Week 40 John
A man who had been blind his whole life met the Lord, and then he could see.
So that was pretty nice development for him.
But it was a miracle, and people started asking questions.
For the religious leaders – the Pharisees – the big problem wasn’t so much the miracle. The big problem was who was responsible for it.
John already explained four chapters ago that the religious people hated the Lord because: he had spoken of God as his Father, thereby making himself equal with God. That couldn’t be tolerated.
So the religious leaders told the blind man that he could credit God, but he could not credit the Lord. The reason they gave: we know he is a sinner.
The man maybe wasn’t the smartest guy in the world, plus he was being pressured by powerful people to conform. So at first he didn’t argue.
But as he thought about it it made no sense to him to discredit the Lord. In the end, the way he explained it to the Pharisees was like this:
God doesn’t listen to sinners,
But he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will.
Never since the world began has anyone been able to open the eyes of someone born blind.
If this man were not from God, he couldn’t do it.
The blind man’s options were limited: line up with the establishment or else.
So he took or else.
Note: quotes from John 5:18, 9:24, 31-33 (NLT)