#1494 John 9 Part 3 Double Blind

 

35 Jesus heard that they had put him out, and after finding him, He said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you.” 38 And he said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped Him. 39 And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” 40 Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “Are we blind too?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains. John 9: 35-41 LSB

John 9: 35-41

V. 35 Jesus heard that they had put him out - The blind man that Jesus made see had stood up against the questioning of the Pharisees, and for that reason they kicked him out. This is the point at which most fold, being cast as an outsider. 

V. 35b After finding him - This is the way it works, this is the direction these things flow in. Many may come to a church, a so called "church" or some religious person, pastor etc., searching for help or healing. Many made it that far towards Christ, hearing that He was able to heal, but even of these it was so few that realized they needed healing for a much more serious and desperate situation. It is Christ Who leaves the ninety and nine to seek and to save that which is lost. It is not grand arguments I can make, no one awakes to the sound of my voice. You can neither save nor convince anyone. When someone responds to the gospel we proclaim it is because Christ was seeking them. 

…15No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you. 16You did not choose Me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit— fruit that will remain— so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you. 17This is My command to you: Love one another.… John 15: 15-17

Now, let’s look at the spiritual sight and the beggar, the opening verses 35 to 38. Just to give you a little bit of a pattern to follow, four things define this spiritual sight, okay? Four things. He’s going to be an illustration of one who not only sees physically for the first time, but who will see spiritually for the first time. There are four elements. First of all, and this is very important. The first element is: spiritual sight requires divine initiative. Spiritual sight requires divine initiative. This man doesn’t have any capability to make himself see physically, nor does he have any capability to make himself see spiritually. That’s why this transition is made, because it’s such a graphic illustration. He can’t do anything to help himself. There’s no such thing in those ancient times as a surgeon who can fix something in his eye and enable him to see. There’s no way that he can have spiritual sight on his own. It can’t happen. Humanly speaking, it can’t happen on a temporal, physical, natural level. If he is going to see, heaven has to come down and find him, locate him, and that’s exactly what happens.

Verse 35. The buzz around the temple area and wherever it was that this interrogation took place is still going on, so Jesus hears that they had put him out. And I love this. “And finding him.” This is parallel. You remember back in chapter 5, the man at the Pool of Bethesda picked up his bed and walked, ran into the Pharisees, the same kind of interrogation, the same kind of encounter. And it says there in that same chapter, chapter 5, and I think it’s verse 14, “Jesus found him.” Jesus found him. This is how you receive spiritual sight. It all started in a divine initiative. It all started by a sovereign purpose in the mind of God. Luke 19:10. Jesus says the Son of Man is come to seek and save that which was lost. Not just the saving, but the seeking. Romans 3, no man seeks after God. We wouldn’t know where to go, wouldn’t know who to look for. So he’s the seeker. He says to His apostles in John 15:16, “You have not chosen Me. I have chosen you.” Matthew 18, “The Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.” That’s why He came. He’s the finder. He’s the one who is seeking us.

The Lord initiates spiritual sight, just like He initiated physical sight with this man. There were a lot of beggars. There were a lot of ill people, a lot of sick people. I told you there were a lot of blind people in the ancient world. He sought this man for His own purposes, His own sovereign kingdom intentions. He sought him out when this man could’ve never found Him. Totally blind. Christ is always the initiator of salvation, always the seeking Savior. Again, the blind man has no power to give himself physical sight; neither does the sinner have any power to give himself spiritual sight. It has to be initiated, inaugurated in heaven.

And so, Jesus finds the man. This is where spiritual sight begins. This is a powerful illustration of it, a very powerful illustration, because this is a helpless, hopeless man, and so is every sinner. So is every sinner.

So He finds him, and He initiates a conversation. Very short. This, again, is cryptic. These accounts in the New Testament are condensed. We don’t think the conversation was limited to this, but this is the essence that God has revealed to us. He says, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” That’s a really important question. Very important question. This man is well-schooled in the Old Testament, even though he’s not been in a synagogue. This man has absorbed the Old Testament truth even though he can’t read. We don’t know how, but he’s very wise. He knows, for example, that there’s no record ever in history of anybody being healed of blindness. He knows that. He also knows what characterizes a prophet. And so, already he has said of Jesus, “He is of God.” He has said, “He’s one who does the will of God. He is one who God hears. He is a prophet.” So, he’s a very astute man. He also knows the title, Son of Man. He is familiar with Daniel 7 where that Messianic title stands out.

Listen to what Daniel chapter 7 says. Daniel is given a vision, and it’s in the night. Chapter 7:13. I kept looking in the night visions, and behold with the clouds of heaven, one like a Son of Man was coming. That’s a Messianic title. This introduces the coming of Messiah to establish His kingdom. He came up to the ancient of days, that’s God the Father, was presented before him, to Him was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom that all the peoples, nations, and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away, and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. And this is not God, because this is one who comes to God. This is one to whom God gives this eternal, everlasting universal kingdom. It is the Messiah, and He is the Son of Man, which is a prophecy that He will be incarnate. - J Mac Sermon on The Hopelessness of The Stubbornly Blind

V. 35c Do you believe in the Son of Man - This is a Messianic title as J Mac notes above. Do you believe in the promised Seed? Do you believe in the Branch, the Prophet spoken of by Moses? All these references have come up because they are all part of their Hebrew teachings from the OT. Every student of God's word would be familiar with these, even this man who couldn't read. So we ask, do you believe what you heard; do you believe in the Son of Man, the incarnation, the One to be born of the virgin? 

