Day 1005: Light in the dark - John 9 vs 1 - 14

1-2 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6-7 Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

8-9 The neighbours and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10-13 So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.” They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. John 9:1-14 English Standard Version

It seems that in those days, just as in our day, some people believed in karma. That is, if someone experiences a bad event in life, it's probably because of something they'd done before. So a man 'blind from birth' naturally raised the question the disciples asked Jesus. What would you say are the implications of the reply Jesus gave them in vs 3?

The first implication is surely that karma is a belief that developed among nations who didn't have the teachings of the God of Israel. It's as if 'fate' replaced a God who is actively involved in His creation. The next implication is that tragic events aren't necessarily the result of the wrongs someone has done. As we know from the Old Testament, there was a God-fearing man named Job who experienced a flood of tragedy that were not karma, but the outcome of Satan's evil works. Indeed, all the suffering that sin brought into the world is through Satan.

But why did God allow Satan to deceive mankind? Are Jesus' words part of the answer to that extremely difficult question. Was it so that 'the works of God might be displayed'? In the case of Job, Satan's accusation was that Job only loved God because he’d experienced good things from God all his life. So let him taste something bad, and he will hate and curse you! That was the challenge Satan threw down.

We see the same attack at the beginning of creation. With God having made all things good and beautiful, it wasn't long before Satan wanted to trample on it, like a bully at the beach who wrecks someone’s sandcastle. And so it was that while God had said 'let there be light', Satan did his utmost to bring darkness upon the world from the very start. So too, the man that Jesus healed had been blind from birth. But what was the claim of Jesus? (vs 5)

The coming of Jesus into the world was a reminder of God's light that men and women had become blinded to. He did this by using situations like this healing. My understanding of vs 4 is that Jesus' physical stay on earth was limited, and the time would come when He will have ascended. So too the time would come when the apostles He sent into the world will also have passed away, and the day of such miraculous signs would be over.

We're not told why Jesus did miracles in varying ways, or why He used mud on this man's eyes. Was the physical touch perhaps to help the man to have faith? We do read of the tenderness of Jesus in that “a bruised reed He will not break, and a smouldering wick He will not quench.” (Matthew 12:20) None of us then should hesitate to come to Him for the light He can give to those whose lives have been darkened by sin - even from birth! We see how this amazing healing caused a stir in the city. But we get a hint of what was to come in vs 14 where we read “Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.” Those still in darkness were going to challenge the light!