
So as Jesus is secretly exiting the temple after having debated with the Pharisees (John 8:59), He sees a man who had been blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples believed, as did most Jews, that when bad things happened to people, it was because they had sinned or had done something wrong. So they asked about this blind man—who sinned? Him or his parents? Now, had the man become blind due to an accident or something, the situation may have been easier to understand, but realistically, in the broadest sense, they were asking why this helpless, innocent baby was born blind? Surely he hadn’t sinned in the womb! Was it because of a sin that he would commit in the future? Did his parents sin? WHY Lord? Jesus answered, “Neither”. Sin, outside of the broadest sense of the word (original sin and its consequences), Jesus was basically saying that sin had nothing to do with the man’s blindness. God’s purposes did.
Jesus goes on to explain that He has only so much time to work and that the disciples should join Him in that work while there was still Light.
He further explained that He IS that light! Jesus was going to do a HUGE miracle that day, and the man was created blind for THIS PARTICULAR DAY!
So, the blind guys still standing there and Jesus does something REALLY weird. Jesus, the Light of the world, the One Who created mankind, from the dust of the earth and breathed into him the Breathe of Life (Gen 2:7), knelt down, spat on the ground making mud, and placed the mud over the man’s blind eyes. He tells the man to go wash the mud off in a certain pool called Siloam.
Now I don’t know exactly when this creative miracle took place: maybe as the man had enough faith in Jesus to completely obey Him and make his way to the pool to wash off or was sight given when he washed off or at the moment that Jesus put mud over his eyes . . .but this I know—the Creator of Life, created NEW EYES that day! The Light of the world, brought Light to this blind guy!
There were also doubters that day! Some doubted that this actually WAS the same blind beggar whom they had passed each time they went to the temple. Some doubted that Jesus had actually healed him and that the whole thing was staged! As it became clear however, that this WAS the same guy—the guy who had begged by the temple, people again had a decision to make about Jesus: was He or was He not the Creator in skin? Was He or was He not a miracle worker?
Remember, sometimes our heartbreak in life are used by God to show Who He really is!
Who do you believe Jesus to be today?
Think about it!
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