A Blind Man Healed (Jn. 9:6-25)

This is a personal summary of the preaching of Rev Dr Stephen Tong on 13 March 2011 in True Way Presbyterian Church. It was preached in Chinese with English translation.

Passage: John 9:6-25

After Jesus healed the blind, the whole town was astonished. They debated who Jesus was. Jesus did not withhold His grace from the poor. Many people will favour the rich first because of their money. But Jesus healed the poorest of the poor.

God breathed life into man when God created man. This time Jesus used His saliva upon the man’s eyes and asked him to wash. This is a lesson of obedience. We often question when asked to do what we consider to be lowly. In being disobedient we are very articulate. But in the heart of obedient believers there is no question why. Do we presume that an answer to our questions will make us understand the mystery of God? Does the wisdom of God have to be explained to us? God does all things according to His will and needs no counsellor. If we have a stubborn and rebellious attitude it is impossible to live a life of peace.

This blind man was completely obedient. He immediately responded when Jesus asked him to wash in the pool of Siloam, which was not an easy thing for a blind man to do. Each time he spoke he was honest, showing himself to be selfless and responsible.

When there was doubt regarding the miracle, he acknowledged that he is the man who was once blind. He did not want to escape the comments of the people to conclude the debate. When we bear witness we often speak well of our strengths and hide our weaknesses. It is not so with this blind man. After he confessed he was brought to the Pharisees. This is because a person who has been healed need to be brought to the priest and be declared clean to be accepted back into the society.

When asked how he was healed, he was very precise in his testimony. “The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.” (Jn. 9:11)

From the Pharisees’ point of view, the person who healed was a sinner because he broke the Sabbath. Some think Jesus was from God because a blind man was healed. But some think He was not from God as He healed on Sabbath day. There was debate about Jesus. God often allowed conflicts and struggles to lead some people to the truth.

With the divided opinions, they turned to the healed man to give his stand about Jesus. He was most honest. He did not know where Jesus was. But as he had been healed by Jesus, he believed Jesus is a prophet.

After he said that, they still did not believe. They suspected he was not the blind man but was only pretending to be. They summoned his parents to confirm if this man was really their son who was born blind, and how is it that he could now see. His parents acknowledged that he was their son who was born blind. This proved that the healing was genuine. But his parents said they did not know how and who healed him, and that he was already an adult who could speak for himself so they should ask him.

The Scripture said, “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.” (Jn. 9:21-22). This is significant because being put out of synagogue means they were cast out of the Jewish society. Most people just play it safe by avoiding all troubles.

This man was a great man but his parents were very typical people with timid character. Like the healed blind man, we need to learn to boldly stand for the truth. May the Lord have mercy on us.