February 21, 2023 – Tuesday
John 9:35-38 NIV
35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
36 “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
37 Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
38 Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
Comments
Friday’s Verse/s of the Day ended in verses 24-25 with the man who had been blind from birth being called to the Pharisees to testify once again. They wanted a specific answer as their minds were already made up, 24 A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. “Give glory to God by telling the truth,” they said. “We know this man is a sinner.” 25 He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”
They obviously did not like that answer, so once again, 26 Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” And once again he answered in a way they did not appreciate, 27 He answered, “I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?” For a man who had been a beggar due to his blindness, his answer was rather sharp as if he was very aware of what was going on in their false court. They still did not understand what had happened as they did not want to admit Jesus could be the Messsiah, so they continued in desperation by attacking the man who had been blind, 28 Then they hurled insults at him and said, “You are this fellow’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.”
His reply to their attack and their ignorance showed he had gained insight as well as eyesight, 30 The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. 32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” When I first read this, I was amazed at this man’s courage when he spoke the obvious truth directly to them. And I remain amazed at his courage as he had to know what might happen. What happened? They insulted him once again and threw him out of the synagogue, 34 To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.
That is when we come to our verses for today, 35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.” 37 Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.” 38 Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. The man had just been rejected by his religious leaders, and kicked out of the synagogue when Jesus found him and comforted him. He had refused to condemn Jesus before the Pharisees and now Jesus chose to reveal Himself to him. He had not seen Jesus after regaining his sight, but now he did. Jesus revealed Himself as the Son of Man. Once told, he not only believed, but he worshipped Him. This man could see the truth clearly, thus he believed Jesus and worshipped Him, something the Pharisees refused to do.
The chapter ends with Jesus saying, 39 “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.” 40 Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?” 41 Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.” They were blinded by their self-righteousness believing they were without sin denying their blindness. Not so with sinners as they know they need forgiveness.
Bottom Line: Be careful not to let self-righteousness blind you to your need for God’s forgiveness, His grace.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Thank You for revealing Jesus to us so we may see and believe. – In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
RileyD, nwJ
Riley D. Driver – Pastor
Calvary Chapel of Dayton
in Beavercreek