Sunday, March 19, 2023

Fourth Sunday in Lent
Isaiah 42:14-21
Psalm 142
Ephesians 5:8-14
John 9:1-41

He said, ‘Lord, I believe!’ and he worshiped him.

We do not see well when we are born. Our vision is blurry, and we only see in black and white. Our body develops as we grow, and we eventually see more of the world around us. The first thing we recognize is our mother. Our eyes are designed to focus most clearly on objects that are eight to twelve inches away in those first months; a mother is in that space most often, particularly during feeding. We learn our mother’s face better than anyone else’s. As we grow, we begin to see more of the world and learn to recognize the things around us. As our vision develops, our understanding of the world also develops. Our sight does not improve only because of physical development. We also learn to see.

This was never more obvious than it was in the life of a man named Michael May. Michael was just three years old when his eyes were injured in a chemical explosion. He was blind for forty-three years. In March 2000, Michael May went through surgery that gave him back his sight. It was a miraculous experience for him. He was given a gift that many of us take for granted. Even if our eyesight is less than perfect, at least we have always been able to use our eyes as they were created to be used. Michael May did not have that opportunity for a long time. Meanwhile, from lack of use, the things his brain had learned as a child were lost. Even though the surgery gave him his sight, he still had to learn how to see again. His progress was tracked by doctors, and they learned a great deal about visual development from his case.

He was interviewed several years after the surgery. Despite the joy he had in finally seeing his loved ones, he still had difficulty recognizing them. He also had trouble understanding the world. He continued to use a cane like a blind man because he could not recognize the difference between shadows and curbs. His favorite sport was skiing, and he said that it was actually easier to ski when he was blind. “All of a sudden there’s all this information flying in distracting me, making me tense up. In skiing, you don’t want to do that... I was falling all over the place,” May was quoted as saying.

That’s what makes our story today even more miraculous. The man who met Jesus had been blind from birth. He didn’t even have the learning of those early years like Michael May. When we hear about blindness, we think of wearing a blindfold during a children’s game, but it isn’t the same. We can’t see when the blindfold covers our eyes, but when the blindfold is removed, we can see again. Michael May did not see so easily when his “blindfold” was removed. I wonder how well the man born blind could see when he washed the mud off of his eyes. We see that he was able to get around despite being abandoned by his family; he was able to see well enough to deal with the doubt and rejection. That’s what makes this story so incredible: the healing Jesus gave to the man was something far greater than the medical community gave to Michael May. Jesus gave the blind man a whole new world and the faith to believe.

The story began with a question from the disciples. “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” It was common to assume any physical disability or illness was caused by a specific act of sin, a point of view which is still widely held today. Many churches teach that blessedness is a reward for goodness and curses are a punishment for sin. Jesus answered the disciples, “This man didn’t sin, nor did his parents; but, that the works of God might be revealed in him.” This story is not about the man or his parents. It is not even about his healing. This story is about God being revealed to the world.

Jesus said that He is the light of the world, and as light, He reveals things that are not seen in darkness.

My family lived on a farm when I was very young, but we moved to the city when I was barely a toddler. We stayed friends with some of the neighbors, including a family with a girl who was my age. We didn’t see each other much, but we always made the best of our time together. We invited each other to our birthday parties, and we had week-long sleepovers during the summer.

They stayed in the country, so as we got older our sleepovers because campouts. They had a lot of land with a forest and a creek. There were clearings in the forest that were perfect for a tent. Though my friend’s house was close, it seemed so far away because it was hidden by the trees. We could go get anything we needed and felt safe knowing her parents were near. It was a much different time: there was no reason to fear the kind of dangers that lurk in the world today.

My friend had a neighbor who liked to play games with us. He knew when we were camping and tried to sneak up to scare us, pretending to be a bear or a ghost. We expected him, but somehow he always managed to make us scream at some point during our camping trip. After all, no matter how safe it was, we were two young girls alone in the forest. We didn’t have stories about kidnapped and murdered children to make us worry, but we did have stories like Hansel and Gretel to spur our imaginations.

We didn’t take it without a fight. We set up booby traps around our campsite so that it would be more difficult for him to get to our tent. We filled buckets with water and hooked them to a tripwire. We stretched yarn across paths with bells that wrang when he was near. We hung yarn from the trees to feel like spider webs. We knew he was coming when he got caught in one of our traps. We would giggle as he dealt with the water, noise, or string. He knew we would set booby traps, so he carried a flashlight to guide his path, hoping to find the tripwires before they found him. His light helped us see that he was coming.

One night was different. Our fear was very real. We were a little older and perhaps were more aware of real dangers in the world. I don’t even remember what happened; it was probably nothing. It may have even been our neighbor friend. However, something made us afraid, and fear took over. We ran from the tent all the way to her house. We didn’t take the time to put on shoes or grab a flashlight. We knew the paths, though it was dark, we ran through the woods and the creek and then through her backyard until we were safely inside her house. When we finally stopped, my friend realized that she had stepped on some sort of prickly plant. Her foot was filled with sharp, bristly hairs which caused her a lot of pain. The next day we took down our camp and spent the rest of our week having a sleepover in her house. It was no longer fun to sleep alone in the dark woods.

