Eyes Opened

Eyes Opened

As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. “Teacher,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?” “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “He was born blind so the power of God could be seen in him.” –John 9:1-3

My friend Bill Davis, a retired spine surgeon, spends every morning coordinating the phone usage at a downtown homeless shelter. He told me that the people there will rarely look him in the eye because they’ve learned that people do not want to look them in the eye. This is one of the most painful aspects of being homeless—to be treated as less than a person. They tell of the humiliation of begging and of being avoided at all costs. And most of us would admit that we, too, turn away, hoping to avoid their listless gaze so we don’t have to enter into their pain.

Far from avoiding him, John 9 tells us that Jesus saw the homeless beggar who had been blind from birth. He saw the man’s lifelong suffering and loneliness and felt compassion as he considered the darkness that defined his existence. Jesus recognized not only this man’s need to see the world around him, but also his more desperate need to see the Truth.

The disciples looked at the blind man, but they were simply interested in him as an object of theological argument. Jews of the day believed that all personal suffering was the result of personal sin or the sin of one’s parents, and some Jewish theologians even taught that a person could sin before birth. But the disciples missed the point just as they looked past the blind man’s pain. The issue was not how this man became blind. The issue was his need for Jesus. The disciples wanted to look back and debate the cause of his blindness. Jesus told them to look ahead and delight in the miracle of sight he was about to bestow.

When you look at this blind man, what do you see? If you look closely you may see yourself. We are all born blind, unable to see the things of God until we are touched by the Spirit of Jesus. Only the Spirit can make spiritually blind people see. The Spirit enables us to see beyond our suffering to the glory of God. He transforms us from beggars to believers. Do you find yourself stumbling in the darkness? Jesus sees you, and he reaches out to touch you so you can see how he is working, even now, in your life.

Sight Giver, when you look at me, do you see my desperate need? Reach out and touch me and give me the sight to see you for who you are and the willingness to submit to what you are doing in and through my life.

DIGGING DEEPER