Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me. - Psalm 51:5
Today’s sermon is set in Jerusalem. Jesus and the disciples have journeyed there to observe the Feast of Booths, sometimes called the Feast of Tabernacles. This was 1 of the 3 annual pilgrimage feasts that took place in Israel. It began on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and lasted for 8 days. On our modern calendars, this feast occurs in late September or early October. Therefore, these events took place about 6 or 7 months before Jesus’ crucifixion.
Jesus sent His disciples ahead of Him and came to the feast by Himself, secretly. However, He soon made His presence known to all when He began teaching publicly in the temple. His claim to be the “I AM” infuriated the Pharisees so much that they intended to stone Him, but Jesus slipped out of the temple untouched (John 7-8).
The miracle or “sign” we’ll discuss in this morning’s message took place after Jesus left the temple. I’ve titled it “A Man Born Blind”. It is the 25th sermon of our series on “The Miracles of Jesus Christ”. This story is only recorded in the book of John. For the sake of this series, I am going to focus primarily on the miracle itself, but will briefly summarize the extended account of what happens immediately thereafter.
I. THE DISCIPLES' QUESTION (John 9:1-5)
Having departed the temple, Jesus passed by a man who’d been blind since birth. The apostles asked Jesus whose sin had caused him to be born blind - his or his parents? Jesus answered that it was neither of them, but rather so that the works of God might be manifested in him. Jesus then said, “We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
The disciples knew that this man had been blind since birth, which suggests that he was speaking openly about it. They asked Jesus whose sin had caused this to happen. In ancient times, it was a common belief that people’s suffering, sickness, and misfortune was a direct result of their own sin or that of their parents. This was the belief of Job’s friends in the Old Testament, who reasoned that Job must have sinned to cause such tragedy to befall him. But the truth is, it’s not that simple.
We live in a fallen world. Sin has tainted every aspect of it. When a person sins, the effects are far reaching and can last for generations. The sin of a single person can be harmful to thousands or even millions of people. While it is true that our own sinful choices or those of our parents can bring about negative consequences in our life, much of the suffering we face comes from sin in general - the fact that we live in a broken, corrupt, sin-sick world.
Jesus explained that this man’s condition afforded an opportunity for God’s work to be manifested in him. In this case, Jesus intended to heal this man that he and others might see the power of God on display and believe. In all cases of suffering, we can find the manifest work of God. Whether He chooses to physically heal or not, it is in His strength and by His presence that we endure and preserve. The brokenness of this world should point us to Jesus and our desperate need for Him rather than pulling us away.
Then Jesus expressed a sense of urgency to do the works of God “during the day” while there was still time left in his earthly ministry. He knew that His departure was only a few months away. He also communicated that we as His people need to reach the lost with urgency, because “the night is coming” when we’ll not be able to do so anymore.
II. THE MAN’S HEALING (John 9:6-7)
Jesus spit on the ground, made clay with the dirt and saliva, and rubbed it on the man’s eyes. He told the man to go wash his eyes in the Pool of Siloam and sent him away. The man went, washed, and returned now able to see clearly.
This is the 3rd miracle in which Jesus used spit, which was believed by many to have medicinal properties. Jesus sent the blind man to wash at the Pool of Siloam, which was a spring-fed pool within the city of Jerusalem. The word Siloam means “sent”, and this story teaches that Jesus had been sent by God to make a way for the blind (sinners) to see (be redeemed).
III. THE NEIGHBOR’S REACTION (John 9:8-12)
When the beggar returned from the Pool of Siloam, his neighbors were divided over whether he was the same man who’d been blind since birth or not. They asked him how he’d been healed and he recounted to them what Jesus had done. They were amazed and asked him where Jesus had gone, but he didn’t know.
This was a healing miracle. Jesus touched the man by rubbing clay on his eyes, but also gave him instructions to follow before being healed. As such, we will consider the method of this miracle to be both “touched” and “willed & obeyed”. Jesus performed it so that the people might believe, as made clear in the controversy that followed.
IV. THE CONTROVERSY THAT FOLLOWED (John 9:13-41)
In the aftermath of this miracle, the crowds took the man who had been blind to the Pharisees. They asked him what had happened. He explained what Jesus had done and they accused Jesus of being sinful because He had healed this man on the Sabbath day. The formerly blind man told them that he believed Jesus was a prophet.
Doubting the man’s story, the Jews went and found his parents. They asked his parents to confirm that this man was, in fact, their son. His parents assured them that he was their son, but stated that they didn’t know how he’d been cured of his blindness. They told the Jews to ask him directly. They feared the Jews, because it had already been agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.
The Jews then questioned the man who’d been blind a 2nd time. They accused Jesus of being a sinner, to which the man answered, “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” The formerly blind man argued that Jesus must be of God, otherwise He wouldn’t be able to perform such miracles. In response, the angry Jews and Pharisees banned him from the synagogue.
When Jesus heard what had happened, he went and found the man who had been born blind. Jesus identified Himself as the Son of Man, the Christ, and the man believed in Him and worshiped Him. Jesus taught that He had come into the world for judgment so that those who were blind may see and those who could see would become blind. He was contrasting those who recognized their need for Him, like this man, and those who did not, like the Pharisees.
CONCLUSION
Unlike many of the others we’ve discussed thus far, this story clearly indicates that the man who was healed of his blindness became a believer. As such, he was healed not only of his physical blindness but also his spiritual blindness. His sins were forgiven and he became a born again child of God. Salvation is a far greater miracle than simply being able to see physically.
