1. Seeing the story as a progression of faith. At first the man born blind had no idea who had cured him. His faith gets clearer as he is questioned. Jesus is at first just a man, then a prophet, and finally he is his Lord, the one he worships.
He is able to stand up against the enemies of Jesus certain that he has been healed and saved from darkness. He is willing to stand up for his new faith.
How have you shared your faith with others ? Consider your impact on the community around you.
2. "Seeling others in terms of their shortcomings, challenges, or perceived deficits." (David Lose writing this week in WorkingPreacher). Have we been guilty of this ?
"We seem to have such a penchant for defining others – and ourselves – in terms of problems rather than possibilities that we aren’t sure what to do when the situation changes. And so the friends of the man born blind have defined him – and even their relationships with him – so fully in terms of his disability that they can’t recognize him when he regains his sight."
Appearances can be deceiving . "The Pharisees came into this story of restored sight assuming they could see and the man was blind. They "saw" that people who were blind, ill, or poor were that way because they had sinned against God. They "saw" that their laws and stipulations were the path to life. Therefore, healings were not to take place on the Sabbath. They "saw" that Jesus could not be a genuine prophet or healer because he did not abide by their Sabbath laws. They "saw" that, since Jesus was a sinner the healing could not be genuine—the man must have been able to see already. They "saw" that because this man had been born blind, he was a sinner and could teach them nothing (9:34)."
"I came into this world for judgment, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind" (v. 39).
3. Lent should be a time we can really see so we know where we are going. We can avoid paths that have no value or that we have already travelled unsuccessfully. "When I see Jesus more clearly I bond with him and become whole in his love and grace."
4. "Transformation can be disruptive." Despite his improvment, the man is kicked out of his community. However, as the book Hidden Power of the Gospels emphasizes "Jesus brings the blind man into a new fold, a new community, where provision and sustenance are like that of a shepherd with his sheep."
From the Hidden Power of the Gospels -"John told this story and used these images of seeing and not seeing, believing and not believing, to help an early Christian community "see" themselves in it. They knew what it felt like to be driven out of the synagogue by the religious authorities, to be expelled from their "church home." (They were really feeling the lack of "extravagant hospitality"!) John helps them to connect their loss with the gain of grace in their powerful experience of conversion and healing, understanding and trust. But sometimes conversion and belief inspire judgment, rejection, and condemnation from those around us. It’s a lonely place to be, and John’s way of telling this story must have spoken powerfully to the people in that situation, reassuring them that they were not alone: they now belonged to a community that shared the same faith, and, ultimately, like the man born blind but newly sighted, they would encounter Jesus on their way."