19and after taking some food, he regained his strength. And he spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 Saul promptly began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, declaring, “He is the Son of God.” 21All who heard him were astounded and asked, “Isn’t this the man who wreaked havoc in Jerusalem on those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?”… Acts 9: 19-21

…4because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. 5Who then overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 6This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ—not by water alone, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies to this, because the Spirit is the truth.… 1 John 5: 4-6

2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.

3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

4 having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.

5 For to which of the angels did He ever say,

“You are My Son,

Today I have begotten You”?

And again,

“I will be a Father to Him

And He shall be a Son to Me”?

6 And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,

“And let all the angels of God worship Him.”

7 And of the angels He says,

“Who makes His angels winds,

And His ministers a flame of fire.”

8 But of the Son He says,

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,

And the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom.

9 “You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness;

Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You

With the oil of gladness above Your companions.” Hebrews 1: 2-9

V. 36 Who is He Lord that I may believe in Him - This is a tilled heart, and I know plenty, myself at a time, who would just be happy to be physically healed and then go about my way, but this man is hungry for more. 

Spurgeon - Note the humility of the man’s tone, how changed it is from that sharpness, that acerbity to which he had been driven by his enemies. He is a lamb before Christ though he was a lion before the Pharisees. That is the true Christian character,—gentle, tender, humble, meek, in the presence of the God of mercy, but with no trembling, no giving way in the presence of the adversaries of Christ and his truth.

Matthew Henry - He had well improved the knowledge he had, and now Christ gives him further instruction; for he that is faithful in a little shall be entrusted with more, Mt. 13:12. - Precept Austin

V. 37 You have both seen Him, and He is the one talking to you - Seeing is interesting here because this man was blind upon his first meeting with Christ, then sent away to wash his eyes, now He sees Him, and is spiritually perceiving Him. Faith is a gift, it is not that someone, anyone said something and you believed it, but the blind now sees because of this Man, He will see more because of what this Man is revealing to him by the Spirit. His physical eyes, which a man or woman in the know, would be pleased to live and eventually leave this world without knowing, have been restored, but they are nothing compared to the eyes of the heart which are now being made open. 

V. 38 Lord I believe, and he worshiped Him - Jesus is Lord, and this is a nonnegotiable. One day, even though you now resist, you will bow to Him, and if it is after you die it will be too late, it will only be because you see no other choice. You will bow in fear and not in love, but this man has been born from above, twice healed of blindness. His response is to worship, and as a Jew this may only be directed towards God, not towards idols, men or angels, so Who is Jesus that He can accept such?

…51While He was blessing them, He left them and was carried up into heaven. 52And they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53praising God continually in the temple.… Luke 24: 51-53

…32And when they had climbed back into the boat, the wind died down. 33Then those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God!” 34When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret.… Matthew 14: 32-34

V. 39 For judgment I have come into this world so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind - There were some in this world who had very little light in their time, and Jesus, the Light, had entered the world, and in so doing, was challenging those who had received much light but refused the truth. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He is the only way to be right with God, and in refusing Him, those who called themselves sons of Abraham, those who had the light of God's word, would now receive judicial blindness. Our day is even worse, we have the light of nature, the sciences that challenge all of men's notions and hopes to believe something else. No matter how many problems they find with their present models, no matter how many difficulties are presented against what they want to believe, yet they will passionately cling to lies and proselytize others to do likewise. We see entropy, that is what our eyes witness, but they market something going in the opposite direction, something that they have long tried to prove and found only more difficulty along the way, but the public holds them up as prophets of hope, the hope that they won't have to face a holy and just God. We have the light of Scripture, tested and readily available in the West. We have had the freedom to examine for ourselves what brought Europe out of the dark ages, yet no one reads, no one cares, everyone hates It because it goes against their pride, sin, and autonomy. We have John MacArthur, Lawson, Voddie, and many unsung heroes of the faith who continue to believe and preach Sola Scriptura, but the multitudes go to false teachers like Benny Hinn and Joel Osteen. Everyone thinks they see, every way of a man is right in his own eyes. 

…17I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those sanctified by faith in Me.’ 19So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.… Acts 26: 17-19

…9The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder, 10and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them. 11For this reason God will send them a powerful delusion so that they believe the lie,… 2 Thessalonians 2: 9-11

V. 40 Are we blind too - Yes, this man worshiped Christ, you called Him a sinner, said He was from Beelzebub, mocked Him, tried to stone Him and have Him arrested. You are the epitome of what He just said. You have chosen to be blind and He is judiciously choosing to leave you to your blindness. You do not want God and He is not going to cause you to want Him, and He does you no wrong in this. You and truth are not on speaking terms.

