Blind Man
4th Sunday in Lent
Grace, Mercy and Peace to you from God our Father and His only Son, Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.
We have all experienced blindness in our lives in one form or another. Sometimes it is a physical blindness either by birth or through accident. Blindness by physical trauma can sometimes be restored either partially or completely. And sometimes, we even blind ourselves purposefully for one reason or another.
One such instance is in a children’s game called Blind Man’s Bluff, a game that can be traced back to 500 years before the birth of Christ. We have documentation from the Zhou and Han Dynasties of this game being played. The ancient Greeks also played a version of this game. For those of you who have not played or heard of this game, it involves a group of people with one person being ‘it’. The selected person places a blindfold over their eyes and in the darkness, try to find the other players.
This is a game, often played by children, yet we also see people blind themselves to what is happening in their lives. Sometimes we do not wish to see. It is not that we are unable physically to see, but that what we see is either too traumatic or disappointing. This could be a horrific accident where people are maimed or killed, or even the trauma of war where people try to block out the tragedy and shock of what is before them. In other times, the lack of skill or ignorance causes us to be blind to the world around us. Even love can blind us to what is really happening because we feel if we do not acknowledge wrongdoing by our loved ones, we cannot be hurt by their actions.
In our world today, we sometimes go to great lengths to purposefully turn a blind eye to what is really happening. We not only do not want to see it, we do not want to hear about it. Often, I have heard people say things like, “I don’t watch the news, it’s too depressing”, or “I don’t read the newspapers because there is never any good news.”
Unfortunately, we do not even want to hear the good news of our salvation through Jesus Christ – like the Pharisees who did not want to believe that a man born blind could be healed.
“But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight.” [John 9:18]
If they had believed that Jesus healed this man, it would have upset their whole system of Law and order. They believed that a person was born deaf, blind, or dumb because of their own sin or of their father’s sin. They took this belief from scripture, the books of Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy which says:
“The Lord is longsuffering and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.” [Numbers 14:18]
This is why, when the disciples witnessed a blind man being healed, they asked Jesus who was to blame, the parents or the man.
The healing of this blind man caused great anxiety for the Pharisees because if forgiveness of sins were not bound by the Law of Moses, then the whole structure on which the Israelites based their beliefs would be torn apart.
These Pharisees were not the only people who did not want to see. They were not the only people who did not want to hear what Jesus had to say or learn why he was here on earth. People today still do not want to hear and do not want to see.
You may think that as good Christian believers that you are safe from being led astray. You may think that your eyes are truly open and that you are not blind. I do not wish you to doubt your faith, but I do wish you to understand that the devil is always at work in this world. Take for example the very disciples of Jesus.
These God fearing men were at the side of Christ for three years, learning the truth and the way. There is no way they could be fooled, right? There is no way they could be in doubt or unbelief. Hear the words from the gospel of Mark 16:9-14:
“Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene. She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept. And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.
After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country. And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.
Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.”
Even when Christ was right in front of his disciples, they could not see him for who he really was; they were blind to the resurrection.
This is the fourth Sunday of Lent. This is a time when we observe and yes, even celebrate the crucifixion of our Lord.
Why do we celebrate? Because His death paid the price of our sin. His death redeemed us from eternal death. But what is more important is His resurrection which gives us eternal life. Yet many still do not want to see it. Many still do not want to hear it.
These people are not alone. Our Lord, Jesus Christ, was nailed to a tree, to be persecuted and mocked.
“Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” [Mt 27:41–43]
The Son of God, a man without sin took on the sins of all human kind. Christ took all sin; not just for the sinners at that time, not just for the sinners from the past, not even just for the iniquity of the fathers or the children of the third and fourth generation, but the sins of all human beings for all time.
All of this is given to us by the grace of God our Father. It is free without price. Most people would say that, “It’s too good to be true!” but it is not. The salvation of our lives by the death, and resurrection of our Lord is too good AND too true.
God sent His only begotten Son into the flesh of our flesh so that we might see, hear and believe. He sent His Son so that we might believe and be saved. He sent His only Son so that we may open our eyes and see what has been before us always; the love of God, the forgiveness of sins, and the resurrection of the body to life everlasting.
It is now our charge, by our very Lord and Savior, to show the world the light of Jesus Christ. We are to proclaim the good news to all. We might not see the fruit of the Holy Spirit in all to whom we give this life-giving message, but that does not mean we should stop.
The other week, we heard of Christ’s witness to the Samaritan woman at the well. “Many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, ‘He told me all that I ever did.’” She told others in her town and they urged Christ to tell them His message. “And many more believed because of His own word.” [John 4:41]
Christ Himself tells us:
“…blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” [Mt 13:16–17]
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we are not blind. We are not playing a childish game without consequence. We have been shown the true light of the world that is Jesus Christ. By His command we share the Word that is not depressing nor does it disappoint. This Gospel is the very same Good News that all people seek. Let us remain in the Word of God. In the words of Deuteronomy 6:6-9;
“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. [Deut 6:6-9]
We are to walk as children of the light. We are to walk with our eyes wide open to the grace and mercy of God. Walking in the light that is Christ Jesus, we bring the life giving life to all who see us. When we speak the words of Our Lord, those who were blind hear the promise of God and their eyes open to the light of Christ Jesus. When we keep the sign of Christ in front of our eyes, we see clearly.
When we keep the Word in our hearts and on our lips, we will never be blind to the glory of God. See and hear what Jesus Christ has done for you so that you may proclaim the Good News of the light of the world to others.
We have been taken out of the darkness and into the light. Jesus Christ has cured our spiritual blindness. When people of this world ask you, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” You may say with all confidence, “He truly is the Son of God.”
Amen