Sight for the Blind

So John chapter 9 verses 1 to 8 and then verses 24 to 41

John 9:1–8

As he passed by

He saw a man blind from birth and

His disciples asked him Rabbi who sinned

This man or his parents that he was born blind and Jesus answered

It was not that this man sinned or his parents

But that the works of God might be displayed in him

We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day night is coming when no one can work as

Long as I am in the world

I am the light of the world

And having said these things he spat on the ground and he made mud with the saliva

And then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud and he said to him go wash in the pool of Siloam

Which means sent

So he went and washed and he came back seeing and the neighbors and those who had sent him before

Seen him before as a beggar were saying is this not the man who used to sit and beg?

in the verse 24

So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him give glory to God

We know that this man is a sinner

He answered

Whether he's a sinner I do not know one thing I do know that though. I was blind now. I see

They said to him what did he do to you?

How did he open your eyes and he answered them?

I've told you already and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again?

Do you also want to become his disciples?

And they reviled him saying you are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses

We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from

The man answered why this is an amazing thing. You do not know where he comes from and yet he opened my eyes

We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will God listens to him

Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind

If this man were not from God, he could do nothing

They answered him you were born in Utterson and would you teach us and they cast him out?

Jesus heard that they had cast him out and having found him. He said do you believe in the Son of man?

He answered and who is he sir that I may believe in him

Jesus said to him you have seen him and it is he who is speaking to you

He said Lord, I believe and he worshipped him Jesus said for judgment

I came into this world that those who do not see may see and that those who see may become blind

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. This is God's holy word

Tonight we are looking at the story of Jesus healing the blind man and John 9

The man born blind I think is someone even if we've read this for the first time someone that we

Instinctively cheer for Jesus heals him off his blindness

He comes back from washing his face in the pool and then almost the whole chapter from then on is filled with him being interrogated

by his neighbors by the Jews by the Pharisees and we didn't read it but his parents are

off-scared hiding and as the audience we just read it we're watching it all go down the elite

you know they back him into a corner and he just shrugs his shoulders speaks his mind

and it's a pretty lively guy and

I you know we I think we call them comebacks today if someone's having a go at you you've got a quick way to reply

And either they leave you alone or they get more wound up and the man born blind is full of comebacks and he carries the story

Through this interrogation which gets more and more intense

until the very end when Jesus returns and speaks to the man and the Pharisees and it's when Jesus returns right at the end of the story

and he says something absolutely central

to why we celebrate Christmas

to why we celebrate Christmas

this huge discussion takes up the whole chapter and that the very end Jesus comes back and he says this is why I came

this is why I came you know I think we work out

quite quickly in the story is that physical blindness has very little to do with the story at all

we do have it we do have this blind man

but blindness isn't really seen in him it's seen in the Pharisees

the problem is not a tall physical blindness

but spiritual blindness

that becomes clearer and clearer until eventually Jesus returns at the end of the story and he says this in verse 39

for judgment I came into this world

that those who do not see may see

and those who see may become blind

why was Jesus born why do we celebrate Christmas

because he came so that those who do not see may see

he came to give sight to the blind

so we have three main ideas to think about tonight in relation to that

Jesus was born to give sight to the blind

just three things to think about

firstly something about suffering and judgment

two huge ideas and the book end this chapter

in verses 2 and 3 the disciples ask if it was specifically because of this man's sin

that he was born blind and Jesus says no no not at all

it was so that the works of God might be done in him

this chapter raises a lot of questions about suffering

too many to ask an answer tonight

one takeaway when Jesus says that

is the fact that God values human life very very highly

here you've got this man born blind

which in his day meant complete separation from the rest of society

there's no cure there's no relief whatsoever

and it puts you in the margins in a way that it doesn't really today

or not as much at least

Jesus in another scene he's at a feast and he tells his host that

he shouldn't be inviting just the rich and the prominent people

but he should be inviting the poor the crippled and the blind

blindness was so common and so serious that you were marginalized by your society

