Jn.9:5-7 – While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.” When He had said this, He spit on the ground, and made mud from the saliva, and applied the mud to his eyes, and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam”. So he left and washed, and came back seeing.
The touch of Jesus opens the eyes of our blind souls. The man in this story was born blind not because he sinned or his parents sinned. That’s just how he was born. This is the predicament we all find ourselves in. We live in a fallen world where nothing seems to be fair. When the disciples questioned Jesus about why this man had been born blind, Jesus gave the answer that is really the answer for all our questions: why was I born in a broken family? Why did I have to suffer through poverty? Why did my parents abandon me? Why do I have this sickness or weakness in my life? Why do I have a special needs child? Jesus answered all of those questions in one simple answer; He said it was so the glory of God could be displayed in our circumstances. For the blind man, all the years of his blindness disappeared in the blaze of His glorious light. The blind man wasn’t sure how. All he knew is that he was blind but now he could see. The Life in the Spirit Commentary answers this question about why he was born this way.
“At any rate, Jesus gives a different answer. Though the condition’s origin and cause may be hidden to humankind, it is not to God, who offers another answer—this is an opportunity for him to reveal his grace and glory. Such complicated situations must be left in the hands of a loving and holy God, who does all things well, though not necessarily without pain…..Humans can identify with the blind man. We come with sin, Jesus comes with light and righteousness. The disciples focus on the cause (or beginning) of such a condition; Jesus focuses on the purpose and God’s sovereignty (as he does elsewhere in this Gospel).”
All of us have collateral damage from living in this fallen planet. Jesus came to display His glory through redemption. This is why we exist: for God’s amazing grace to be seen in the darkness of our circumstances. Let Jesus rub some of His anointed mud pies on your troubles. The results will be better than you could ever dream.
