Healing wk 1 - John 9
John Chapter 9 (NRSV)- The healing of the man born blind
Vv1-12
1. Jesus is presumably still in Jerusalem though not in the Temple. The man he saw had been "blind from birth".
2. Sin was still thought to be the cause of suffering by many. They would have explained his blindness in terms of his parents' sin or possibly some sin he had committed before his birth. They wanted Jesus' answer.
3. "Neither" is Jesus' answer. His blindness is within God's purpose. The purpose of God was that "God's works might be revealed in him."
4. Upon the disciples of Jesus rests the obligation to do the work of God while opportunity lasts. The work Jesus began is to be continued by his followers. "Day" is the length of a person's life. There is also the underlying idea of Jesus' life as the day of salvation. His departure means the coming of night.
5. While Jesus lives his human life and while he carries out his mission of salvation He is the light of the world. It is Jesus' effect upon the world ‑ his bringing of judgement and salvation ‑ that is meant.
6. Jesus vividly illustrates his words by giving light to the man born blind. Jesus healed the man by his touch and also by making a paste for his eyes with spittle and dust. There was a view at that time that spittle had curative properties. It was this action that was seen by the Pharisees as work and therefore Sabbath breaking.
7. The man himself was involved in the cure ‑ cf Naaman (2 Kings 5:10). He obediently washed and was healed.
8. Because the cure was so remarkable people could not believe it. Is he the man or not?
9. Some believed others didn't. Despite his own testimony.
10. They kept asking "how?" Amazement.
11. He testified to Jesus actions. He was the "man" who brought him healing. He did not yet grasp the real significance of Jesus.
Why is it so hard to stop people associating suffering with sin?
What significance does the fact that the man was born blind have?
What can we learn about our attitude to disability?
Topic: Blindness Subtopic: Spiritual Index: 500‑502 Date: Title:
The late HELEN KELLER. Was . deaf. . . mute. . . blind.
Helen Keller tells of the dramatic moment when Annie Sullivan first broke through her dark, silent world with the illumination of language.
We walked down the path to the well house, attracted by
the fragrance of the honeysuckle with which it was
covered. Some one was drawing water and my teacher
placed my hand under the spout. As the cool stream
gushed over one hand she spelled into the other the
word water, first slowly, then rapidly. I stood still,
my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her
fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of
something forgotten ‑‑ a thrill of returning thought;
and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me.
I knew then that "w‑a‑t‑e‑r" meant the wonderful cool
something that was flowing over my hand. That living
word awakened my soul, gave it light, hope, joy, set it
free! There were barriers still, it is true, but
barriers that could in time be swept away.
Certainly, this was how the blind man must have felt when he saw water for the first time as he washed his eyes in the pool of Siloam.
Just as the Light of the world gave sight to the blind beggar, and just as that "living word" awakened the soul of Helen Keller, so Jesus can awaken your life with the tender touch of His hand. He can give you light, hope, joy, and freedom like you've never known before. Surely there will still be barriers in your life ‑‑ but barriers that can be swept away in time. ‑‑ Keller, The Story of My Life
Vv13-34
13: They brought in the experts ‑ the Pharisees ‑ to the man born blind.
14: Being the sabbath day was significant for the Pharisees. The incident formed part of their controversy with Jesus over the right use of the Sabbath. Making mud they saw as work.
15: The man's testimony is consistent.
16: Here the Pharisees dilemma is made clear. Jesus must be a sinner if he breaks the Sabbath: Jesus cannot be a sinner for a sinner could not work such a cure. They were divided.
17: In their indecision they turn against the man ‑ what have you got to say? He says He is a prophet. cf Peter's confession of Christ.
18: The Jews sought to deny the miracle. He couldn't have been blind at all. They call his parents as witnesses.
19 They are cross examined ‑ is this your son ‑ was he born blind ‑ how then can he see?
20: Yes he is their son and yes he was born blind;
21: But we do not know how ‑ ask him he is old enough to speak for himself.
22: This seems to be the situation at the time wrote the gospel rather than at the time of Jesus.
23: Don't ask us ‑ ask him.
24: Tell the truth. We know this man is a sinner. They have no doubts he has transgressed the law and is therfore a sinner.
25: The man states the other side of the dilemma ‑ I was blind ‑ now I see.