…16So because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to vomit you out of My mouth! 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have grown wealthy and need nothing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, white garments so that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness not exposed, and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.… Revelation 3: 16-18

V. 41 If you were blind you would have no sin - They said they weren't blind, needed no light, and they did have the books of Moses, the prophets, the pictures of the sacrificial lambs, the Temple, the Passover and yet they saw themselves righteous when they weren't. They read these things and then unrepentantly disobeyed the Spirit of them, messed with the Letter, and clung to the false hope of their own goodness. The churches are filled with people like this today, who only have a very surface relationship to Christ, or things that they have deemed Christian but are not the Truth. I know all sorts of people who like any number of men named Jesus, but if they met the real One they wouldn't recognize Him. 

…11As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. 12Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. 13The slacker says, “A lion is in the road! A fierce lion roams the public square!”… Proverbs 26: 11-13

…20Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who turn darkness to light and light to darkness, who replace bitter with sweet and sweet with bitter. 21Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. 22Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine and champions in mixing strong drink,… Isaiah 5: 20-22

…34Moreover, your skirts are stained with the blood of the innocent poor, though you did not find them breaking in. But in spite of all these things 35you say, ‘I am innocent. Surely His anger will turn from me.’ Behold, I will judge you, because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’ 36How unstable you are, constantly changing your ways! You will be disappointed by Egypt just as you were by Assyria.… Jeremiah 2: 34-36

…46The master of that servant will come on a day he does not expect and at an hour he does not anticipate. Then he will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers. 47 That servant who knows his master’s will but does not get ready or follow his instructions will be beaten with many blows. 48But the one who unknowingly does things worthy of punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from him who has been entrusted with much, even more will be demanded.… Luke 12: 46-48

…8If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.… 1 John 1: 8-10

John MacArthur explains - Jesus’ point was that if the Pharisees would confess that they were spiritually blind (thereby admitting their need for Christ, the true Light) they would have no sin, because it would be forgiven (Ps. 32:5; Prov. 28:13; 1 John 1:9). (See John Commentary)

In his study Bible MacArthur says "Jesus had particular reference to the sin of unbelief and rejection of Him as Messiah and Son of God. If they knew their lostness and darkness and cried out for spiritual light, they would no longer be guilty of the sin of unbelief in Christ. But satisfied that their darkness was light, and continuing in rejection of Christ, their sin remained."

John Calvin - He is blind who, aware of his own blindness, seeks a remedy to cure his disease. In this way the meaning will be, “If you would acknowledge your disease, it would not be altogether incurable; but now because you think that you (PHARISEES) are in perfect health, you continue in a desperate state.” When he says that they who are blind have no sin, this does not excuse ignorance, as if it were harmless, and were placed beyond the reach of condemnation. He only means that the disease may easily be cured, when it is truly felt; because, when a blind man is desirous to obtain deliverance, God is ready to assist him; but they who, insensible to their diseases, despise the grace of God, are incurable. (John 9 Commentary) - Precept Austin

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#1493 John 9 Part 2 An Early Reformer

 

13 They *brought to the Pharisees the man who was formerly blind. 14 Now it was a Sabbath on the day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. 15 So the Pharisees also were asking him again how he received his sight. And he said to them, “He applied clay to my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16 So then some of the Pharisees were saying, “This man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others were saying, “How can a sinful man do such signs?” And there was a division among them. 17 Therefore, they *said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him, since He opened your eyes?” And he said, “He is a prophet.”

18 Then, the Jews did not believe it of him that he was blind and had received sight, until they called the parents of the very one who had received his sight, 19 and questioned them, saying, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?” 20 So his parents answered and said, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but how he now sees, we do not know; or who opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself.” 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confessed Him to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue. 23 For this reason his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

24 Therefore, a second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, “Give glory to God; we know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He then answered, “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” 26 So they said to him, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?” 27 He answered them, “I told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to listen again? Do you want to become His disciples too?” 28 And they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where He is from.” 30 The man answered and said to them, “Well, here is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from, and He opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He listens to him. 32 Since the beginning of time it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.” 34 They answered and said to him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?” So they put him out. John 9: 13-34 LSB

John 9: 13-34

V. 14 Now it was a Sabbath on the day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes - Jesus healing and doing good on the Sabbath again. When your enemies can't get you for an actual crime then they do what they did to Shadrach and his buddies, make a law that you bow down to the things that they created. For Daniel they made it illegal to pray to His God, for Jesus they take Rabbinical traditions about the Sabbath, extrabiblical, bad doctrine and use it as a basis to accuse and try Him. He is not a criminal according to God's teachings, but to the teachings of those who swallow camels He is. Remember, according to their tradition you couldn't kneed dough or clay on the Sabbath, so I think it pretty safe, knowing that God is sovereign, that Jesus purposely chose this method, this technique when healing the man. Biblically, acts of mercy were not prevented, but arrogantly, these men think the Rabbinical writings take precedence. 

…3Then Jesus said to the man with the withered hand, “Stand up among us.” 4And He asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?” But they were silent. 5Jesus looked around at them with anger and sorrow at their hardness of heart. Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and it was restored.… Mark 3: 3-5

V. 15 He applied clay to my eyes, and I washed them, and I see - This is definitely an investigation for these Barnies, but the premise is ungodly. It is a very concise answer as to what occurred and as much as the man who was once blind knows.