The irony of our friendship is that when we finally were at the same high school and could see each other every day, we were no longer friends. We followed different paths, hers included drugs, which I discovered during my last visit to her house. It made me sad, but when the truth is revealed that something, or someone, is not good for us, then we need to let it go. Like the flashlight that revealed our traps and the neighbor’s presence, God’s light reveals to us the things that are not good for us so that we will be become the people He intends us to be.

This is why we spend time with His Word. Through the scriptures God brings light to the darkness and reveals the things which are not fruitful. We practice disciplines during Lent like fasting and extra devotions so that we will grow. As we pray, study, fast, and worship, His light reveals the world as He sees it, so that we might repent and walk according to His ways. The things in the darkness are revealed by His light and darkness is destroyed so that we will live in the truth.

Interestingly, this story did not reveal any actual sin in the blind man’s life, but shined light on the sin in those who thought themselves to be sinless: they did not see or believe that Jesus was who He said He was. They did not know the truth about the God they claimed to know.

I love to travel and much prefer road trips because it gives us the opportunity to find interesting things to do along the way. I took a trip last year to see my daughter in her new home. I left very early for my drive home and stopped at a quaint town with extra-large attractions. I had breakfast at a café and took pictures of a two-story rocking chair, a ruler that measured feet rather than inches, and a mailbox that was so big you could live in it. It was a fun diversion and worth the time I spent there.

I do a lot of research when I get ready to travel. I check the Internet for information about the best places to eat and the best attractions to visit, but I always hope at our destination has ideas of fun things that are off the beaten track. They are locals, so surely they must have some ideas, right? Unfortunately, too many do not. We went to a small town north of us for Independence Day one year, and the desk staff didn’t even know where we might find fireworks displays to watch. I’m surprised how many times I ask about something I’ve seen on the Internet, and they have no idea what I’m talking about.

Most of the hotels I use do not have a person on staff that acts as a concierge. It always surprises me that the front desk staff at a hotel don’t have any ideas, after all they serve the tourist industry; it is always my hope that they will be able to answer my touristy questions. There is usually a rack of brochures, but those are the places that are crowded. At the very least, a reference guide at the front desk might have information about the other places we’d like to visit. I like to be a tourist, but I also like to find the places that are on the road less traveled.

The Pharisees were educated and knowledgeable, a class of men who were very familiar with the Law and the scriptures. Their strict observance to the traditions gave them an air of superiority. Their knowledge should have given them insight into what was happening in and around Jesus Christ, but there are none so blind as those who will not see. They rejected Jesus because He did not fit their expectation of the Messiah. They rejected Jesus because He was turning their world upside down; Sometimes the people who should know the most are those who have the least understanding.

Jesus was showing the people the truth of God, of sin, of the Law, and of faith. He was bypassing their authority. He was claiming to be God.

This lengthy Gospel passage does not focus on the healing, but on the trial that came after. First the man was questioned by his neighbors who did not believe he was the same man. Those neighbors took the man to the Pharisees who continued to question him. The Pharisees went to the man’s parents to question them. They had no answers and were afraid, so they told the Pharisees to ask him since he was old enough to speak for himself. The Pharisees insisted that Jesus was a sinner and that the man should reject him and give glory to God. The man said, “I don’t know if he is a sinner. One thing I do know: that though I was blind, now I see.” The man focused on the miraculous gift he had received through Jesus while the Pharisees continued to look at this through their misunderstanding of the Law.

This was a particularly troubling act of healing for the Pharisees. The rabbis taught that there were four miracles that would identify the Messiah. These were healings that they themselves could never accomplish, so they taught the people that they could only be done by the one whom God selected, the Messiah.

The healing of a leper was the first Messianic miracle. Leprosy was punishment for sin, which is why the lepers were cast out of the villages and separated from their people. Since only God could forgive sin, it was taught that only God could heal a leper and in doing so also provided forgiveness for the sin that caused the leprosy. This is why Jesus sent the healed lepers to the temple to show themselves to the priests; they would make the final determination whether those healed could return home.

The second Messianic miracle was the casting out of a mute demon. The priests were only able to exorcise a demon if they knew its name, and so when dealing with a possessed person they asked the demon to identify itself. A mute demon cannot speak its name, so they couldn’t provide healing. Jesus knew what was inside a person without asking, so He cast a demon out of a mute and blind man. With this miracle the people began to see that He might possibly be the Messiah. After all, the rabbis taught that only the Messiah could do what Jesus did, so they began to wonder if He was the Son of David for whom they waited.

The fourth miracle is found later in Jesus ministry: the raising of a man who was dead for four days. This was extraordinary because the rabbis taught that the spirit left the body after three days. The spirit gave life, and if it was gone, there was nothing left to be resurrected. Jesus purposely waited until His friend Lazarus was dead for four days to bring him back to life. Mary and Martha thought there was no hope, but Jesus showed them that there is always hope when you believe in Him.