and the only choice for many like for this blind man in verse 8

is to sit at the side of the street and beg

and not only that but the people think he deserves it

the religious view of the day was that

specific sin will absolutely lead to specific suffering

if you do this then you will suffer in this way

the disciples wonder just maybe if it's because of this man's sin

that he was born blind did he somehow sin in the womb

and that's why he's born with this condition did his parents do something

and he's been punished for it ever since

they're only wondering that the Pharisees come on the scene in verse 34

and say you were steeped in sin from birth

that's the cultural view you've got a man who's cut off from the rest of society

and society looks at him and says you deserve it

you deserve it

Jesus is leaving the temple

he sees him he goes to him and he says no that's not the case at all

but it's so that the works of God might be displayed

and when he's saying that one thing he is saying is that human life is valuable

this man is valuable he might have been born blind

he might be on the side of a street begging the people might think he deserves it

but what does God say what does Jesus say his life as a purpose

his life is valuable

and you know God looks at you

and he says that your life is valuable

we've been thinking about that recently in the mornings looking at creation in Genesis 1 and 2

it's not your ability to reason and work and plan for the future

that makes your life valuable

it's not any of that that gives life value

life is valuable because God thought and knew you and created you

God says that much to Jeremiah

before I formed you in the womb I knew you

life is valuable because the one God father son and spirit spoke about you before time

he loved humanity he loved you before you even made Robert Jensen

he's an American theologian or he was and he helps us picture this when he says that

we exist because before time God spoke about us

I exist and you exist because God spoke to himself about us

and called us valuable is it suffering that determines the value of this blind man's life

no life is valuable your life is valuable because God says it is

because God the maker of the universe loves the people that he has made

at the same time Jesus comes in verse 39 and says that he came for judgment

what does he mean?

alarm bells should be ringing if you've read the rest of John's Gospel

in John chapter 3 Jesus says I did not come for judgment

John 3 · chapter mention

and here he says for judgment I came

Jesus did not come to judge specifically he didn't come to point the finger

but he enters into history and becomes one of us and begins to tell the world

he begins to tell us that there is something wrong with our hearts

he tells us that we're blind and he has stepped into humanity to make it right

and humanity is divided that's what judgment means

Jesus came to show what life is meant to be and humans have said ever since that day

that they're either compelled by him or against him

history is divided God values and loves every person that he has made

he knew us before time began he sent his son to fix our blindness and we are divided

we don't want to be told that we are blind so secondly

see here our spiritual blindness the point of this chapter

what does it mean that we are blind? Jesus says he came to give sight to the blind

what about that has been causing division ever since he said it

the Bible speaks about sight and it doesn't always mean physical sight

very often it doesn't mean physical sight and nor do we

this past week Spotify Wrapped came out

something that we all look forward to at this time of the year now it's become a bit of a tradition

Spotify will keep track of the artists, the albums, the genres that you listen to

for the whole year and then at the end of the year it will create this remontage

and it will tell you all about your listening habits

and well we listen to music based on how we feel

we listen to music based on what we're going through

and it can be a bit surprising maybe for some of us when Spotify says

you listen to this one song hundreds of times

you were in the top 0.5% of listeners for this one album or for this one band or singer

or that July was your synth pop phase and October was your classical concert phase

you're surprised at first maybe and then you think about it and you say

oh I see, I understand, it makes sense, that's how I was feeling at that time in the year

six months ago that's why I listened to that type of music so much

I see, well you don't see anything but you realize you understand why for me I understand

or I understood the way I was feeling or thinking six months ago

and you say I see now, I understand what has been true of me this past year

the Bible speaks of sight in the same way very often

and when it speaks about sight as knowledge it speaks about spiritual sight

and it says we don't have it as the theme all the way through the Bible

we don't have spiritual sight but we are spiritually blind

what is spiritual blindness?

what does it mean to be spiritually blind?

it means to not see, to not know, it means to be blind to the seriousness of your sin on one hand

and at the same time be blind to the fact that you need someone to save you from it

Cody mentioned this morning that he'd been trying to find a clear definition for boredom

and what it means and I had been doing something similar with spirituality

there is a rise in spirituality, more and more people today say that they are spiritual

but it comes with a lot of questions, what does that mean to be spiritual?