26: Round they go again ‑ how?
27: You been told already ‑ do you want to become his disciples?
28: They then begin an unfavouable comparison between Jesus and Moses (whom they claim to follow).
29: God spoke through Moses but who knows where this Jesus comes from? The question of Jesus' authority ‑ Beelzebul.
30: But he opened my eyes! Does that tell us where he comes from?
Upon his conversion Billy Bray the great Cornish Methodist wrote
"I remember this, that everything looked new to me... the fields, the cattle, the trees. I was like a new man in a new world."
31: God does not listen to sinners but to sincere worshippers who are obedient to his will.
32: This miracle is unheard of.
33: He must be from God.
34: His argument has won the day so they resort to abuse. How dare he a sinner from birth teach them? They drove him out ‑ rejecting his testimony as they rejected Jesus.
Q4 What different attitudes to the healing miracle can you find in the passage?
Q5 What can we learn about the Church's ministry of healing today?
Q6 Have we got prejudices or preconceptions about God's willingness or power to heal today?
Topic: Healing Subtopic: Index: 1538‑1541 Date: 8/1989.1
The following is a wonderful prayer by Norwegian Theologian Ole Hallesby:
"Lord, if it will be to Your glory, heal suddenly. If it will glorify You more, heal gradually; if it will glorify You even more, may your servant remain sick awhile; and if it will glorify Your name still more, take him to Yourself in heaven."
Vv35-41
35: Jesus, in contrast seeks him out, and speaks to him. Do you believe?
36: He wants to believe but asks for more information.
37: You have seen him and I am he.
38: His response is to put his faith in Jesus and to worship him. (the prerogative of God)
39: Judgement comes as we respond to God in Jesus Christ. The pre-existence of Christ and the significance of his mission are presupposed. To receive Jesus is to receive the light of the world; to reject Jesus is to reject the light, to close one's eyes and become blind.
Topic: Bible Subtopic: Written with a Purpose Index: 424 Date:
William Bradford, the governor of the Plymouth Colony of pilgrims, insisted, "Those who believe in the Holy Scriptures are bound to observe its teachings. Those who do not are to be bound by its consequences."
Larry Burkett, What Ever Happened to the American Dream, p. 43.
40: They expect the answer "no" they are very confident that they can see clearly.
41: If you could not see you would be guilty, but because you claim to see you are guilty. The blind man accepted the one who could cure him, the "blind" Pharisees reject the only cure that exists.
There is a Jewish proverb which I like "No physician can cure the blind in mind"
"Bigotry is like the pupil of the eye ‑ the more light you pour into it, the more it contracts." Oliver Wendell Holmes.
Jesus who says of himself in our passage "I am the light of the world" shines his light upon the bigotry but the pupils of their eyes close tight shut.
As George Matheson, the blind Scottish minister writer of the wonderful hymn 'O love that wilt not let me go', wrote:
"Light; what is it? It is not something we search for; it is something we search by. No‑one by searching can find out God; but, if we take God without searching, we will find everything else. My evidence for God is what he shows me. I must have a torch to begin with. The room is dark and I have lost something ‑ the key to my own nature. I cannot find it till I have struck a light. There must be light in my hand before I come in ‑ light on the threshold, light at the very door. My progress must not be from dark into the clear but from the clear into the dark. God is his own interpreter; in God's light we shall see light.
Q7 Why do you think Jesus sought him out?
Q8 What helps you to believe in Jesus? Or makes it difficult?
Q9 What do you think Jesus meant by "the Light of the World"?
God created us to be interdependent -(Gal 6:2 NRSV) Bear one another's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
Q10 Are we all handicapped in some sense? In weakness God's power is more clearly seen.
(2 Cor 12:9 NRSV) but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness." So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
Q11 What do you think was more important for the man born blind - his physical sight or his new relationship with God?
Prayer and action
1 Is there anything we should be doing to help "handicapped" people participate more fully in the community? a) as individuals b) as a church and community
2 What are our handicaps? How have they been stepping stones to a deeper understanding of God?
3 We often feel we want to help handicapped people. This can become a paternalistic or patronising attitude of superiority. How can we avoid this and make sure we all feel properly at home?
4 "Health is a matter of wholeness and not perfection" (Raines) do you agree?