I.        INTRODUCTION

A.      In John 9:5, Jesus declared, “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

                                                             1.      At this point in the Lord’s ministry, the Jews and the Pharisees were already adamantly opposed to Jesus, but they could never find anything against Him or anything to disprove His claims.

                                                             2.      Now Jesus claimed to be the light of the world, which He would declare again in John 12:35-36.  Again, they would find no way to disprove Him.

B.      Not only did Jesus say that He was the light of the world, but He also proved and demonstrated this truth.

                                                             1.      Anyone could make such a claim, but Jesus proved Himself with irrefutable evidence.

                                                             2.      With this evidence before their eyes, how would the Pharisees respond?

II.      THE SIGN (JOHN 9:1-12)

A.      John 9:1

                                                             1.      Notice the subject of this sign or miracle.  This man was born blind.  He was not going blind nor had he gone blind recently.  He had always been blind.

                                                             2.      Sometimes blindness due to injuries or illnesses can suddenly go away.  This was not the case with this man.

B.      John 9:2-4

                                                             1.      Like Job’s friends, the disciples assumed that a physical affliction was the result of sin.

                                                             2.      Jesus corrected this assumption.  This was the providence of God so that Christ might be revealed.

                                                             3.      Jesus also taught the disciples that the opportunity to perform the works of God would come to an end.  The lesson for us is to make the most of our time before death puts an end to opportunity.

C.      John 9:5-7

                                                             1.      Jesus made the claim of being the light of the world, and then He demonstrated this spiritual truth in a physical way by healing the blind man.

                                                             2.      Jesus could have healed the blind man instantly, but instead he told him to go and wash.  Why?

a.       Jesus tested the blind man’s faith.  Jesus gave a condition, and the man played a part in his own healing.

b.       Jesus also challenged the traditions of the Pharisees.  Just as when He healed the lame man and told him to take up his pallet and walk on the Sabbath (John 5:8-9), the blind man was also healed on the Sabbath, thus violating the Pharisees’ tradition.

                                                             3.      Let us make some applications:

a.       Consider those who challenge the necessity of baptism for salvation by arguing that such a necessity places the power in the water instead of Christ.  In this parallel situation, we see that there was no power in the waters of Siloam, but the power was in the Lord.  Yet, if the man had not washed, he would not have seen.  Likewise, unless we are baptized in water, we will not access the power of Christ to be saved (Mark 16:16).

b.       Notice that the blind man did not react the way that Naaman did when Elisha commanded him to wash in order to be healed of leprosy (2Ki. 5:1-19).  This man obeyed immediately.  Likewise, we should not question God’s plans for our salvation, but rather we should obey immediately.

D.      John 9:8-12

                                                             1.      The fact that a legitimate miracle had occurred is evident by the reactions of those who recognized the formerly blind man.  Their first reaction was disbelief, and then they tried to reason how this could have happened.

                                                             2.      There was no natural explanation.  The only logical conclusion would be that the healing was supernatural.  It was an act of God.

III.   THE DISBELIEF OF THE PHARISEES (JOHN 9:13-34)

A.      John 9:13-16

                                                             1.      Consider the logic of some Pharisees when they heard the account of what happened to this man.

a.       They reasoned that all people from God kept the Sabbath, but Jesus did not keep the Sabbath.  Therefore, they decided that Jesus was not from God.

b.       The problem with their logic was that Jesus had not broken the Sabbath of God but rather their tradition.  Their tradition had been exposed as a precept of men when Jesus demonstrated authority from God and invalidated their tradition.  Rather than realizing this, they stubbornly clung to their tradition.

                                                             2.      Others of the Pharisees recognized that this was a sign.

a.       A sign always represents something and conveys a message.

b.       The sign of this man’s healing was an indication of who Jesus is.  However, the Pharisees refused to accept this message.

B.      John 9:17-23

                                                             1.      Not wanting to accept the necessary conclusion based on the evidence presented to them, the Pharisees began to seek other evidence.

                                                             2.      They questioned the formerly blind man, and he quickly confessed that Jesus was a prophet.

                                                             3.      Therefore, the Pharisees attempted to discredit the miracle by questioning the man’s parents.

a.       Three questions were asked (v. 19), and the parents readily answered the first two, proving that this was indeed the man who was born blind and not an imposter.

b.       However, the parents evaded the third question because they feared the Jews.  Verses 22 and 23 indicate that the parents understood that Jesus had performed a miracle, but they were afraid to confess that belief.

C.      John 9:24-34

                                                             1.      Failing to justify themselves with the parents, the Pharisees turned again to the healed man.

a.       The Pharisees stated that Jesus was a sinner presumably because He broke their tradition.

b.       The formerly blind man again replied by testifying the only evidence he knew, which was that he could now see whereas he was once blind.  This was the evidence that the Pharisees refused to consider.

                                                             2.      The Pharisees again asked for the man’s story, like lawyers in a modern courtroom trying to find some inconsistency in his testimony.

a.       However, the man wisely refused to give the story again because he knew that they would not listen to the truth.

b.       Therefore, they reviled him, associating him with Jesus, whom they counted as a sinner.  At the same time, they exalted themselves as disciples of Moses.

c.        The formerly blind man exposed the Pharisees’ bias that blinded them to the truth.  He stated in verse 33, “If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.”

                                                             3.      In verse 34, the Pharisees could no longer deal with the healed man, and they put him out.

a.       The Pharisees could not bear the truth about Jesus, and they could not fight it any longer.

b.       They failed to discredit the story as a fraud, so they discredited the man as a sinner without any evidence to condemn him.

c.        Consider the tremendous courage of this man who had been just a blind beggar but was now standing in defiance of the mighty Pharisees.  This man was brave and honest, knowing that the miracle indicated who Jesus was.  It seems that the formerly blind man was the only one who could now see.  Just as Jesus had said in verse 3, the works of God were indeed displayed in this man.

IV.    JESUS COMPLETES THE LESSON (JOHN 9:35-41)

A.      John 9:35-38

                                                             1.      Jesus was mindful of this one who had defended Him, and He found the man, asking a very important question for all of us:  “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

                                                             2.      The man responded by asking for confirmation of the belief that he had already demonstrated.  Receiving the answer, the healed man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshipped Jesus.

B.      John 9:39-41

                                                             1.      Jesus revealed the core of this lesson, His two-fold purpose for coming into the world.  It was “that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.”

                                                             2.      The meaning of this saying becomes apparent in verses 40 and 41.

a.       All men are in darkness and need the light, but not all will acknowledge their need.  Jesus’ coming brings salvation to some, but others remain lost.

b.       Those who confess that they are blind and the need the light of the world, Jesus Christ, will be made to see.  This is a symbol of the sinners who recognize their need for the Savior and who the true Savior is.  These are forgiven.

c.        Those who say, “We see,” sense no need for the light and refuse Christ, thus remaining in their blindness.  These are those who are self-righteous and reject the Son of God.  See John 1:4-5, 9-11.  They are truly lost without a Savior, and their sin remains.