people say many different things, is it religious?

is it not religious?

am I a body with a soul?

am I a soul with a body?

one theme or idea from what I find out, one theme or idea that runs through every definition

is the idea of turning inward and seeking the depths of your existence

and finding ways to help you understand your existence more and more

you can go on Google Maps and type in spirituality into the limits of Edinburgh

and you find crystal shops and palm readers and meditation centers all over the sea

you can buy or experience something that's going to tell you more about your inner self

Paul in his second letter to the Corinthians says that spirituality is not firstly about growing in yourself

or loving yourself or healing yourself

not in any way, in chapter 4 of 2 Corinthians he says firstly that spirituality is about knowing the gospel of the glory of Christ

spirituality is about knowing and seeing what God has said in the gospel about who you are

and more importantly who he is

spiritual blindness is not knowing what has always been true of us

we are far worse sinners than we think we are

we are not as good as we think we are

we are broken and on top of that we need to be saved

so look at how that's seen in this chapter

Jesus heals this man of his physical blindness

we didn't read the middle of the chapter but the man's neighbors are sure that this can't be the same man

is this really the man that was blind that we knew?

yes it's me he says

how do you see them? this man Jesus he healed me

and then the pharisees appear

did this man Jesus really heal you on the Sabbath?

he must be a sinner what did he do to you?

I've told you already you want to hear that again?

you want to become his disciples? no no we are disciples of Moses

well if this man wasn't from God he wouldn't have been able to do it

how dare you they say

how dare you

you were born in utter sin and would you teach us?

what is spiritual sin here?

or spiritual blindness here

it's to ask why Jesus healed him on the Sabbath

it's to claim to be disciples of Moses

it's to say that this man is a sinner and you are not

in other words it's to think that you're better or safer than you are

Tim Keller on this chapter he says it's a question of pride

and you see that in the pharisees they obey the Sabbath

they are disciples of Moses they obey the law they live well

they're not a sinner like this man clearly is he was born blind

they think they're better than they are

spiritual blindness is not just knowing that you're a sinner

you're a sinner or that you sin

and leaving it out of that

we can acknowledge all of us can acknowledge that we sin

we talk behind each other's backs we lie we put people down

we make out that we are better than other people

the list goes on we know that we act in a way

that strikes the conscience that says man I shouldn't have said that

I shouldn't have done that

we all do that

spiritual blindness is understanding that and not seeing that you need to be saved from it

spiritual blindness is the pride of the pharisees to believe that you are better than you are

and to believe that you don't need to be saved

do you see the importance of coming tonight and saying very simply

I am a sinner

I have put my hands up to God and said no thank you

I have run away from him and no amount of being good is going to fix that

however hard I tried to convince myself

Jesus came so that you would see who you really are

he came to tell you you are blind you are not as good as you think you are

and actually you need grace

that's what spiritual sight is to see who you are apart from God

and know that you need grace

Jesus was born to tell you that

so lastly see Jesus in this chapter who seeks out the spiritually blind

God highly values the people he has made

we reject him in our spiritual blindness

and yet Jesus was born and he came to seek out the blind

Jesus we have already made clear

he said that this man's suffering is not specifically because of this man's sin

in a more general sense it is the result of living in a fallen world

things not being as they should be

he is not blind as a consequence of something he has done

he is blind simply because he and everyone else around him

and everyone that has ever existed apart from Jesus is a sinner

he is suffering in a fallen world and that is clear the more we read into this chapter

the man he doesn't know who Jesus is

the Pharisees say in verse 24 give glory to God

in other words whatever you say next better be the truth

we know this man was a sinner

and he says I don't know

I don't know if he is a sinner or not

the man born blind on his own he doesn't know what to say

he doesn't go after Jesus

what is the significance of Jesus being the one who finds the man

at the end of the story

at the start it makes sense that the man can't see

of course Jesus approaches him

but why at the end does John make the point of saying that Jesus finds him

in verse 35

it is just to say that spiritual blindness

can only be turned to spiritual sight

because Jesus is the one who comes after us

spiritual blindness is not knowing how damaging our sin is not understanding

that we need to be saved from it

and Jesus is the one who comes and opens our eyes

he says here is what has always been true about you

what is the significance of Jesus

seeking out the blind man

seeking out the spiritually blind

you can never know him if he didn't do it

at the start of the chapter Jesus calls himself

the light of the world

and when he is saying that he is just repeating and summing up what he has been saying

