34 They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?” So they put him out.
35 Jesus heard that they had put him out, and finding him, He said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 He answered, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you.” 38 And he said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped Him. 39 And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” 40 Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “We are not blind too, are we?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains."
Message: Spiritual Blindness
Time: John most likely wrote between A.D. 85 and 90. John's purpose in writing was, "that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name (John 20:31)."
What the Lord is Saying: Chapter 9 continues with Jesus interacting with a blind man, then healing him and then what follows is interactions with Pharisees, mostly between the former blind man and the Pharisees but now here at the end culminates in Jesus appearing on the scene and speaking again to this man. It is interesting that most of this chapter has been about the blind man bearing testimony. Jesus could have been speaking the entire time but instead the chapter recounts a testimony which is what we have today. Jesus is not here on earth and so life is about providing testimony from us, his followers, his ambassadors on Jesus.
In the last lesson, I noticed that the former blind man turned the tables on the Pharisees and even tried to preach a little to them. I kind of thought that probably didn't go over well with the Pharisees and sure enough, in verse 34, the Pharisees say, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?” The Pharisees undoubtedly believed in different type of people. Moses was significant (from God), they were significant as religious leaders, and then there were sinners. And yet they make this proclamation that the former blind man was "born entirely in sins." As such there is something about them whereby they think they are the authoritative representatives of God. But also they are echoing the words of the disciples in 9:2 over his condition of being born blind and that the reason for his blindness was that either he sinned or is his parents.
Jesus shows up. The interaction between the former blind man and the Pharisees has ended and Jesus shows up, not to speak to the Pharisees but to the former blind man. Jesus approaches him and asks a seemingly puzzling question, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" I suppose he wouldn't need to say, "Do you believe in Me?" because the man has already confirmed this, but instead he asks him a different statement about whether Jesus is the Son of Man. Note: that many of the oldest manuscripts refer to the phrase "Son of Man" and many also believe the reading is "Son of God." Son of Man is a term that Jesus refers to himself. "Son of Man" is referenced 93 times in Ezekiel and then 84 times in the New Testament, most often in Matthew. The man responds to Jesus, "Who is He (the Son of Man)?" And Jesus responds, "I am he." And the man responds by worshipping Him.
Now, not sure we need to make too much out of the word "worship" here. At this moment, this man is evolving in his understanding of Jesus. I would think this man is already a Christian in the sense that we would think of that term, a changed, saved person, accepted by God for all eternity, but here worship I think is a simple understanding right now of Jesus. He is recognizing that Jesus has authority, special authority that is distinct from others. He is more than simply a prophet.
What follows by Jesus is I think a very interesting discourse as Jesus basically then says he has come to save the lost, to save the blind. That those who purport that see will not believe. Like today, I sent a response to an Islamic man who has already come to the conclusion that he can see (in his own way). And he is only stating about Jesus that he is merely a messenger. So my focus in talking to him should not be so much as a person trying to rescue him, but more as a person that is trying to make a better defense as to what I believe. As I have learned the chief reason for doing apologetics is to help the Christian better understand what they believe.
The blind man possessed something in him that he could not control, his blindness, and in the process all that he wanted was to see. The Pharisees judge the man for being blind and in a way, stand with pride, believing that they are greater than this man. They don't have a need. The man has a need and so he seems to be more willing to accept Jesus. Jesus says in verse 39, "For judgement I came into the world." This judgment is not a final judgment, but rather he has come to declare who He is and then see how people respond. What will their judgment of him be? Will they choose to follow or not? So Jesus came into the world to carry out the judgment of each person. This is it: will you believe? Yes or No?
Again, he states a very radical statement, "that those who see may become blind." Here is judgment - do you see? Are you good with your life? Do you think you have the answer to life? Or do you rather have a need? And will you believe in God and depend on Him? What are you trusting in? For those that think they can already see, they are the one's who are blind.
Spiritual pride was the original cause of sin as mentioned in Genesis 3:4 - "The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!" I know better than God. And many in our world have this spiritual pride. They have already made up their mind, but still others are searching and so maybe the quest in evangelism is finding the harvest (Matthew 9:38). There is a harvest that is ripe. We need to locate it.
Verse 40 says, "If you were blind, you would have no sin." The Pharisee asks in the previous verse if they were blind. They miss the point of Jesus' previous words "those who do not may see." Once we start with not seeing and in need then we will see. And Jesus says to be blind is a good thing because then you would not be guilty. Proud is the Pharisees. They think they are not blind and see. And for this person, "your sin remains." Find the blind. Find those that are searching.
Summary: Jesus is the Son of Man and comes to give people the opportunity to either choose Him or go their own way.
Promise: Many blind themselves to God and His ways by believing they have all the answers, but we are to find the harvest, those that continually want to seek the Light.
Prayer: Lord, again, I thank you for teaching me through Your words and helping me with this understanding of sharing truth with others. Help me to find your harvest, to find those who truly want to seek You. Lead me to your harvest. Give me opportunities to share my testimony with others of how I was blind, but now I see. Show me other people that are blind in our world and are looking for you to be their Savior and Lord. You are savior and Lord. Direct me and help me to be bold.
Note: If you are interested in other studies/devotions, check out my index of Bible Study's.
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