…36Nor should you swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ Anything more comes from the evil one. Matthew 5: 36-37

V. 16 This Man is not from God because He does not keep the Sabbath - Because he healed on the Sabbath, and they even considered saliva to have healing properties, so applying it would be in their warped minds, a forbidden work because someone had called it as much in their writings. Interestingly, Jesus chose to use both the saliva and the dirt. Now they really can't be too mad at the no longer blind man for washing because he had dirt in his eyes, and even they would pull their donkey out of a ditch on the Sabbath, but they hate the Landowner's Son.  

…4But they remained silent. Then Jesus took hold of the man, healed him, and sent him on his way. 5And He asked them, “Which of you whose son or ox falls into a pit on the Sabbath day will not immediately pull him out?” 6And they were unable to answer these questions.… Luke 14: 4-6

…14But the synagogue leader was indignant that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. “There are six days for work,” he told the crowd. “So come and be healed on those days and not on the Sabbath.” 15“You hypocrites!” the Lord replied, “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it to water? 16Then should not this daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be released from her bondage on the Sabbath day?”… Luke 13: 14-16

V. 17 What do you say about Him - The blind man is being challenged by those who have put themselves in the seat of spiritual experts and teachers, not understanding that theirs is the harsher judgement. He is taking it all in, doing his own investigation one might say, and comes to this conclusion, "He is a prophet." This man knows what he was and knows what he now is after meeting Jesus and doing what Jesus told him to do. At the very least, knowing what he knows, knowing the Scripture, which we will see is quite dear to him, this Jesus must be a prophet. 

27Then Jesus and His disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way, He questioned His disciples: “Who do people say I am?” 28They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” 29“But what about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Christ.”… Luke 13: 27-29

V. 18 Then the Jews did not believe it of him that he was blind - There is a theological problem from the OT that they would rather avoid addressing, a very precarious path along the cliff face they are now walking. It would be much easier to deal with Jesus wiping clay on someone's eyes for no reason, dumb as that seems, or if they could just prove that it was all staged. So they now they call in more testimony, further witnesses, the man's own parents. 

V. 20 We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind - So much for that.

V. 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews - The old, "never met Him, never heard of Him, don't know what you are talking about, I didn't see anything.", and that's all okay if it's true, but they are lying because they are afraid. God still requires us to tell the truth, to do the right thing, He is not the God of situational ethics. Why are his parents afraid? Because the same verse finishes with the knowledge that anyone who called Jesus, the Christ, which is to say, the foretold Messiah, that person would be kicked out of synagogue. It is like the Roman Catholic Church excommunicating people for reading the Bible in their own language, or burning people at the stake for not believing, upholding Roman Catholic dogma where it differs from Scripture. I have been to so called evangelical and Pentecostal churches where they did and said things that differed from Holy Scripture, and when asked about it, they would answer, "touch not God's anointed, respect the cloth." In other words, they were special, had revelation from God that disagreed with what God said in His Word, and everyone just needs to be quiet and go along with it because they are "anointed". This guys parents didn't want to be cut off from the synagogue, didn't want to be social outcasts. 

…10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.… Matthew 5: 10-12

…17But to keep this message from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in this name.” 18Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than God.… Acts 4: 17-19

V. 24 Give glory to God, we know this man is a sinner - Everyone is looking at the same Guy, has the same facts now, and the religious gurus somehow draw this conclusion, that Jesus is a sinner. Based upon their faulty interpretations and additions to that dealing with the Sabbath, and that the Man Who can make the blind see also calls Himself, I Am. 

V. 25 Whether He is a sinner, I do not know - He hasn't made that leap with the information, and he even had to have his parents testify because the Pharisees didn't want to believe him when he told the truth. I think he is starting to notice some inconsistencies with them. He is unwilling to perjure himself here and slander the person Who just healed him.

9Even if we accept human testimony, the testimony of God is greater. For this is the testimony that God has given about His Son. 10Whoever believes in the Son of God has this testimony within him; whoever does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given about His Son. 11And this is that testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.… 1 John 5: 9-11

V. 25b Though I was blind now I see - This is a grand testimony, "I once was lost, and now I am found, was blind, but now I see." This is the sad part for superficial believers, they give the Bible a nod, saying, "yeah, that's God's word, or I believe it to be", but they don't treat it as though they believe that. There is life in there, hope, the very words and instruction of the Creator of the universe, so why so much dust? When someone experiences regeneration the Word of God becomes dear to them, this is where they hear their adoptive Father's voice. This is where they learn how to speak with Him, and their idea of prayer changes, it is more like oxygen now, and they no longer pray so much for the trivial, but for that which has eternal weight and glory. Then they see answers to these prayers, and their eyes are now too far open to recant, their hearts too blessed to stop. 

