Jesus and his disciples walked up on a man blind from birth, begging on the side of the road. Jesus spit on the ground and smeared the mud on the man’s eyes. After running off to wash, the man saw colors and people and all the world for the first time. But no Jesus.

The local Pharisees got wind of this miracle, occurring as it did on a Sabbath, and launched an investigation. They grilled the man born blind, hurling insults and lashing at him in anger.

But the once-blind beggar looked them in the eyes and answered: We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.

Not in the mood for such truth, the Pharisees tossed the man out.

On his way, Jesus found him. Now the once-blind man looked the Savior in the eye. Jesus said to him, for judgement I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.

Unseeing from birth, begging for scraps, this man understood with greater clarity the way of the Lord than a roomful of religious teachers. Those teachers, concerned more with career advancement and financial prospects, paid little attention to such details. But sitting along the road, day after day, this sightless man honed his theology.

It’s better to know Jesus than be good at religion. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing. That’s a lecture to take to heart.

John 9 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Alexandre Pellaes