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Gospel of John - Chapter Nine
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Pastor Ovid Need
NOTE: Time requires I leave in the minor errors, e.g., abbreviations in text, wrong abbreviations, mixed tenses in a sentence (though I have tried to catch all of them), caps, etc.
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JOHN NINE
Here we have the healing of a blind man. This chapter starts out as did chp. 5. Jesus walks by, and sees many in need. He then chooses one lame man out of the many, and heals him. We have previously mentioned that a reason for illness or infirmities is so God might be glorified.
1. How long had this man been blind, v. 1?
2. Christ is very emphatic—whose work is Christ doing, v. 4?
a. Even though Jesus had the power within Himself to do these marvelous things, He refused to use it. He came with one goal in mind, and He never deviated from it. However, we are often and easily turned aside from what our goal should be. What is to be our goal as Christians, I Cor. 10:31?
Thus we see that our goal is the same as was Christ's and we have the same power as He had, the indwelling Holy Spirit.
3. What method was used to heal this blind man, v. 6?
a. What did He tell the blind man to do, v. 7?
b. What did the man do?
c. What was the result?
Note: First, remember what man was made from (lesson one)? This man lacked just a little in his creation (born blind), and the extra amount of clay is added along with the word of God. The act of creation is completed by Christ. Because of our sinful nature, we are short of the glory of God that Adam had (Rom. 3:23). By an act of the New Creation, we can be restored to perfect health.
Second, in today's healing movements, we hear of the necessity of faith on the part of one needing healed, using Jesus as the example. Here we see that this man did not even know who Jesus was when he was healed, vv. 35, 36. The New Testament method of healing is given in Ja. 5:13-16.
Third, like the infirm man of chp. 5, Jesus seemingly just walked by, and chose someone. But we know from 9:1-3 that this man was born blind for a purpose, and it was many years before the purpose came to pass. He was born blind in order to meet Christ here in chp. 9. God has a purpose for each person (Eph. 1:11).
4. Verses 8-12. The folks who knew the healed man question him. Then what do they do, v. 13?
a. What day was this miracle performed on, v. 14?
b. Why do the Pharisees say this could not be of God, v. 16?
c. How often had things like this taken place, v. 32?
What Christ did here did not fit into how these men interpreted the Scriptures. Therefore, they not only assumed that Christ was not of God, but killed Him as a lawbreaker. Some people today have the same attitude as these Pharisees. They believe that because others do not act like they have interpreted the Scriptures, those others are not right with God. Moreover, Christ continually confronted these Jews with their tradition by healing on the day which He did. V. 16, we see that there was even a division among these men.
5. These Pharisees (the Jewish leaders or rulers) question the man who had been blind. The man tells them the truth of what happened, and you would think that these men would rejoice. But, no, they did not. What did they do, v. 18A?
a. Therefore, what did they do, v. 18B?
b. Even after they hear a second witness to the truth, how do they respond, v. 28A?
Comment: People can be confronted with facts from now on, but until the Holy Spirit confronts them (lesson six), they will remain blind and hardened in their sin. Facts NEVER extracted anyone from their desperate situation, only Christ can do that.
Also, as these men have done here, people everywhere, saved and unsaved, hear, talk and believe in the context of what they want to believe. These men's problem was not a lack of facts but a moral problem. They wanted to remain in their sin and darkness; therefore, they refused to believe the facts. Their moral problem or sin is what keeps people from admitting that the facts about Christ are true, and that they need to do something about it. "A man's morality will dictate his theology." That is to say, a person will believe about God and His word only what will allow them to continue in the manner of life they desire. Thus these men would not believe anything about Christ that would require change on their part.
6. As these men questioned the parents, the parents do not say anymore than necessary. Why, v. 22?
a. Amidst all of the hot accusations from these rulers, what did the man say, v. 25?
7. These Pharisees were the rulers and teachers. We see here how they responded when someone did not agree with them. They sought to kill Christ when He would not abide by their teachings. What did they do to this man who refused to yield to their authority to interpret the word of God, v. 34?
The "Pharisees" of our day say, "We are the learned people. Who are you that you would dare to instruct us?" I love what Job told these kind of people, Job 12:2.
Jesus finishes this chapter with the comparison between physical sight and spiritual sight. He uses these types of comparisons regularly. Food, water and sight. In other words, a person can be alive in the sense of having these physical attributes (hunger, thirst, sight), yet still be dead (Eph. 2:1).