Spurgeon - There was no driving him out of that stronghold. That which is a matter of our own personal experience is a thing about which we may well feel positively certain. I wish we had more Christian people firmly established in their faith because it is a matter of deep, heartfelt, personal experience with them. I like to meet a man who can say, “I am willing to yield to opponents upon certain points concerning which I am not quite sure; but the fact of the efficacy of the gospel of God’s grace, the power of the precious blood of Jesus to cleanse the heart and conscience, the divine operation of the Holy Spirit within the soul,—all these are truths which I cannot and will not yield. Like this man, I can say, ‘One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.’”....He could not be beaten out of that. You cannot argue a man out of an experience of this kind; and if the Lord Jesus Christ has ever opened your eyes, dear friend, nobody can make you doubt that blessed fact. - Precept Austin

…2You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3And when you do ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may squander it on your pleasures. 4You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.… James 4: 2-4

V. 27 I told you already and you did not listen - If he shared his parents fear of these men it is now quickly dissipating. He is becoming firm in his stance.

V. 27c Do you want to become His disciples too - Now he has gone full on Reformer, before Luther and Calvin, and this is some beautiful sarcasm here. "Too", I like that, there is an unbridled confession here, and even if unintentional that's how they will treat it. Come on now then, let's follow Him together. 

V. 28 You are His disciple but we are disciples of Moses - Moses won't be of much help to them here. He actually predicted Christ coming as a prophet like him, and they can't make the connection. 

They reviled (loidoreo) him and said, "You are His disciple (mathetes), but we are disciples (mathetes) of Moses - When confronted with logic and reason, what do many people do? They attack! Where are your credentials? Who ordained you? You didn't even attend "seminary!" (I've been accused of that one by some spiritual elites). Their response to him was meant to be loud and abusive, but proved (unbeknownst to them) to be, in a sense, a prophetic blessing! Why? Because as the story unfolds the man healed from physical blindness, was also healed of spiritual blindness in Jn 9:38, thus fulfilling their "prophetic" words by becoming a true disciple of Jesus! Note that the text You are His disciple more literally says "that man's disciple," (or "you are that one's disciple") which emphasizes the leaders' contempt for Jesus! - PA

…45Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, in whom you have put your hope. 46 If you had believed Moses, you would believe Me, because he wrote about Me. 47But since you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?”… John 5: 45-47

V. 30 Well here is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from, and He opened my eyes - It's funny, He has garnered all sorts of speculation and accusations from these spiritual giants. When He says He comes from God, they insist they know that He is from Galilee, that He is the carpenter's Son. When He cast out demons they say it's because He comes from Satan, people go to great lengths in order to remain in their sin and unbelief. They call Him a sinner here, that they are certain of, but they don't know where He is really from, and they have this other problem that they keep blowing off, this mans eyes are open.

…17Deal bountifully with Your servant, that I may live and keep Your word. 18Open my eyes that I may see wondrous things from Your law. 19I am a stranger on the earth; do not hide Your commandments from me.… Psalm 119: 17-19

V. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners - We know? This means he is taking them back to the OT, he is appealing to God's Word, and they brought up Moses, so He is going to take them back to basics. 

…8For what is the hope of the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life? 9Will God hear his cry when distress comes upon him? 10Will he delight in the Almighty? Will he call upon God at all times?… Job 27: 8-10

12There they cry out, but He does not answer, because of the pride of evil men. 13Surely God does not listen to empty pleas, and the Almighty does not take note of it.… Job 35: 12-13

7After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, He said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and your two friends. For you have not spoken about Me accurately, as My servant Job has. 8So now, take seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. Then My servant Job will pray for you, for I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken accurately about Me, as My servant Job has.” 9So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the LORD had told them; and the LORD accepted Job’s request.… Job 42: 7-9

…18If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. 19But God has surely heard; He has attended to the sound of my prayer. 20Blessed be God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld from me His loving devotion!… Psalm 66: 18-20

…28The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked blurts out evil. 29The LORD is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous. 30The light of the eyes cheers the heart, and good news nourishes the bones.… Proverbs 15: 28-30 

V. 31b But if anyone is God fearing and does His will - Preach brother, he is going into full on teach mode here. This has to be humiliating and the steam must be doing damage to their eyes. The blind man, who they would look down on in their works based system, can now see, and apparently he was a good listener too, because what he is saying to them expounds upon the Scriptures they would know from the daily reading, and he can't even read, but he heard.

…21Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God, 22and we will receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight. 23And this is His commandment: that we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and we should love one another just as He commanded us.… 1 John 3: 21-23

…15And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail. 17Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.… James 5: 15-17

…22wondrous works in the land of Ham, and awesome deeds by the Red Sea. 23So He said He would destroy them— had not Moses His chosen one stood before Him in the breach to divert His wrath from destroying them. 24They despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His promise.… Psalm 106: 22-24

V. 32 Since the beginning of time - This man was an awesome listener. There is now an actual theologian on the scene and they must be truly thrilled about that.

Warren Wiersbe - He added another telling argument: Jesus healed a man born blind. Never, to their knowledge, had this occurred before. So, God not only heard Jesus, but He enabled Him to give the man sight. How, then, could Jesus be a sinner? Religious bigots do not want to face either evidence or logic. Their minds are made up. Had the Pharisees honestly considered the facts, they would have seen that Jesus is the Son of God, and they could have trusted Him and been saved. (BORROW Be Alive) - Precept Austin

V. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing - Fellas, based upon Scripture, I think this Man has to be from God, because let's face it, even in the end times when the false prophet and antichrist perform "miracles" the Bible calls them false signs and wonders. Jesus is pulling off no trick here, there is no great technology that He had, and as I have written about before, even His enemies acknowledge the miracles. This was a man blind from birth. God hears Jesus as He heard Elijah call to bring down fire, or Abraham when God spared Lot, or Moses when God spared Israel, or Elisha when God healed Naaman or raised the young boy. These would be beyond difficult things to fake back then, and so they will attribute it to Satan, though Satan is not the Creator. 

