Text: John 9:1-12
Throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry, He performed various miracles to demonstrate His divine power. The miracle we are discussing here was when Jesus healed a man who was blind from birth. As we study this miracle, as with every Bible passage, it is important to understand the context. This miracle teaches us certain things about Jesus and provides an important lesson for us.
The Context
- This miracle followed a couple of contentious interactions between Jesus and the leading Jews – woman who was charged with adultery (John 8:1-11); argument between Jesus and the rulers (John 8:44, 48-49, 54-59)
- After this, Jesus and His disciples saw the blind man – the disciples asked why he was in this condition (John 9:1-2); not because of sin, but so the works of God could be displayed (John 9:3)
- Following the miracle, the man who was healed was questioned about what happened (John 9:13-17) – he was put on trial (John 9:18-34), and even his parents were questioned (John 9:18-22); the result was that he was “put out of the synagogue” (John 9:22, 34-35)
- Jesus found him afterward and asked if he believed in the Son of Man (John 9:35) – he understood some things about Jesus, but not everything (John 9:17, 24-25, 29-33); when Jesus revealed Himself to him, he believed and worshipped Him (John 9:36-38)
The Miracle
- Jesus and His disciples found this man outside the temple – he was regularly here begging (John 9:8); Jesus said this was an opportunity to do the work of God (John 9:3-4)
- Jesus spat on the ground, made clay, and put it over the man’s eyes (John 9:6) – not yet healed; he was told to wash in the pool of Siloam (John 9:7), and was healed only after he obeyed; parallel to salvation in that it is only possible by the power of God, but something is required of us (cf. Romans 6:23, 17-18)
- The crowd was confused over this man’s identity (John 9:8-9) – this is also why this is a notable miracle because it tells us that (1) people knew who this man was and (2) there was no expectation that he would be healed
- He knew “the man who is called Jesus” healed him (John 9:11) – but Jesus did not stick around (John 9:12); this gave this man an opportunity to demonstrate his understanding and faith (John 9:17, 24-25, 29-33)
The Lesson
- After Jesus spoke to the man, He made a statement about why He came into the world – “that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind” (John 9:39); the Pharisees heard this and knew He was referring to them (John 9:40); they were condemned (John 9:41)
- The lesson is that some people will be willfully blind to the truth – right before this Jesus claimed to be God (John 8:58; cf. Exodus 3:14) and the miracle proved it (cf. John 5:36; Acts 2:22), yet the leaders remained blind to the truth; some/most today will not believe; we can try to persuade (2 Corinthians 5:11), but eventually may have to move on (Acts 13:44-51); this is also a warning for us not to close our eyes/ears to the truth (Luke 8:8; Hebrews 2:1-3; 6:4-6)
Conclusion
- This miracle confirmed Jesus’ claim to be deity (God in the flesh) – the blind man could see this, but so many who claim to be able to see refuse to see the truth
- Let us make sure our eyes and ears are open to the truth – recognize who Jesus is and follow Him
