Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Are you broken or healed?

There's a lot of confusion in the church today regarding brokenness.

We all love the word broken

We are all just broken and shattered into pieces

All of us sharing this collective brokenness

We love to talk about how broken we are and yet I think the confusion lies in the difference between brokenness and humility

I think we'd all agree that while we are broken in our sin, we desire to be healed not to remain broken

While I am still having my own difficulties and you have yours with sin, I don't consider myself broken in the sense that I have to go round acknowledging all the time my brokenness.

Instead, with humility, I talk about the healing that is taking place in my life how God has healed me from my brokenness, for God has in fact healed me from many of the ways I was broken.

The great hymn “I once was lost, but now I am found, was blind but now I see.”

So the message today is simply titled “I Once Was Blind”

Once we were all blind men sitting by the roadside begging, but what are we now?

Let’s raise in the honor of the reading of God’s Word

Have Mercy on Me!

When we are struggling, we want mercy

When we are deep in times of great trouble, where the water is well over our heads and we can barely see the surface, we cry out for mercy.

Maybe some of you have walked through times of others’ great crisis.

There was a young lady back in 1995 named Katie Fisher, 17, who had Burkitt’s lymphoma, a fast-growing malignancy.

She was selling a lamb to raise some money.

The auctioneer, Roger Wilson, told the crowd about her difficult position.

The standard price per pound was $2.

By the time the bidding was over they had sold the lamb for $11.50/lb.

Then, in an even more amazing act of mercy, the buyer gave the lamb back to Katie.

The crowd chanted “Re-sell!

Re-sell!”

They sold that little lamb 36 times, raising more than $16,000.

Isn’t that awesome?!

Don’t we all have times in our lives where we need that kind of mercy and relief?!

That kind of loving mercy?

Many of you have come to know Jesus and experienced that kind of mercy after hitting a very low place.

The sad truth about Katie Fisher

After that great wash of money came in to help pay for her medical expenses, she passed away some months later.

She found mercy, but not healing.

I believe that is why Jesus asks the man what he wants him to do.

The man is crying out in desperation for Mercy!

He needs relief!

He is tired of begging for scraps and coins!

Like the prodigal son, he gets tired of eating slop when Jesus can give him so much more.

What does he want?

Mercy

But Jesus asks him an important question: “What do you want me to do for you?”

What Mercy do you seek?

It is important for us to define what mercy we seek.

What relief are you looking for?

The man defines mercy with healing

“Lord, let me recover my sight.”

That is the mercy I seek.

I am tired of being blind, I want to see.

It affected every part of his life.

It was how he was known.

It forced his begging career.

It likely created distance from those he would like to befriend.

What does this mercy You seek look like?

Do you want relief from pain, from struggle, from addiction, from shame, from fear?!

Do you want forgiveness?

Do you want to be healed?

Jesus offers both forgiveness and healing, but only healing takes away your blindness!

There are two important theological terms having to do with salvation, the saving of a soul.

Justification and Sanctification

Justification is being made legally right in God’s court.

God, by command, acquits us of our guilt before Him.

We are given a right standing with God.

It is the moment of reconciliation with God.

Sanctification is the continual action of God making a man righteous.

After He acquits us of our guilt, He then sends the Holy Spirit to live in us and guide us towards righteousness.

This is the healing of salvation.

What if Jesus gave this man forgiveness for the sin that made him blind (if there was such sin), but didn’t remove the blindness?

It was the healing he sought, but it came through faith and forgiveness.

He doesn’t want to be forgiven and not healed, his goal is the healing.

Who would want to be forgiven but not healed?

Some folks love their sin and confuse the healing process.

Do you want God not to be angry about your sin?

Some folks just want Jesus to be ok with their sin.

I’m forgiven!

Look at my pile of sin and Jesus has forgiven all of it!

Is that really what you want?

Do you want Him to make your sin acceptable?

He won’t!

He can’t!

Jesus’ offer to mankind comes as a mandatory bundle not a buffet!

There is no Jesus buffet!

You can’t select forgiveness without accepting the holiness.

You can’t have the fried chicken without taking the all you can eat salad bar!

Listen, to Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:9–11 (ESV) — 9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

11 And such were some of you.

But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

He gives out the mercy and forgiveness with the intent to make you holy!

You are justified, he says, but your sin is not!

You are sanctified, or made holy, but your sin is not!

Sin is the disease and your faith in Jesus is the Cure!

James MacDonald says in our upcoming men study “If...you need god to redeem your regrets and restore what sin has stolen from you, this is going to be awesome!”

Sin steals from you!

It erodes all of your relationships over time!

It will take your pride, your position, your employment, your money, your family!

John 10:10 (ESV) — 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

1 Peter 5:8–11 (ESV) — 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful.

Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.