…38So in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone. Let them go! For if their purpose or endeavor is of human origin, it will fail. 39But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God.” 40At this, they yielded to Gamaliel. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and released them.… Acts 5: 38-40

V. 34 You were born entirely in sins and you are teaching us - Wow, ain't that the truth, but it also applies to you, still borns in sin. They don't ever apply those things to themselves though. He was a worse sinner in their mind because he was born blind, ah, but now he isn't blind. Their logic is so twisted. Now they have the facts, have a man take them back to Scripture, but their pride makes them unteachable. So now they send him away, they kick him out, he is not a part of the prevailing thought market. We can't always fit in, if they hated Jesus they will hate His followers too. We need to come to accept that, sometimes they will kick us out, refuse service or not give us justice, but their time is only for a little while.

They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins (hamartia), and are you teaching (didasko) us?" - They in effect disregard the logic of his argument. Here the Pharisees are seeking to invalidate the healed man's testimony, even though the "sign" of his restored vision should have opened their eyes and validated the fact that the Messiah was present! Their first statement they made was theologically correct but of course they meant it pejoratively, for they saw it as the cause of his blindness! These hypocrites failed to realize/acknowledge the truth their great ancestor David taught that they too were "brought forth in iniquity!" (Ps 51:5+) And then they in effect say something like "and you have the audacity to try to teach us. How dare you!"

Spurgeon - Their dignity was touched; their superlative wisdom lifted them so much above this poor man that they said, with the utmost disdain, “Dost thou teach us?” What could they say to him ? Nothing but more reviling and abuse. That is the last argument of all. “We cannot answer him, so let us turn him out!”

…4Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge. 5Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me. 6Surely You desire truth in the inmost being; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place.… Psalm 51: 4-6

…2in which you used to walk when you conformed to the ways of this world and of the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit who is now at work in the sons of disobedience. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, fulfilling the cravings of our flesh and indulging its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature children of wrath. 4But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,… Ephesians 2: 2-4

…8Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them to you, and you can do to them as you please. But do not do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.” 9“Get out of the way!” they replied. And they declared, “This one came here as a foreigner, and he is already acting like a judge! Now we will treat you worse than them.” And they pressed in on Lot and moved in to break down the door. 10But the men inside reached out, pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.… Genesis 19: 8-10

8Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth. 9I have written to the church about this, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not accept our instruction. 10So if I come, I will call attention to his malicious slander against us. And unsatisfied with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers and forbids those who want to do so, even putting them out of the church.… 3 John 1: 8-10

…4So I will choose their punishment and I will bring terror upon them, because I called and no one answered, I spoke and no one listened. But they did evil in My sight and chose that in which I did not delight.” 5You who tremble at His word, hear the word of the LORD: “Your brothers who hate you and exclude you because of My name have said, ‘Let the LORD be glorified that we may see your joy!’ But they will be put to shame.” 6Hear the uproar from the city; listen to the voice from the temple! It is the voice of the LORD, repaying His enemies what they deserve!… Isaiah 66: 4-6

16And the second beast required all people small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, 17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark— the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18Here is a call for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and that number is 666.… Revelation 13: 16-18

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#1492 John 9 Part 1 Born That Way

 

As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this was so that the works of God might be manifested in him. 4 We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 When He had said this, He spat on the ground, made clay of the saliva, and rubbed the clay on his eyes, 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went away and washed, and came back seeing. 8 Therefore the neighbors, and those who previously saw him as a beggar, were saying, “Is not this the one who used to sit and beg?” 9 Others were saying, “This is he,” still others were saying, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the one.” 10 So they were saying to him, “How then were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man who is called Jesus made clay, and rubbed my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash’; so when I went away and washed, I received sight.” 12 And they said to him, “Where is He?” He *said, “I do not know.” John 9: 1-12 LSB

John 9: 1-12

V. 1 He saw a man blind from birth - Jesus has just referred to Himself in the last passage as, "I Am", which is the ancient Hebrew name for the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is the name by which He is to be remembered throughout the generations. This was very clear to the crowd who initially had started to believe in Him, but as He continued to teach their mood changed, and when He called Himself, God, it was unmistakable, so they tried to stone Him. Now His disciples are asking Him about a man with congenital blindness, which was a common result of babies being born to women with Syphilis back then, and still in some third world countries today. Some think this the reason for the disciple's line of questioning, but I think it has more to do with bad doctrine.

