READING
JOHN 9
New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
1 As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
6 After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. 7 “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.
8 His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some claimed that he was.
Others said, “No, he only looks like him.”
But he himself insisted, “I am the man.”
10 “How then were your eyes opened?” they asked.
11 He replied, “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.”
12 “Where is this man?” they asked him.
“I don’t know,” he said.
The Pharisees Investigate the Healing
13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a Sabbath. 15 Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied, “and I washed, and now I see.”
16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.”
But others asked, “How can a sinner perform such signs?” So they were divided.
17 Then they turned again to the blind man, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.”
The man replied, “He is a prophet.”
18 They still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man’s parents. 19 “Is this your son?” they asked. “Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?”
20 “We know he is our son,” the parents answered, “and we know he was born blind. 21 But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don’t know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself.” 22 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. 23 That was why his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
24 A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. “Give glory to God by telling the truth,” they said. “We know this man is a sinner.”
25 He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”
26 Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”
27 He answered, “I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?”
28 Then they hurled insults at him and said, “You are this fellow’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.”
30 The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. 32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
34 To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.
Spiritual Blindness
35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
36 “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
37 Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
38 Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
39 Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”
40 Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?”
41 Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.
DEVOTIONAL
JESUS THE LIGHT
by Angel Sanchez
In John 9, Jesus talks about being the light of the world. Verse 5 says, “As long as I am with you, my life is the Light that pierces the world’s darkness” (Passion Translation).
As we look at this verse, the Lord is saying that this world could be a very dark place, but as long as He is within us, His light pierces all darkness. We can rejoice in knowing that Christ lives within us. Galatians 2:20 says, “Christ lives his life through us - we live in union as one!” (Passion). We, as firm believers in what the Bible says, can grab hold of this truth and live our lives as one in Christ.
That thought alone is enough to blow our minds. We are one in Christ Jesus! We are equipped to do all of the things that Jesus did.
We have His power (Matthew 10:1).
We have His authority (Matthew 28:18).
We have His mind (1 Corinthians 2:16, John 14:12-14).
This would also indicate that we are the light in this dark world. I am reminded of something a missionary friend once said, “Lord, send me to the darkest places on Earth, so I can shine brightly for You.”
I enjoy sitting at the beach and watching the sunrise. It does not matter what season of the year it is. It brings me peace and clarity. I feel a deep connection with God and all that He has created for us. As I sit at the beach in the early morning waiting for the sunrise, it’s dark and sometimes cold. I begin to think about the rising of the sun upon this dark beach. The sun could be saying, “It’s dark over there, but I can’t wait to shine in that area, to bring light and warmth. This is what I was created to do.” I wait in anticipation of the first glimpse of the sun as it peeks over the horizon. Once it starts shining, it rises pretty quickly. It’s beautiful, bright, and warm. Then, it seems to slow down, lingers and shines for the rest of the day.
That same excitement and anticipation is what we should feel in knowing that there is a dark world out there and we are a light shining on a hill (Matthew 5:14).
QUESTIONS:
- How brightly is your light shining today or is it shining at all?
- Name 3 things you will do to shine this week.
- If Jesus were in your shoes at this very moment, what would He do to change and bring light to the situation or circumstances you’re in? How can He make your situation better?
PRAYER plan
PROVISION
We want to have 0% unemployment, live debt free, and be radically generous in all ways possible.