BLINDING LIGHT
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Opening Prayer
I praise you, Lord; your purposes are always carried out and your plans for me are perfect.
Read JOHN 9:13–23
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
The Pharisees Investigate the Healing
13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a Sabbath. 15 Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied, “and I washed, and now I see.”
16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.”
But others asked, “How can a sinner perform such signs?” So they were divided.
17 Then they turned again to the blind man, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.”
The man replied, “He is a prophet.”
18 They still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man’s parents. 19 “Is this your son?” they asked. “Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?”
20 “We know he is our son,” the parents answered, “and we know he was born blind. 21 But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don’t know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself.” 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, who already had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23 That was why his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
‘… the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down.’1
We know the drill by now: when there is healing on the Sabbath, there is a vocal group that disapproves. In their role as religious compliance enforcers, the Pharisees interrogate various people to gather evidence against Jesus. Significantly, examining the same situation, they are at odds. Some are absorbed by the miracle and concede that it can only be done by a godly person. Strangely, they go quiet from now on. Others are fixated on a technical breach of the Sabbath law. They ignore the Old Testament consensus that a prophet is validated by the signs he performs. They interrogate the healed man about the facts and later, surprisingly, about his opinion. There is a sense of mayhem as they thrash around for alternative explanations and resort to accusations.
The light of truth can blind or give sight. While the seeing man engages with what has happened to him and, importantly, who has touched his life, his parents are intimidated by the threats and interrogation. They show little solidarity with their son. Any pleasure they had is consumed by fear and foreboding. The religious adversaries are bullies, closing their eyes to any possibility that God might actually be answering their oft-repeated prayers for salvation, thereby consigning themselves to darkness.
It is natural to distance ourselves from the villains in this story. We feel exasperated that they could be so prejudiced, so self-serving, so blind. Yet spiritual leadership can command great power. Sadly, determination to protect the faith against upstarts without the necessary credentials can lead to subtle or less-than-subtle abuses of clout and control. Defensiveness against criticism or challenge may blind us to God’s very presence.
Apply
Can you think of recent instances of the light of God’s truth blinding or giving sight? What happened?
Closing prayer
Holy Spirit, thank you for enabling me to see Jesus and receive life through him. Give me courage to share who he is with others so that they might see him too.
1 Ps 146:8
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