V. 2 Who sinned, this man or his parents - Remember, these people's teachers are the Scribes and Pharisees, who heard John the Baptist and Jesus' call to repent and believe, but they didn't think themselves sinners. The disciples have heard and hold to some of the same mentality, and all without very good excuse, only the excuse of bad information passed down over and over again. Again, we can look back through the OT and see the glaring example of Job. He was more righteous than his friends, but because he suffered they saw him as being in the throws of some great and unrepentant sin. They belonged to a school of thought very similar to the modern day prosperity gospel. The sign of them being godly or righteous was tied to the fact that they were wealthy and healthy. I know some very wicked men who are wealthy, physically fit, and well liked by many, and so would these if they thought it through rather than taking comfort in their own worldly possessions. Imagine putting so much weight on something so trivial as today when there is yet all of eternity. Much of their question comes from a misunderstanding of  verses about God "visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me". 

…4You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath. 5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6but showing loving devotion to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.… Exodus 20: 4-6

Wycliffe Bible translators Bob and Jan Smutherman were assigned to the Macuna people of southeast Colombia, South America. Progress was going well in putting the Bible into the Macuna language. The chief’s son was engaged as the language helper. Each portion of the Scripture had to be checked and double-checked for meaning and clarity.

After five years of labor, the Gospel of John was being finalized for publication. Gathered together to hear the Word of God, the tribe sat patiently.

Beginning at John 9:1, the son read about Jesus’ encounter with the man born blind. When he got to the verse where Jesus says that this man was born blind “in order that the works of God might be put on display,” the old chief stood to his feet. Requiring silence by his uplifted right hand, he said, “We must stop killing our babies.” To a people steeped in animism, the normal process was to take their deformed babies to a desolate place. There the babies were deserted and exposed until dead.

The implications of the gospel became shockingly clear upon hearing of a better way. - Philip L. McKown

V. 3 Neither this man nor his parents - They need not be viewed as greater sinners than the Pharisees or the disciples, as with Job, that is not the point, and we know as well that whom the Lord loveth He chaseneth. Death, disease, and all manner of spiritual blindness entered the world through sin. We are not now paying for the sins of Adam and Eve though, as some would try to propose, and it is a huge part of our current culture to try to punish people for what their great, great grandparents did and even further back, yet in Scripture it is the soul that sins that must die. We have all come under, been born into Adam's curse, but none of us without sin. We all prove ourselves sinners every day in that we sin. Those that seek reparations today are very selective of who they seek it from. We all come from Adam and Eve, and so if you come after me because I have less melanin than you, you are the racists, not I. People seeking this do so foolishly and selectively because every person can lay claim to some ill in the past, but everyone also looks over the ill of those most like them. What about the Africans who sold other Africans? Apparently this sort of thinking still persists. I recommend reading Ezekiel 18.

14 “Now behold, he has a son who has seen all his father’s sins which he has done. And he saw this but does not do likewise. 15 He does not eat at the mountain shrines or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or defile his neighbor’s wife 16 or mistreat anyone, or retain a pledge or commit robbery, but he gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing; 17 he turns his hand away from the afflicted, does not take interest or increase, but does My judgments and walks in My statutes; he will not die for his father’s iniquity; he will surely live. 18 As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what was not good among his people, behold, he will die for his iniquity.

19 “Yet you say, ‘Why should the son not bear the punishment for the father’s iniquity?’ But the son has done justice and righteousness and has kept all My statutes and done them. He shall surely live. 20 The soul who sins will die. The son will not bear the iniquity of the father, nor will the father bear the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself. Ezekiel 18: 14-20

More on Ezekiel 18

V. 4 Night is coming when no one can work - This part of His ministry was coming to an end, in about 6 months He would go to the cross. We all have but a little time here, and we should work as long as it is today.

…18For Sheol cannot thank You; Death cannot praise You. Those who descend to the Pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness. 19The living, only the living, can thank You, as I do today; fathers will tell their children about Your faithfulness. 20The LORD will save me; we will play songs on stringed instruments all the days of our lives in the house of the LORD.… Isaiah 38: 18-20

…15Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.… Ephesians 5: 15-17

V. 5 While I am in the world, I am the Light of the World - He is speaking of a coming transition that we know, from the other gospels, that they don't yet comprehend or receive. They have Christ with them, but then He must leave in order to send them a Comforter, and they, His Church, become the light of the world. This is the great work, like John the Baptist, diminishing till all they can see is Christ. There is a gospel message in here to this blind man it seems.

John Piper - This signals that something more is going on here than merely healing the man’s physical eyes so that he can see natural light. Jesus calls attention to the fact that he is the light this man needs to see. “I am the light of the world.” Which many blind people see, and many seeing people are blind to. (Born Blind for the Glory of God)

D L Moody - Atheist David Hume said to a minister, the light of nature was all he wanted. On going down stairs, Hume declined a light because the moon was high enough, and as he said it, he tumbled down stairs.

13You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.… Matthew 5: 13-15

V. 6 He spat on the ground, made clay of the saliva and rubbed it on his eyes - In the next verse He tells him to go wash in the Pool of Siloam. Obviously, I mean he does have dirt on his face now. So many things have been said as to why Jesus did this with the clay, why He used this particular method, but He chose sometimes to merely speak, other times He didn't even go to the sick person, and in the case of the woman with the blood issue, He doesn't speak to her until after she believes and is healed. Certainly many Pentecostals have tried to find the phrase that pays, how to hold their tongue just right, and probably tried to imitate Jesus in making clay as well. Their is a lot of speculation surrounding this, but I want to just leave a couple of simple observations about the dirt because I really don't know. 

