In the area
of faith and the place of believing or not, judging is the place of interpretation as to Who God is
and what God does. Judgment is a place of weighing a testimony. There are rules and then there are behaviors,
circumstances and probable cause. What
throws people is when the impossible happens, the undefined and the
unregulated.
Here often
is the place of believing or not believing.
Believing the testimony through the eyes of
grace and love OR,
doubting
because it doesn’t match the set of rules real or imagined; the set that keeps
one comfortable and in a sense of controlled state.
This is
where that kind of decision making plays
out in a clear way in the Bible. I am using the NIV Bible in the Bible
passages of this study portion.
THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW
INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica,
Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
In John 9, Jesus heals a blind man. People begin asking about the man born
blind. They asked Jesus if he was blind
because he sinned or because his parents sinned? Jesus said, “ Neither.” The people had a set of rules that they
believed that if a person had a problem it was due to sin and that sin could be
carried on to the children. Jesus said
he was born blind, “but
this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” John 9:3
They had not
seen it this way. They were judging
differently.
When Jesus healed him, he made mud and placed it on
the blind man’s eyes and told him to wash in the Pool of Siloam, which means
“Sent.” Some of the power of the
Scriptures are for our revelations later.
The name of the Pool of Siloam is for us to see an even greater glory. John 20:21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I
am sending you." Jesus was
the One sent and healing and He was sending the blind man to be a testimony of
that work of God displayed in Him.
Following seeing for themselves
the man now able to see, they were divided by their judgment or view. They were
either going to have receptivity to the impossible or they were going to doubt.
John 9:8-9 His
neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, “Isn’t this the
same man who used to sit and beg?” 9Some
claimed that he was. Others said, “No, he only looks like him.” But he himself insisted, “I am the man.”
Jesus was
behaving as LORD and some would see and some wouldn’t. Seeing in this sense, is believing.
Here we go
further seeing the division between those that held tight to their set of rules
or those that were open to receive outside of them.
13 b They brought to the
Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14Now
the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a
Sabbath. 15Therefore the Pharisees also asked
him how he had received his sight. “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied,
“and I washed, and now I see.”
16Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not
keep the Sabbath.”
But others asked, “How can a
sinner perform such signs?” So they were
divided.
Their division was
between rules or miracles; the rules being their interpretation of the Law or seeing
Grace.
Then they turned again to the blind man, “What have you to say
about him? It was your eyes he opened.”
The man replied, “He is a prophet.”
18 They still did not believe that
he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man’s
parents. 19 “Is this your son?” they asked.
“Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?”
20 “We know he is our son,” the
parents answered, “and we know he was born blind. 21 But
how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don’t know. Ask him. He is of
age; he will speak for himself.” 22 His
parents said this because they were
afraid of the Jewish leaders, who already had decided that anyone who
acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23 That was why his parents said, “He is of age;
ask him.”
Notice that it says they had
already decided. They had made their
judgment and had their set of rules within their own mind as to how God behaved
and their own view of the Messiah
instead of receiving what they were seeing.
24 A second time they summoned the
man who had been blind. “Give glory to God by telling the truth,” they said.
“We know this man is a sinner.”
25 He replied, “Whether he is a
sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”
26 Then they asked him, “What did he
do to you? How did he open your eyes?”
27 He answered, “I have told you
already and you did not listen. Why
do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?”
28 Then they hurled insults at him
and said, “You are this fellow’s
disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God spoke to
Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.”
30 The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know
where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not
listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. 32 Nobody
has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from
God, he could do nothing.”
34 To this they replied, “You were
steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.
The chapter goes into discussing
Spiritual Blindness and Spiritual Sight in the way of seeing Jesus Spiritually.
35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found
him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
36“Who is he, sir?” the man asked.
“Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
37Jesus said, “You
have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.” (As the once blind man says he wants to know
who the Son of Man is so that he can believe in him he shows that he is
receptive to all that he is. Jesus
responds by saying that he has seen him.
He had responded in favor testifying to others that Jesus was of God and
had healed him. Jesus goes further
saying the one he believed in is the one speaking with him.)
38Then the man said, “Lord, I
believe,” and he worshiped him.
39Jesus said,
“For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind
will see and those who see will become blind.”
The gospel
of John is said to be the most chronologically correct. A hint to that is by the way John writes as
he states, “Then…”
Jesus is
continuing to reveal Himself and the struggle in the Jews continues to be
evident between their own perceived viewpoints of how God behaves verses how He
is revealing Himself in Christ. Notice
their struggle and tight hold of what they expect should be instead of being
open to what God is showing Himself to be in this part of John 10.
Then came the Festival of Dedication at
Jerusalem. It was winter, 23and Jesus was in
the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 24The
Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in
suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
25Jesus answered, “I
did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name
testify about me,
31Again his Jewish opponents picked
up stones to stone him, 32but Jesus said to
them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For
which of these do you stone me?”
33“We are not stoning you for any
good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to
be God.”
The ones in the synagogue were
often resistant or afraid and when he returned to the Jordan many came to him
and believed. Outdoors, by a flowing river they came and believed in open freedom.
There is a culture of these contrasts going
on today in our own churches. Recently
there was a large conference in Southern California opposing the works of the
LORD in ways of His Spirit and gifts and miracles today. They cling to their rules and have difficulty
seeing or believing God outside of their own boxed in viewpoint. They are blind to the fullness of Him.
