The blind man was designed to glorify God and not pay for his or his parent's sin.

Chapter 9. Christ is still in Jerusalem but He is outside of the temple and therefore outside of the religious.

 

And just after being accused of being a fraud, a liar, being demon possessed, and being a sinner, He heals a blind man who has been blind from birth.

 

This is the first time in all of human history that a man with congenital blindness has been healed.

 

John 9:1 And as He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth.

 

John 9:2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind?"

 

John 9:3 Jesus answered, "It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was in order that the works of God might be displayed in him.

 

John 9:4 "We must work the works of Him who sent Me, as long as it is day; night is coming, when no man can work.

 

John 9:5 "While I am in the world, I am the light of the world." 

 

John 9:6 When He had said this, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and applied the clay to his eyes,

 

John 9:7 and said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). And so he went away and washed, and came back seeing.

 

 

There is a contrast between chapter eight and chapter nine:

 

In chapter eight we have Jesus in the temple; in chapter nine Jesus is outside. Outside He has a greater ministry than inside.

 

In chapter eight He is the light of the world; in chapter nine He communicates light. There is a person who has been in darkness since birth and he is going to see for the first time.

 

In chapter eight Christ is rejected and heckled in the temple; in chapter nine, outside of the temple, He is received and worshipped.

 

In chapter eight Christ walks away from the religious crowd who think they see; in chapter nine He reveals Himself to a blind man.

 

In chapter eight inside of the temple Jesus is called demon possessed; outside of the temple Jesus is called Lord.

 

Basically, this is a fabulous chapter because it takes Jesus outside of the temple, breaks as it were from the whole religious structure, and there He performs something that focuses attention on Him for every generation as long as the world exists. 

 

/Outside of the lies, deception, antagonism, and overall wet blanket evil of religion, Christ’s truth breaks free and releases many from bondage, and no one can stop it.\

 

The Pharisees can’t stop it and neither can satan and the KOD stop it.

 

/Know this, nothing can stop the truth; so get it in your souls and become unstoppable.\

 

Outline of the chapter:

The blind man and the miracle, verses 1-12

The blind man and the Pharisees, verses 13-34

 

John 9:1 And as He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth.

 

/ “passed by” is parago - as a present active participle it means that Christ was in the process of walking past this man but He stopped because He recognized this man was responsive.\

 

The principle is that:

/Christ is never going to bypass someone who is responsive to the gospel.\

 

So don’t worry about your family, friends, and loved ones who are now unbelievers. Christ will not pass them by.

 

You’ve heard pastor mention many times how un-doctrinal that old church song, “Pass me not o’ gentle Savior,” is.

 

“saw a man which was blind from birth” - the word saw is horao. Just to give a glance would be blepo but the word horao here means that He gets the picture when He goes by.

 

He saw the blind man but the blind man can’t see Him, even though he senses Jesus’ presence.

 

/Jesus has just been heckled by the religious crowd but inside of this blind man He sees something that was non-existent in the religious crowd - positive volition at the age of accountability; he understands his need for a savior.\

 

It’s just that the gospel hasn’t come his way until the proper time as it does for all members of the human race who will believe.

 

Jesus could see his positive volition and that is all that was necessary.

 

What did Jesus see, the body of the man or the soul of the man; the soul of the man.

 

Congenital blindness always distorts facial features, so this man was blind and ugly. He was a beggar, so he was poor and his clothes would have been rags.

 

So we have a blind, ugly man, dressed in rags, but that is the very least of his problems.

 

He is an unbeliever and he reveals a great principle in his hopeless physical and spiritual condition.

 

/All humanity is as helpless and hopeless as this blind man. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.\

 

The beggar is in the dark both physically and spiritually, but the light is coming soon.

 

Just like the blind beggar had no clue that the light was about to shine in his life, the one who had only known darkness, so we had not clue when that gospel was coming and how it would change our lives, but change was eminent - the greatest change that any creature could ever imagine.

 

/Luke 1:78-79

Because of the tender mercy of our God,

With which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us,

To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace." \

 

Despite everything going against this man physically, he has something great going for him. He’s ready for the gospel.

 

He needs the light of the world and the light of the world is standing in front of him. Sometime earlier in the temple Jesus said that he was the light of the world. The beggar didn’t hear him, but he didn’t have to. A lot of people all over the world didn’t hear that message, but they didn’t have to.

 

/If anyone goes on positive signals and is ready for the gospel then the gospel will come to them no matter where they are.\

 

Something else is called for here by the plan of God; something other than the message in the temple, and as always Jesus is going to follow that plan.

 

We all must become sensitive enough to the plan of God and the mentorship of the HS so that when God calls for something outside of the usual we’re ready to adapt rather than being stuck in our ways.

 

And some things that are great are going to come from Christ’s awareness. The man will become born again and saved, that’s the greatest thing. The Pharisees are going to be taught yet another lesson, that’s a great thing.

 

/And the city is once again going to bear witness to the power of Jesus Christ and the quality of His person and character, that’s the ultimate thing in the plan of God.\

 

John 9:2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind?"

 

 

/They did not ask Him, this is not the word for asking. The word here is epotao (e)rwtaw) which means to interrogate.\

 

Aorist tense: they interrogated Him in this point of time. They are standing around discussing a person who is listening to them, and a person who is blind has very keen hearing.

 

This discussion is going on all around him and their talking about him as if he’s not even there. They discuss him as though he was a piece of beef on the pavement.

 

/They have no sensitivity to his sensitivity. They are not aware of the fact that a blind beggar could have a soul and be as sensitive as anyone else.\

 

/Lack of spiritual growth breeds self-absorption, arrogance, and lack of sensitivity to others.\

 

If you are one of the fortunate ones to be advancing spiritually and you happen to find yourself around believers who are weak, you must apply the royal family honor code.

 

   

/ROM 15:1

Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves.\

 

However, Christ is going to rebuke them gently as well as teach them the proper principle, since He is not only their Savior, but their teacher and trainer. Therefore a gentle rebuke along with correction may be in order when you are dealing with a weak believer, but that is between you and God.

 

You who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength.

 

/“saying” - they kept on saying. They didn’t say it once; they said it enough times that this person could have fallen apart from self-pity.\

           

“who did sin, this man or his parents” - the disciples are looking at a body, but that body has a soul.

           

“that” introduces a result clause; “with the result that he was born blind?” There are two theories.

 

/Some held to the “this man” theory - he sinned so he was born blind (not logical), some to the “parent” theory - his parents sinned so he was born blind (a distortion of doctrine).\

 

Both of these positions are wrong.

           

The culpability theory is the religious theory. Number one theory is philosophical; number two is religious.

 

/The culpability theory is a distortion of scripture, a misinterpretation of Exodus 20:5. This view was held by Judaism. It says his parents did something terrible and he is paying for it.\

           

/Several points concerning the doctrine of culpability.\

 

/1. The principle of culpability is given in Exodus 20:4-6; Deuteronomy 5:8-10. The true law of culpability as stated in these two passages merely says that when the parents have weaknesses they often teach their children to be weak in the same way. It has to do with how parents rear their children.\

 

Ex 20:4-6

"You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

 

/Deut 24:16

"Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own sin.\