He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and applied (epichrio) the clay to his eyes - Note that Jesus took all the initiative in this miracle. The blind man was not asking for healing. Jesus chose different methods to carry out His miracles and this is certainly one of the more unusual. One writer surprisingly says the curative value of saliva was highly esteemed in antiquity. There is an interesting point about Jesus making clay on the Sabbath, for the additions to the law forbade kneading (working moistened flour or clay into dough or paste with the hands) on the Sabbath! - Precept Austin

V. 7 Go wash in the pool of Siloam - This reminds me of when Naaman came to Elisha to be rid of the uncleanness of leprosy, and Elisha sent him to the Jordan. His pride actually tempted him to not be made clean, to not follow the simple instruction of the prophet. 

9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.

10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.

11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.

12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.

13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?

14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.

16 But he said, As the Lord liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused. 2 Kings 5: 9-16

More on 2 Kings 5

V. 9 He kept saying, "I am the one" - After he washed he receive his sight, and people were obviously astonished, so much so that his neighbors thought it was him, and some even convinced themselves that it was just someone who looked like him. Everything else, other than not being blind anymore, and including his own testimony, point to it being him.

He went away and washed (nipto) - It is easy to read over this too quickly and fail to notice that he obeys without question or hesitation, doing exactly what Jesus had commanded. Notice secondly that Jesus does not (at least John records nothing) give him any specific motivation to go and wash. In other words, Jesus did not promise the man that he would receive his sight if he obeyed the commands. Nevertheless, the man obeyed. We learn later that he did know it was Jesus Who had commanded him (Jn 9:11). What did he know about Jesus? Did he know Jesus had performed signs and wonders? Had he heard the story about the lame man Jesus had healed in a previous trip to Jerusalem? (Jn 5:6-9+) These are possibilities but the text does not allow us to be dogmatic.

One thing we can say is the man walked by faith and not by sight (cf 2Cor 5:7+), because he had no sight! Why do I say he walked by faith? Because faith is invariably coupled with obedience and his obedience indicates that he had some degree of belief in Jesus' words, even though it is not clear he understood what the end result would be! Note however that while he manifested some degree of faith, it was not yet saving faith. And as the narrative unfolds we see this man eventually manifested genuine saving belief in Jesus (Jn 9:36-38), so that not only was his physical blindness healed, but more importantly, his spiritual blindness was healed! The progression of this man's faith would suggest that often faith is a process. Recall that in John 8 we encountered Jews who had some degree of faith in Jesus (Jn 8:30-31+), but their subsequent actions (e.g., Jn 8:59+) proved their faith had not progressed to genuine saving faith. As we follow the progression of this blind man's faith, note that the radical contrast of the Jews picking up stones to throw at Jesus (Jn 8:59+), with this man throwing himself down before Jesus in worship (Jn 9:38+)! - Precept Austin

V. 10 How then were your eyes opened - Okay, we believe it's you, or explain this then, if you were blind then how is it you now see? I'm sure the gospel somehow rings in there, for isn't that what happens to those who are born again? You were dead, now you are alive, deaf but now hear, blind but now see. 

…4He who watches the wind will fail to sow, and he who observes the clouds will fail to reap. 5As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. 6Sow your seed in the morning, and do not rest your hands in the evening, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or if both will equally prosper.… Ecclesiastes 11: 4-6

V. 11 The Man Who is called Jesus - He knew Who put the clay on His eyes, and Who he obeyed when he went to wash them, but what does all this say about the Man Who told you to do this? Who commands the dirt, brings life and movement from the inert? Who creates the perception of an eye, the input of the ear or the mind that processes it all? Who speaks into Sarah's dead womb or tells Lazarus to come forth? Simple is best, and people today put far too much flare upon their testimony, and they emphasize what in reality is only speculation, but they sell it as Bible. Scripture is most important, what God said, and your testimony is the effect of God's word in your life. It is not your fancy car, but your convicted soul, your hunger for things you use to detest, that is what helps me and others to hear. It is humble, not puffed up, sincere, not trying to find excuses for what we once were, but ecstatic that we have been set free. 

D L Moody - HE told a straightforward story, just what the Lord had done for him. That is all. That is what a witness ought to do—tell what he knows, not what he does not know. He did not try to make a long speech. It is not the most flippant and fluent witness who has the most influence with a jury.

This man’s testimony is what I call “experience.” One of the greatest hindrances to the progress of the gospel to-day is that the narration of the experience of the Church is not encouraged. There are a great many men and women who come into the Church, and we never hear anything of the Lord’s dealings with them. If we did, it would be a great help to others. It would stimulate faith and encourage the more feeble of the flock. The apostle Paul’s experience has been recorded three times. I have no doubt that he told it everywhere he went: how God had met him; how God had opened his eyes and his heart; and how God had blessed him.

Depend upon it, experience has its place; the great mistake that is made now is in the other extreme. In some places and at some periods there has been too much of it—it has been all experience; and now we have let the pendulum swing too far the other way. - Precept Austin

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