Simultaneously, a group of people
were honoring a man’s memory that had led the Jesus Movement that started in
the 1970’s. They celebrated on piers and
on the water while floating on surf boards, saying scriptures, not meeting any
particular guide line but just were.
They were open to all God is and loved one another through grace. Some were believers and some weren’t, but
they loved each other. There in that
place in the celebration, the Word’s of God being said out loud in unison atop
surfboards and wave after gentle wave, rainbows formed around them. In that kind of faith, that kind of love,
amidst the waters came a visible sign of God among them in the rainbows. Click on this link for a full article of the
events written by David Housholder.
While the others, still believing
in the LORD, compartmentalized Him, they miss out on the fullness of Him. The joy of His being in ways we can’t imagine,
but He wants to show us. If only all
that believed in Him had vision to see Him in His fullness and truth and not
within our own judgment of Him, but in the evidence of His glory and grace. Jesus
longs for this from us.
Jesus moved on from where he was
to reveal Himself in an even greater way in John 11. He was about to raise Lazerus from the
dead. He was told Lazarus was sick and
He knew he had died. He waited two more
days before going to them. John 11:4 When
he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in
death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through
it.”
Jews had come to comfort Mary and
Martha in their time of mourning. Martha
had run out to meet Jesus and she said that if He had been there sooner, He
could have saved him. She had faith
knowing how he could heal. But, physical
death was final in her mind. She had a
limitation there.
Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”
24Martha answered, “I know he will
rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
25Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will
live, even though they die; 26and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe
this?”
27“Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I
believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the
world.”
28After she had said this, she went
back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is
asking for you.” 29When Mary heard this, she
got up quickly and went to him. 30Now Jesus
had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had
met him. 31When the Jews who had been with
Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out,
they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.
32When Mary reached the place where
Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been
here, my brother would not have died.”
33When Jesus
saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was
deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34“Where have you laid him?” he asked.
Think about this part. He knows that He is going to raise Lazarus
from the dead. He knows that He is able
to defeat death, but he sees their view of limitations on Him and the sorrows
of death. He has wanted them to see Him
as LORD. He is deeply moved by their
grief and in spirit, troubled. He knows
what He has been trying to reveal to them about Himself for them to see, then the heart wrenching words of His desire for
them is said to Him…
“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
35 Jesus wept.
36Then the Jews said, “See how he
loved him!” (Look at how they perceived this. Instead of
seeing all that had happened before of Him wanting
them to see, they unperceiving say to Him to see. But, what they do notice is love.)
37But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the
blind man have kept this man from dying?”
( And again,
look what happened to Jesus after they said this, bringing up the portion of
opening the blind man’s eyes. It’s like
rubbing a wound in his heart. His response… 38 Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave
with a stone laid across the entrance. 39“Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this
time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
40Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe,
you will see the glory of God?”
41So they took away the stone. Then
Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have
heard me. 42I knew
that you always hear me, but I said this
for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent
me.”
43 When he had said this, Jesus
called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of
linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes
and let him go.”
45Therefore many of the Jews who
had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him. 46But some of them went to the Pharisees and told
them what Jesus had done. 47Then the chief
priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.
“What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man
performing many signs. 48If we let him go on
like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take
away both our temple and our nation.” (Fear of losing control)
49Then one of them, named Caiaphas,
who was high priest that year, spoke up, ““You know nothing at all! 50You do not realize that it is better for you that
one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”
51He did not say this on his own,
but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish
nation, 52and not only for that nation but
also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them
one. 53So from that day on they plotted to
take his life.
54Therefore Jesus no longer moved
about publicly among the people of Judea. Instead he withdrew to a region near
the wilderness, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his
disciples. (This is another part that strikes me. Ephraim means fruitful. Judea was no longer a place that was bearing
fruit.)
55When it was almost time for the
Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their
ceremonial cleansing before the Passover. 56They
kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple courts they asked one
another, “What do you think? Isn’t he coming to the festival at all?” 57But the chief priests and the Pharisees had given
orders that anyone who found out where Jesus was should report it so that they
might arrest him.
Those that are open to a greater
fullness of Who God is in their lives bear much fruit. He shows Himself because He is not limited in
the minds of peoples’ expectations, order or rules. They live in His love and grace and the
fullness of Him moves through their lives.
A sign of people that live like that have
joy. They have joy in all circumstances
because they don’t limit God’s work in good and in bad times. He uses it for His glory like the man born
blind and even the death of Lazarus.
Hard times happen and there are
times for mourning, but how much greater are the times when one praises, trusts
and believes in what is impossible for man is possible for God. They live in grace, love, peace, hope,
thankfulness and joy. They ride the
waves with words of faith and rejoice in their Savior.
Have you arrested Jesus and
detained Him from greater acts of seeing Him by your own judgment or view of
Him? Does your doubt in His truth give
you a verdict that keeps you from knowing the freedom that He has for you? Pray for Him to open your eyes, to touch the
blindness or blinders that may be on you and ask Him to help you see and help
you trust that even though there may be circumstances that are difficult or you
have had to endure, He has a greater glory to reveal to you.
I recently taught on this message
in greater length. There is also a parallel to seeing in the Psalms of
Ascent. If you ever have need for me to
teach or share with your church or women’s group, please contact me at loriwilley18@gmail.com
