A Man Born Blind

 Temple Baptist Church - 5-31-2023

John 9:1-7

 

Introduction:

 

A.  Tonight, I want to look at another great miracle performed by our Lord just after the Pharisees took up stones to stone Him.  Nothing or nobody could deter Christ from the task before Him.

 

B.  The importance of both words and context is found in the verses that I just read.  Let us see what I mean by reading two verses together.

 

John 8:59-9:1  Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.  (9:1)  And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

 

1.  A Prepared Man. “Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents”

 

2.  A Providential Meeting.  “but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

 

John 9:2-3  And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?  (3)  Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

 

3.  A Proven Method.  This story will line up with the story of “The Woman at the Well”.

 

C.  These two verses are simultaneous.  Jesus immediately turned a bad event, the birth and life of a blind man, into a miraculous one!  This man no doubt was within hearing distance of the previous conversation because of his close proximity to what had gone on.

 

D.  I just make mention of this to show the love and compassion of Christ as we would have made haste to get away from the situation that He was in.  But, Christ, in His omniscience, both knew the blind man was there and foreknew that he would be there.

 

E.  This entire chapter deals with the healing and revealing of the man born blind.  I just want to key in on the miracle tonight.

 

F.  I find two things in the verses that we read, improbability and impossibility.

 

1.  Improbability – “a man”. 

 

a)  A man who had no hope of ever seeing.  This was not a child but a man who had been blind throughout his infancy, childhood, and manhood.  Never giving thought to being anything other than blind for as long as he lived. 

 

b)  We too often give up, having no hope of ever seeing things in our lives that we consider bad things going away or changing.  We become resigned to our fate.

 

2.  Impossibility – “blind from his birth”. 

 

a)  There had NEVER been a man, blind from birth, healed of his blindness.  His situation became accepted because there was neither cure nor hope.

 

b)  There are some things in life that we do not have the power to change and, therefore, we accept our predicament with both helplessness and hopelessness.

G.  In this chapter, we find that the Lord did the improbable and impossible!

 

John 9:6-7  When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,  (7)  And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

 

1.  This man was completely healed, in that, for the first time in his life, he could see clearly.  No need of rehab or glasses.

 

2.  This man was completely healed, in that, he understood everything that he saw.  A few people, in our day, can be surgically helped through retina transplantation, etc., but never having seen, must be told what their looking at is a tree or rose or the color red.

 

3.  This man both saw and understood what he was seeing without having to be told.

 

H.  Here is the message: never give up on the God of probability and possibility!  What the Lord did to this man born blind was both IMPROBABILITY and  IMPOSSIBILITY!  We serve the God of IMPOSSIBILITY.  What do you need today?  What have you been praying for?  How is your faith in IMPOSSIBILITY?  A “bridge too far”!

 

J.  “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” is the question asked.

 

1.  When we get tired, God says: Matthew 11:28-30  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  (29)  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  (30)  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

 

2.  When we think that nobody cares, God says: 1 Peter 5:7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

 

3.  When we can’t go any farther, God says: Psalms 91:15-16  He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.  (16)  With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

 

4.  When we think that we cannot do it, God says: Philippians 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

 

5.  When we feel alone, God says: Hebrews 13:5  Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

 

6.  When we are afraid, God says: Hebrews 13:6  So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

 

7.  When peace fails us, God says:  John 14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

 

8.  In our IMPOSSIBILITIES, the God of ALL POSSIBILITY says: Psalms 121:1-8  I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.  (2)  My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.  (3)  He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.  (4)  Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.  (5)  The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.  (6)  The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.  (7)  The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.  (8)  The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.