September 29, 2023

John 9:1-7 (HCSB)
The Sixth Sign: Healing a Man Born Blind
9 As He was passing by, He saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples questioned Him: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him. 4 We must do the works of Him who sent Me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 After He said these things He spit on the ground, made some mud from the saliva, and spread the mud on his eyes. 7 “Go,” He told him, “wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So he left, washed, and came back seeing.

Kim Ivey
Jesus can turn water into wine, heal the sick, and feed the multitudes, but can He bring sight to eyes that have never seen? Yes, He can! He made mud with saliva and the dirt we were made from and rubbed it over the blind man’s eyes. And there was nothing special about the water in the pool of Siloam. It wasn’t rumored to have healing powers. We do see obedience once again playing a part in the blind man’s healing. He could have been indignant that some stranger just wiped mud all over his eyes, yelled a bit and wiped at his eyes with his sleeve and then stopped anywhere to wash his eyes off, but he simply did as Jesus instructed. While a needfully repeated lesson, I don’t believe that is the main lesson to be learned in this instance. The disciples want to know why this man is blind; why is God punishing him? It was a common thought then that disaster or infirmity must be a judgment from God. Don’t we think the same thing sometimes? But that is not always the case. We live in a fallen, cursed world (Gen 3:17-19) and sometimes the negative things we experience are just the result of Adam and Eve’s original sin. And sometimes, as in this case, we experience hardship “so that God’s works might be displayed.” Isn’t that exciting?! We get to be instruments of hope and joy and point others to Christ! Jesus demonstrated that He is the light of the world by introducing light into the life of this well known blind man.