For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind

But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight.  And they asked them, saying, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind?  How then does he now see?"  His parents answered them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know.  He is of age; ask him.  He will speak for himself."  His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue.  Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."

So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, "Give God the glory!  We know that this Man is a sinner."  He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know.  One thing I know:  that though I was blind, now I see."  Then they said to him again, "What did He do to you?  How did He open your eyes?"  He answered them, "I told you already, and you did not listen.  Why do you want to hear it again?  Do you also want to become His disciples?"  Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples.  We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from."  The man answered and said to them, "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes!  Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him.  Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.  If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing."  They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?"  And they cast him out.

Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?"  He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?"  And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you."  Then he said, "Lord, I believe!"  And he worshiped Him.  And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind."  Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?"  Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.'  Therefore your sin remains."

- John 9:18-41

Through chapters 7 and 8 of John's Gospel, Jesus has been at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem, an autumn feast commemorating the time Israel lived in tabernacles (or tents), sometimes also called booths.  Linking events at the Festival, Jesus has taught that He is the "light of life" and also about the "rivers of living water" that would flow from believer's hearts.  For the earlier readings concerning events at this festival, see readings from Friday, February 7 through Saturday, February 15.   In yesterday's reading, Jesus had passed out of the temple, hidden, avoiding being stoned by the Pharisees for stating, "Before Abraham was, I AM."   Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."  They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."

 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight.  And they asked them, saying, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind?  How then does he now see?"  My study bible points out that the Jewish authorities (and we know that all the Pharisees are not in total agreement at this point) try to discredit this miracle or sixth sign in John's Gospel by denying that this man was blind from birth.  His parents are called in, even though the age of legal responsibility was 13.

His parents answered them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know.  He is of age; ask him.  He will speak for himself."  His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue.  Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."  We remember that the term "the Jews" is used to denote the religious leadership; in this case those who have already sought to have Jesus arrested.

So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, "Give God the glory!  We know that this Man is a sinner."   My study bible says, "With Jesus not present, the Pharisees harshly call Him a sinner -- but earlier when Jesus asked them face-to-face, 'Which of you convicts Me of sin?' (8:46), they answered by evading the question.  Give God the glory is an oath formula, used before giving testimony or before confessing guilt.  Ironically, the formerly blind man will indeed give glory to God.  The more he is pressed, the more tenacious he becomes in his belief."

He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know.  One thing I know:  that though I was blind, now I see."  Then they said to him again, "What did He do to you?  How did He open your eyes?"  He answered them, "I told you already, and you did not listen.  Why do you want to hear it again?  Do you also want to become His disciples?"  Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples.  We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from."  The man answered and said to them, "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes!  Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him.  Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.  If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing."  They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?"  And they cast him out.    Here we see the sort of typical progression of John's Gospel, with people in some sense speaking at cross purposes, but in the course of the conversation, revealing more.  Here the formerly blind man is witnessing, he's giving testimony.  His simple and honest answers just serve to infuriate the Pharisees more.  Again, there's the emphasis on a question asked by some in the leadership (in yesterday's reading):  How can someone who's a sinner do such things?  The leadership end by not only slurring Jesus, but also this man himself.

Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?"  He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?"  And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you."  Then he said, "Lord, I believe!"  And he worshiped Him.  And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind."  Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?"  Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.'  Therefore your sin remains."  My study bible tells us, "Having opened the blind man's eyes, Jesus also opens the eyes of his heart, offering spiritual illumination.  The man, 'seeing' the divinity of the Son of Man, worshiped Him (v. 38).  Jesus' coming brought judgment (v. 39) by increasing the accountability of those who saw and heard Him, but did not believe.  The brilliance of Christ's light becomes an illumination to some, but a blinding glare to others (v. 41)."

I think it's interesting to take a look at the witnessing of the man who is formerly blind, who is healed by Jesus.  We first of all find that it's just this one who has had the experience who can truly witness.  Not only do his parents refuse to say anything about his healing, all they can (or are willing to) speak of is his blindness.  This they know.  Out of fear, they won't say anything more.  In some sense, that's the man's first abandonment.  His own parents, out of fear of the religious authorities, won't speak for him.  He's on his own.  When he does witness, his statements are complete and simple.  It begins with a simple statement of fact, what he knows, what he's experienced.  When the leadership slanders Jesus, he won't take up their lead, he sticks to what he knows:  "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know.  One thing I know:  that though I was blind, now I see."  When they repeatedly ask him the same question, he says the obvious, "Why do you want to hear it again?  Do you want to become His disciples?"  These simple questions polarize the leadership, and they revile the man himself.  He finally tells them, "Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.  If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing."  Out of the mouths of babes, indeed.  His honest and straightforwardly simple answers -- so simple, in fact, they may be taken merely for statements of the obvious -- get him thrown out of the temple.  But then something else happens, and Jesus finds him.  And then testimony leads to more, to real faith, to a relationship with Christ and the understanding of just who Jesus really is.  In the meantime, those who refuse to acknowledge the reality of Jesus and what He has done become even more polarized.  The divisions are important, because what we see here is the reality of a revelation:  it sets us up to make a choice.  I don't think that we can forget that this choice comes from the depth of the heart and it depends on what we put first within ourselves, what we truly love the most.  Jesus says, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind."  God will ask us to open up our eyes and take that journey, more deeply into the heart, more truly into the places where we need to accept what He's offering.  Like this scene here, we may find ourselves polarized internally.  What we know, or think we know, what we already have, may pull us in one direction -- especially if it involves the kind of "glory we receive from one another."  But then there's the knowing that comes from the experience of encounter, from the good fruits produced by the good tree.  It is the experience that makes the difference, the simple fact we stick to.  And we will find that this leads to a deeper relationship, further along the road, His Way.  It might mean separation from those who can't accept it, who are certain they know better.  But nothing transforms the way the experience does, nothing produces spiritual fruits the same way, and these things we will know about ourselves.  But it may mean we encounter the blindness, and even the outrage, in others.