John 9:1-7
The High Cost of Ignorance
At the onset of this message, let me tell you that there are two
miracles recorded in this chapter. One was done by Jesus. The other
was not. The one done by Jesus was glorious. The other was
shameful. Jesus’ miracle brought understanding and life. The other
brought leaves foolishness and death.
Let’s consider them both.
I. Jesus’ miracle was to give the blind man his sight.
A. Jesus healed many who were blind.
\\#Matt 9:27, 12:22, Mark 8:22, 10:46\\.
Mt 15:30 And great multitudes came unto him,
having with them those that were lame, blind,
dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them
down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them:
B. But we have more details given to us concerning this man’s
condition than any other, although still not a lot.
1. \\#1\\ We know that this man was born blind.
(a) The power of this miracle is just as amazing today.
(b) \\#32\\ People born blind to this day usually
never see!
2. \\#3\\ We know that this man’s sin was not directly
caused by sin. Some would tell us that if you are
sick, it is because of a sin or lack of faith. Not
always so!
(a) it could be God preparing to take you home.
(b) It could be directly sin related.
(c) It could be that God wants to do a miracle in
your life.
(d) It could be that God is giving you a special
cross to bear so that you can win a special
crown in eternity.
3. \\#8\\ The man made a living begging.
(a) That was a tough life.
(b) No education, no work, no opportunity but to beg.
(c) He had been doing it all of his life.
(d) Yet the blind mane seemed to have a good attitude and
he appears to be a reasonable, God-fearing man.
C. \\#6-7\\ We even know what Jesus did to heal this man.
1. We assume that most of the time, Jesus merely spoke and
a healing took place. That is not what happened here.
2. What a strange procedure!
(a) Jesus used dirt and spit (holy water).
(b) Then send the man walking through the city with that
mud on his eyes to the pool of Siloam.
(c) Siloam appears to come from a word which means sent,
sent away, separated from, divorced.
(d) This pool has some significance since it was where
the water that drawn which was used daily during the
Feast of Tabernacles *water libation.
3. Here is what I think.
(a) I don’t think it was the spit, the earth, or the
pool of Siloam that healed the man.
(b) I think it was the word of Jesus and the faith the
man had in the words of Jesus that healed Him!
(c) But what faith this man had that this miracle might
be preformed.
D. So here is a great miracle—A poor blind beggar with no
education chooses to believe God and walk through the city
with spit and dirt on his face to a pool of water while
believing that the man who told him to do these things is
God and was about to give him a great miracle.
E. What of the miracle that Jesus did not do?
II. The 2nd miracle is that the seeing were made blind.
John 11:39 And Jesus said, For judgment I am
come into this world, that they which see not
might see; and that they which see might be made
blind.
A. I say again that Jesus did not do this miracle.
1. Rather, the Jewish leaders and teachers did it to
themselves.
2. Yet in some ways, the miracle that Jesus did not do is
greater than the miracle Jesus did.
B. Let’s consider the 2nd miracle.
1. These were the religious and civic leaders that Jesus was
speaking of.
(a) They were trained and spend all day studying the
Scripture.
(b) That was their ministry and their job.
2. They had resources.
(a) The Levites were scattered far and wild and could and
did bring accounts of Jesus’ miracles and teaching
back to them.
(b) In addition, they would be have researched Jesus back
to His birth and conception. They knew what that it
was said that Jesus was born to a virgin.
3. Concerning this miracle:
(a) They would have known of this man.
(1) They may not have known him but they knew people
like him existed and begged for money.
(2) Some would have seen this very man.
(b) \\#8-9\\ They had witnesses that testified that this
man was born blind and could now see.
(c) \\#18-23\\ They had the word of the parents.
(d) \\#13-17, 23-34\\ They interrogated the man until
both he and they grew tired of it!
C. Yet with all that they knew from the Bible, from the life
of Jesus, from the words of witnesses far and near, and
even seeing the miracles that Jesus performed first hand,
still these seeing men could not see! They were blind!
1. A more accurate way of stating this is they REFUSED to
see!
2. So the blind were made to see while the seeing were made
to be blind!
3. When you can take virtually a whole nation of seeing
people and make them blind, you have done a great and
sad miracle!
D. These people’s vision was going dimmer by the day.
1. They did not see who Jesus was.
John 8:25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou?
And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I
said unto you from the beginning.
John 8:48 Then answered the Jews, and said unto
him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan,
and hast a devil? \\#John 8:52\\
2. They did not see their bondage, either spiritually or
physically.
John 8:33 They answered him, We be Abraham’s
seed, and were never in bondage to any man:
how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
3. They did not even see the Father!
John 8:19 Then said they unto him, Where is
thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know
me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye
should have known my Father also.
III. Their blindness was going to cost them EVERYTHING.
A. They were going to lose their nation!
Joh 11:50 (Caiaphas) Nor consider that it is
expedient for us, that one man should die for
the people, and that the whole nation perish not.
B. They were going to lose their place.
Joh 11:48 If we let him thus alone, all men
will believe on him: and the Romans shall come
and take away both our place and nation.
C. They were going to lose their lives.
D. They were going to lose their souls and the souls of their
children.
Mt 27:25 Then answered all the people, and
said, His blood be on us, and on our children.
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