John 9:1-41
Whose sin is it? The light of the world. Faulty reasoning. Whose disciple are you? Faulty reasoning. Spiritual blindness.
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JOHN 9:1-41
1 Now as Jesus was passing by, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who committed the sin that caused him to be born blind, this man or his parents?" 3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but he was born blind so that the acts of God may be revealed through what happens to him. 4 We must perform the deeds of the one who sent me as long as it is daytime. 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 Having said this, he spat on the ground and made some mud with the saliva. He smeared the mud on the blind man's eyes 7 and said to him, "Go wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated "sent"). So the blind man went away and washed, and came back seeing. 8 Then the neighbors and the people who had seen him previously as a beggar began saying, "Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?" 9 Some people said, "This is the man!" while others said, "No, but he looks like him." The man himself kept insisting, "I am the one!" 10 So they asked him, "How then were you made to see?" 11 He replied, "The man called Jesus made mud, smeared it on my eyes and told me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' So I went and washed, and was able to see." 12 They said to him, "Where is that man?" He replied, "I don't know." 13 They brought the man who used to be blind to the Pharisees. 14 (Now the day on which Jesus made the mud and caused him to see was a Sabbath.) 15 So the Pharisees asked him again how he had gained his sight. He replied, "He put mud on my eyes and I washed, and now I am able to see." 16 Then some of the Pharisees began to say, "This man is not from God, because he does not observe the Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner perform such miraculous signs?" Thus there was a division among them. 17 So again they asked the man who used to be blind, "What do you say about him, since he caused you to see?" "He is a prophet," the man replied. 18 Now the Jewish religious leaders refused to believe that he had really been blind and had gained his sight until at last they summoned the parents of the man who had become able to see. 19 They asked the parents, "Is this your son, whom you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?" 20 So his parents replied, "We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 21 But we do not know how he is now able to see, nor do we know who caused him to see. Ask him, he is a mature adult. He will speak for himself." 22 (His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish religious leaders. For the Jewish leaders had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. 23 For this reason his parents said, "He is a mature adult, ask him.") 24 Then they summoned the man who used to be blind a second time and said to him, "Promise before God to tell the truth. We know that this man is a sinner." 25 He replied, "I do not know whether he is a sinner. I do know one thing - that although I was blind, now I can see." 26 Then they said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he cause you to see?" 27 He answered, "I told you already and you didn't listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You people don't want to become his disciples too, do you?" 28 They heaped insults on him, saying, "You are his disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses! We do not know where this man comes from!" 30 The man replied, "This is a remarkable thing, that you don't know where he comes from, and yet he caused me to see! 31 We know that God doesn't listen to sinners, but if anyone is devout and does his will, God listens to him. 32 Never before has anyone heard of someone causing a man born blind to see. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing." 34 They replied, "You were born completely in sinfulness, and yet you presume to teach us?" So they threw him out. 35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, so he found the man and said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" 36 The man replied, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?" 37 Jesus told him, "You have seen him; he is the one speaking with you." 38 [He said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said,] "For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may gain their sight, and the ones who see may become blind." 40 Some of the Pharisees who were with him heard this and asked him, "We are not blind too, are we?" 41 Jesus replied, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, but now because you claim that you can see, your guilt remains." (John 8:1-59)
WHOSE SIN IS IT?
1 Now as Jesus was passing by, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who committed the sin that caused him to be born blind, this man or his parents?” 3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but he was born blind so that the acts of God may be revealed through what happens to him. (John 9:1-3)
During Job’s period of adversity, his friends, who initially sought to console him, eventually began to conjecture that Job’s troubles might be the result of his sins. This same conjecture is now being extended to the man who was born blind. However, Jesus emphatically clarified that this was not the case.
This way of thinking can have detrimental effects on the lives of believers as they navigate challenging times, leading them to engage in excessive self-examination to determine if they have committed any sins. Instead of finding solace and placing their trust in God’s understanding and care, they find themselves questioning whether they have somehow disappointed Him.
THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
4 We must perform the deeds of the one who sent me as long as it is daytime. Night is coming when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” (John 9:4-5)
Here I can only speculate because there is not enough context to help interprete the passage.
Considering that Jesus is described as the light of the world, can we infer that a period of darkness arrived when He was crucified and taken out of this world? Nevertheless, Jesus explicitly stated that upon His departure, another would come in His place: the Holy Spirit.
But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. (John 16:7)
When we combine this with 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7, we might speculate that a time of darkness will indeed occur when the Holy Spirit ceases to restrain the forces of evil in the future:
6And so you know what holds him back, so that he will be revealed in his own time. 7For the hidden power of lawlessness is already at work. However, the one who holds him back will do so until he is taken out of the way. (2 Thessalonians 2:6-7)
It’s important to recognize that this interpretation is speculative and can vary among different theological perspectives.
FAULTY REASONING
16 Then some of the Pharisees began to say, “This man is not from God, because he does not observe the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such miraculous signs?” Thus there was a division among them.” (John 9:16)
In this single verse, I noticed two erroneous claims made by the Pharisees.
The first fallacy: “This man cannot be from God because he does not adhere to the Sabbath.” Yet, we understand that Jesus is not just from God; He is God Himself.
The second fallacy: “How can a person deemed a sinner accomplish such extraordinary miracles?” They indeed can, as Matthew 24:24 warns us: “For false messiahs and false prophets will emerge, displaying remarkable signs and wonders to mislead, if feasible, even those chosen by God.”
WHOSE DISCIPLE ARE YOU?
28 They heaped insults on him, saying, “You are his disciple! We are disciples of Moses! (John 9:28)
The Pharisees assert their discipleship to Moses, indicating their adherence to the law, as expressed in the verse, “For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came about through Jesus Christ (John 1:17).” However, Galatians presents a different perspective:
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. (Galatians 5:18)
Therefore, if they desire to follow Christ, they must release their grip on their former guardian, the law.
SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS
39 Jesus said,] “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may gain their sight, and the ones who see may become blind.” 40 Some of the Pharisees who were with him heard this and asked him, “We are not blind too, are we?” 41 Jesus replied, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, but now because you claim that you can see, your guilt remains.” (John 9:39-41)
Jesus makes this remark regarding the Pharisees: “you claim that you can see.” What gives them the assurance of their vision? They rely on the law, which is God’s instruction through Moses. In an earlier chapter, Chapter 8, they proudly declare their freedom, citing their lineage from Abraham to justify their exemption from bondage. Jesus, however, was alluding to their enslavement to sin, a truth they failed to grasp. Paradoxically, instead of exposing their sinful state, the law led them to a mistaken perception of moral uprightness.
In the Garden of Eden, when the concept represented by the knowledge of good and evil entered the consciousness of Adam and Eve, their eyes were opened, and they started to see, to their own detriment. So if they “were blind, they would not be guilty of sin.”
Nghi Nguyen
- Scripture quoted by permission. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Disclaimer: This is my own opinion on the topic, which does not necessarily reflect the church's theology, or beliefs of the individuals in it — Nghi Nguyen