Today’s sermon is set in Jerusalem. Jesus and the disciples have journeyed there to observe the Feast of Booths, sometimes called the Feast of Tabernacles. This was 1 of the 3 annual pilgrimage feasts that took place in Israel. It began on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and lasted for 8 days. On our modern calendars, this feast occurs in late September or early October. Therefore, these events took place about 6 or 7 months before Jesus’ crucifixion.
Jesus sent His disciples ahead of Him and came to the feast by Himself, secretly. However, He soon made His presence known to all when He began teaching publicly in the temple. His claim to be the “I AM” infuriated the Pharisees so much that they intended to stone Him, but Jesus slipped out of the temple untouched (John 7-8).
The miracle or “sign” we’ll discuss in this morning’s message took place after Jesus left the temple. I’ve titled it “A Man Born Blind”. It is the 25th sermon of our series on “The Miracles of Jesus Christ”. This story is only recorded in the book of John. For the sake of this series, I am going to focus primarily on the miracle itself, but will briefly summarize the extended account of what happens immediately thereafter.
I. THE DISCIPLES' QUESTION (John 9:1-5)
Having departed the temple, Jesus passed by a man who’d been blind since birth. The apostles asked Jesus whose sin had caused him to be born blind - his or his parents? Jesus answered that it was neither of them, but rather so that the works of God might be manifested in him. Jesus then said, “We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
The disciples knew that this man had been blind since birth, which suggests that he was speaking openly about it. They asked Jesus whose sin had caused this to happen. In ancient times, it was a common belief that people’s suffering, sickness, and misfortune was a direct result of their own sin or that of their parents. This was the belief of Job’s friends in the Old Testament, who reasoned that Job must have sinned to cause such tragedy to befall him. But the truth is, it’s not that simple.
We live in a fallen world. Sin has tainted every aspect of it. When a person sins, the effects are far reaching and can last for generations. The sin of a single person can be harmful to thousands or even millions of people. While it is true that our own sinful choices or those of our parents can bring about negative consequences in our life, much of the suffering we face comes from sin in general - the fact that we live in a broken, corrupt, sin-sick world.
Jesus explained that this man’s condition afforded an opportunity for God’s work to be manifested in him. In this case, Jesus intended to heal this man that he and others might see the power of God on display and believe. In all cases of suffering, we can find the manifest work of God. Whether He chooses to physically heal or not, it is in His strength and by His presence that we endure and preserve. The brokenness of this world should point us to Jesus and our desperate need for Him rather than pulling us away.
Then Jesus expressed a sense of urgency to do the works of God “during the day” while there was still time left in his earthly ministry. He knew that His departure was only a few months away. He also communicated that we as His people need to reach the lost with urgency, because “the night is coming” when we’ll not be able to do so anymore.
II. THE MAN’S HEALING (John 9:6-7)
Jesus spit on the ground, made clay with the dirt and saliva, and rubbed it on the man’s eyes. He told the man to go wash his eyes in the Pool of Siloam and sent him away. The man went, washed, and returned now able to see clearly.
This is the 3rd miracle in which Jesus used spit, which was believed by many to have medicinal properties. Jesus sent the blind man to wash at the Pool of Siloam, which was a spring-fed pool within the city of Jerusalem. The word Siloam means “sent”, and this story teaches that Jesus had been sent by God to make a way for the blind (sinners) to see (be redeemed).
III. THE NEIGHBOR’S REACTION (John 9:8-12)
When the beggar returned from the Pool of Siloam, his neighbors were divided over whether he was the same man who’d been blind since birth or not. They asked him how he’d been healed and he recounted to them what Jesus had done. They were amazed and asked him where Jesus had gone, but he didn’t know.
This was a healing miracle. Jesus touched the man by rubbing clay on his eyes, but also gave him instructions to follow before being healed. As such, we will consider the method of this miracle to be both “touched” and “willed & obeyed”. Jesus performed it so that the people might believe, as made clear in the controversy that followed.
IV. THE CONTROVERSY THAT FOLLOWED (John 9:13-41)
In the aftermath of this miracle, the crowds took the man who had been blind to the Pharisees. They asked him what had happened. He explained what Jesus had done and they accused Jesus of being sinful because He had healed this man on the Sabbath day. The formerly blind man told them that he believed Jesus was a prophet.
Doubting the man’s story, the Jews went and found his parents. They asked his parents to confirm that this man was, in fact, their son. His parents assured them that he was their son, but stated that they didn’t know how he’d been cured of his blindness. They told the Jews to ask him directly. They feared the Jews, because it had already been agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.
The Jews then questioned the man who’d been blind a 2nd time. They accused Jesus of being a sinner, to which the man answered, “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” The formerly blind man argued that Jesus must be of God, otherwise He wouldn’t be able to perform such miracles. In response, the angry Jews and Pharisees banned him from the synagogue.
When Jesus heard what had happened, he went and found the man who had been born blind. Jesus identified Himself as the Son of Man, the Christ, and the man believed in Him and worshiped Him. Jesus taught that He had come into the world for judgment so that those who were blind may see and those who could see would become blind. He was contrasting those who recognized their need for Him, like this man, and those who did not, like the Pharisees.
CONCLUSION
Unlike many of the others we’ve discussed thus far, this story clearly indicates that the man who was healed of his blindness became a believer. As such, he was healed not only of his physical blindness but also his spiritual blindness. His sins were forgiven and he became a born again child of God. Salvation is a far greater miracle than simply being able to see physically.