Faith and Sight

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Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Devotions: Ps 121-26; Jer 25:8-17; Rom 10:1-13; Jn 9:18-41

My help comes from God, the Maker of heaven and earth. He is ever vigilant; He is holy and loving, and keeps me from all evil. He watches over all my actions. I am always glad to go to God’s house, and to worship Him in Jerusalem is a special honor. Let us pray for peace for Jerusalem and her people! Lord, I raise my eyes and my heart and soul and spirit to You, as a servant looks to an awesome master. Have mercy on me, O God; I have lived with the contempt of the proud for a long, long time. If You had not been on my side, I’d long ago have been destroyed by the determined opposition of wicked people. You have set me free, like a bird freed from a snare. All who trust You abide; You surround us as the mountains surround Jerusalem. Let us have Your peace! YHWH has done great things for us; may all who sow in tears reap the harvest with joy!

The apostasy of Judah and Jerusalem resulted in YHWH’s judgment against them: ‘I will bring Nebuchadrezzar and all the northern tribes against this land and its inhabitants. I will destroy these places I had blessed and set aside. I will banish mirth and gladness from them—no more weddings, no more harvests, no more light or joy! This whole land will become a waste; My people will be in bondage in Chaldea for 70 years; then I will punish those whom I have used to discipline My people; I will bring upon these arrogant aggressors every plague and punishment Jeremiah has prophesied against Judah and Jerusalem!’ YHWH sent Jeremiah forth with the cup of God’s wrath, which God said would cause the Gentile nations to stagger and reel, and to become crazed before the sword God was sending against them.

Paul continues: ‘I pray to God for my fellow Jews to be saved. They have true zeal for God, but it is not enlightened. In seeking holiness by pious adherence to Torah, they failed to submit to God’s own righteousness. There is no hope for salvation in piety or legalism. If anyone will confess that Jesus is Lord, and believe that God raised Jesus from death, that person will be saved! God justifies through our heart-belief; He saves through our open confession of faith in Jesus as Messiah and Savior. God makes no distinctions; any Jew or Gentile who calls upon God in this way will be saved. Christ is Lord of all, and bestows God’s riches on everyone who believes.'

The Jewish authorities did not believe the man whom Jesus had healed of lifelong blindness. So they called forth the man’s parents and cross-examined them. The parents were afraid, because the Jewish authorities had made it known that anyone who confessed Jesus would be excluded from the temple and the Jewish community. They affirmed that the man was their son and that he had been born blind, and now could see. They said they didn’t know how or by whom their son had been healed: ‘Our son is of age—ask him!’ So for a second time, the authorities summoned and questioned the man whose sight Jesus had restored. They warned him: ‘Give glory to God!’ [This put the man on notice that he faced severe sanctions if he was found guilty of any transgressions.] ‘We know this man is a sinner!’ The man replied simply: ‘I don’t know whether he is a sinner, but I know that I was blind and now I see.’ The authorities again demanded that the man recount how Jesus had healed him. The man replied, ‘I told you that already, and you didn’t believe me. Do you too want to become his disciples.’ This enraged the examiners, who reviled the man, ‘You are his disciple; we are disciples of Moses. We know that God spoke to Moses; we don’t know where this man comes from.’ The man responded, ‘Amazing! You don’t know where He comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We all know that God only listens to those who obey His will. Never before in human history has a man born blind been enabled to see. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.’ The Jews responded that the man had been born steeped in sin, and had no standing to teach them anything. And they excommunicated him. Jesus heard what had happened to the man, and found him. Jesus asked, ‘Do you believe in the Son of man?’ The man asked, ‘Who is He, sir, that I may believe in Him?’ Jesus said, ‘You have seen Him; it is He Who now speaks to you!’ The man replied, ‘Lord, I believe’ and worshiped Jesus. Jesus said, “I came into the world for judgment, that the blind may see and the sighted may become blind.’ Some Pharisees nearby asked Him, ‘Are we also blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘If you were truly blind, you would have no guilt; but since you claim to see, your guilt remains.’