The third type of miracle is the one in today’s Gospel lesson. By this time the religious leaders were more than curious about Jesus. He was doing what they said the Messiah would do, but they were beginning to see how this might put a damper on their power and control. When Jesus healed the man born blind, He showed them that He really could do what they claimed no man could do, and that He was from God. That He was God.

They had to find a way to make the people believe that He was a fake. They questioned the man and his family to catch them in some sort of lie. They twisted the miracle into something demonic. They ridiculed the man for being a follower of Jesus and not of Moses. The man answered their mocking, “How amazing! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God, and does his will, he listens to him.” Jesus opened the man’s eyes and his heart. He believed in the truth about God, about God’s plan for the world, and that Jesus was indeed the Christ, the Messiah. The Pharisees claimed to see; yet they were truly blind to the truth. Jesus warned them that if they claimed to see, they would be judged accordingly.

Jesus is the Light that shined in the darkness to reveal that the people who claimed to know and understand God did not know or understand Him at all. They used the Law to bind people, to suppress them, to control them. They didn’t understand that the Law was given to make people free. The Pharisees refused to see their sinfulness.

We understand; it is uncomfortable having our sin revealed. We have a problem understanding it as an act of grace and mercy. They asked Him, “Are we also blind?” Jesus answered, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.” They believed they knew God best but they were unable to see that Jesus fulfilled God’s promses. In rejecting Jesus, they stayed in the darkness that leads to death, rejecting His forgiveness and thus remaining in their sin. They used the Law to bind people to their expectations, so Jesus held them to the same standard. Since they claimed to “see” they would remain guilty.

There is an unfortunate reality when it comes to sin: sin causes suffering. Now, I’m not saying that suffering is the punishment for our sin, but sin hurts others. Sin brings dis-ease. Sin ruins lives. Sin causes men and women to lose their jobs. Sin and darkness shatter our world.

Sadly, those who should be able to see most clearly are the ones that are most blind. Those who should know more are often the most ignorant. I like to think that I have a solid understanding of the scriptures. I’m not theologically educated, but I’ve spent years reading and studying and savoring God’s Word. I hope I would not reject Jesus if I encountered Him. But like the Pharisees, but I am a sinner and I like things my way. Jesus turns our world upside down and just don’t want to see. The truth is that God’s word in Isaiah is as true for me as it was for them. “You see many things, but don’t observe. His ears are open, but he doesn’t listen.”

Spiritual blindness means misunderstanding God’s grace. Instead of seeing the blessing of the man’s healing, the Pharisees insisted that they were more blessed because they had never been blind. They refused to see the reality of their sinfulness. They were blind to what God could do for them, but claimed they could see. If they were still in darkness, then Jesus would be patient with them, but Jesus warned them when they claimed to have the light. They refused to see what Jesus was revealing, and until they saw the truth, they would continue to dwell in their sin.

We can’t live in darkness and expect to glorify God. Paul warns us that what is hidden will be revealed, that God’s light breaks through the darkness to expose the secrets in our hearts. In Christ we are called to live in that light, not in the darkness of our sin. That means dealing with our sinfulness and helping others see theirs too. As we share Jesus with our neighbors, He will reveal the hidden things and call them to wake and rise from the dead.

The line of questioning the Pharisees used with the man born blind was designed to put doubt into the minds of those witnessing the proceeding. They didn’t want anyone thinking that God was actually involved in the man’s story. They actually did the opposite for the man. He did not even know who healed him at first. Then he knew it was Jesus, but he couldn’t pick him out in a crowd. The man only knew, and cared, that he could see. By the end of the questioning, he confessed faith in Jesus. He glorified God by identifying Jesus as the Messiah because He did what no man could do. “I was blind and now I see.” Whatever the cause of the man’s blindness, he fulfilled the very purpose of his life: to glorify God.

People have always been blind and deaf to the truth of God, even God’s own people. Though the prophets warned them that they were not in a right relationship with God, they repeatedly refused to see or hear the truth. They thought they were righteous but twisted God’s Word to appear righteous. They could not see that the Law acts as a mirror to show us our sin and cause us to seek God’s mercy and grace. Instead of being justified by God, they justified themselves by their strict observance of rules, traditions, and ceremonies. Jesus was showing them that they misunderstood what God intended for His people.

Once God reveals the reality of our sin and the darkness in which we live, we have to deal with it. We have to deal with our sin. We have to admit our failures and experience His mercy. When we see our sin and repent, turning to God and seeking His forgiveness, He transforms us into the people He intends us to be. It isn’t comfortable. We might even suffer. We can respond like the people in our Gospel story that rejected Jesus and continued to walk in the darkness, or we can believe and be saved.

We were once blind, but now we see. We are children of light. Throughout the questioning after his healing, the man discovered what it meant to believe in Jesus. We are meant to grow in our faith, too, so that we’ll be transformed into people who glorify Him. We see, by His Word, that the things of darkness are not fruitful, so we turn to the things in the Light. That is why we practice disciplines like we do during Lent: to mature people of faith as God has created and saved us to be. As we pray, study, fast, and worship, we learn to see His face better than anything else, believing and worshipping Him, glorifying Him with our whole lives.