Who Sinned?

‘Healing of the Man Born Blind’ by El Greco (detail)

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.
And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.
I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
[John 9:1-5 NKJV]

This story which opens John chapter 9 is one of only seven miracles Jesus brought that John relates. They were obviously chosen by John to reveal specific aspects of The Saviour’s earthly ministry. This is not something I have considered looking at up until now, but now that I have seen it, I feel that I must search out the matter.

For now I shall confine today’s meditation to the passage noted above. The central theme is the nature of sin, and Jesus’ assertion that not all sin is the same. The disciples obviously held to the view that blindness — or any infirmity — occurred as a result of sinful behaviour.

‘Not so,’ says Jesus. In this case the man was blind (since birth) so ‘that the works of God should be revealed in Him’. This statement makes out that the man was created blind by God, so that His power to recreate and make whole (make perfect) could be revealed. Thus, this is not a matter of sin.

It also shows something which continues to be a misunderstanding for Christians today — the difference between sin and sins. Jesus was made to be ‘sin’ to recreate our disposition to sin, not to remove our ‘sins’, our natural character.

‘For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.’ [2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV]

We can see in verse 6, a description of how Jesus made the change in the man who was blind — it is an act of re-creation — of re-forming the man anew.

‘When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.’

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Tuesday 18th May 2021

The cure of uncertainty is a new note of intercession prayer. The reason for perplexity in meeting the actual occurrences of life is because we are losing face-to-face contact with Jesus Christ through His Cross. We must get back to the place where we are concerned only about facing our own inner souls with Jesus Christ who searches us right down to the inmost recesses.
[from ‘The Place Of Help’]

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