for the past three chapters in John

in chapter 8 he speaks to the crowd and he says

I am the light of the world whoever follows me will not walk in darkness

but will have the light of life

darkness, spiritual blindness

is healed

because the light stepped into the darkness

not because we reach our hand out of the darkness

life as it was meant to be

a relationship experiencing the grace of God now

and in eternity the light of life he calls it

can only be known because he stepped into the darkness

why do we put Christmas lights up

at this time in the year some of us far too early I think

why do we put Christmas lights up

because we know that we need light in the darkness

inside ourselves

we know there is something in us that says we need light to shine in the darkness

how can you receive spiritual sight

how can your blindness be healed

because the light stepped into the darkness

and became a man

and because he fell every part of that darkness

when he hung on the cross

Mark in his gospel says this about Jesus' death

and when the sick thawed had come

there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour

and Jesus cried out

my God, my God, why have you forsaken me

Jesus seeks the same thing

Jesus seeks the spiritually blind

we are given sight

we are given life as it is meant to be

not by reaching out

but because the Son experienced such darkness for us

that he had to ask his own Father

why have you forsaken me

the blind are found

we are found because Jesus came into the darkness

and experienced every part of it for us

God loves His creation

He values it far more than we know

we reject Him because we are spiritually blind

and yet Jesus came to give sight to the blind

He stepped into the darkness

and experienced it himself

what can you do

what can you do

what can you do

Jesus asks one thing to this man at the end

do you believe in the Son of Man

do you believe that the God of Heaven who you can never reach

came down and was born to suffer

so that you would see

that's what Jesus is asking

He calls himself the Son of Man

do you believe that

the blind man gives the right response

Lord, I believe

and He worshiped him

Jesus needs to be the object of your faith

if you're going to have life as it's meant to be

if you're going to see life as it's meant to be

we're going to sing in a minute

I think we've sung it before

but it's all about Jesus' life

from his birth to his death

and it says this about him on the cross

he fights for breath, he fights for me

losing sinners from the claims of hell

and with a shout, our souls are free

death defeated by Emmanuel

our souls are freed

we see life as it is meant to be

when we say with the blind man, I believe

just to end

one more thing to know in this chapter

each time the blind man speaks to Jesus

he gives him a different title

so in verse 11 he's getting asked about Jesus

and he calls him a man

then in verse 17

they ask why he thinks about Jesus

and he calls him a prophet

and in verse 35 when he's speaking to Jesus

he calls him sir and then finally

he can say nothing but Lord

he calls him Lord

and when he moves from man to prophet to sir to lord

these titles are becoming more and more reverent

more and more honourable

it seems that his insight into who Jesus is

is growing and growing and growing

his affection for Jesus

is growing in these moments

and at the same time

the Pharisees become more and more stuck

in their unbelief

they go from questioning Jesus

and disagreeing with each other

to finally telling this blind man

he's completely wrong and they throw him out

Jesus came to give sight to the blind

that's divisive in this story

and it's divisive tonight

do you believe

and if you do

is your affection growing

like the blind man moving from man to prophet

to sir to lord

are you approaching Christmas

with a growing love for Jesus

are you approaching Christmas

with a growing love for the one

who stepped into the darkness

who rose again

and who now intercedes and prays for you

every day

for your sight to grow

let's pray

Lord we thank you for

the story of you healing this man born blind

and Lord we pray

that in our own hearts tonight

we would reckon with ourselves

do we believe that the son of God came

and was born to give us sight

and if we do believe that

is our love, is our affection

growing more and more

we pray that it will

and we ask these things in Jesus' name

Amen