As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. John 9:1.
I couldn’t get beyond this one sentence without pondering what it would be like to be blind from birth.
Take a minute to close your eyes and imagine along with me…life in total darkness.
You take steps but cannot see what lies in front of you. You are prone to stumbling over obstacles and fall often.
You get dressed and brush your hair but can’t see your appearance.
You are hungry but can’t see your choices so you eat what is given to you.
You hear what your friends tell you but you can’t see their facial expressions.
You depend upon descriptions and directions that others provide.
You hear people laugh but you don’t know why.
You are unaware of the danger surrounding you. You can’t see the traps set for you. And you can’t see those who intend to harm you.
You depend upon the mercy of others.
Is it possible that these physical difficulties can have spiritual implications that apply to everyone? Consider these:
Life is filled with obstacles. We stumble and fall because we don’t anticipate them or see them. And we question what our next step, our tomorrow, will bring.
We wear garments that the world tells us are beautiful and fit perfectly. Yet from God’s perspective, they are not at all attractive and don’t fit His perfect design for us.
We are spiritually hungry but can’t see the banquet prepared for us … so we just eat what others give us.
We have shallow conversations with others because we can’t see their inner struggles and personal victories.
We are swayed by the opinions and guidance of mere mortals.
We hear of joy but don’t experience it.
We cannot see danger. We cannot see the enemy who wants to steal, kill and destroy.
We are needy people.
Every one of us was born in spiritual blindness. And it takes a miracle for our eyes to be opened to truth. For those who have experienced the miracle and place our eyes on Jesus, perhaps there should be compassion towards those who walk in “blindness”. And perhaps, we must acknowledge that we do not see clearly. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12).
We can recognize that the Jesus we read about in the Bible is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). He is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being (Hebrew 1:3) but I think we can only see a tiny glimpse of His grandeur.
Too often, our responses to life’s circumstances, people, and opportunities reflect our own poor eyesight. If we saw clearly, we would say “no” to many things and “yes” to even more. We would clothe ourselves daily with compassion and humility. We would eagerly share our feast. We would be better listeners. We would consistently desire God’s opinion over man’s. We would know joy. We would be strong and victorious in the Lord’s power.
Spoiler alert: The Light of the World is going to open the blind man’s eyes to see what he could only have imagined in the past. He will be given the gift of sight, both physical and spiritual. If we look carefully, we will find ourselves written in the story line.
Thoughts to ponder:
Where do I recognize that I need to see from God’s perspective?
Where have I become comfortable with blindness?
debponders 