John 9:17-41 – Bible Study & Exploration
Spiritual Blindness vs. Physical Blindness
(Verses 17-23) The anger of those who are blind to Jesus’ teachings grows steadily with each new lesson on the kingdom of heaven. We can clearly see that by what Jesus teaches is creating a growing division among everyone in the crowd.
Matthew recorded Jesus when He warned the people of what was going to happen as He spoke the words of God teaching them about the kingdom to come. In fact, many if not all all of us believers reading this, experience this division in our own lives within our families.
For I have come to turn
“‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:35-38)
Jesus said that His words would divide believers and unbelievers. He also warned that this would increase dramatically in the last days leading up to the tribulation. Look at the antisemitism and anti-zionist movements across the globe. This is only a foreshadowing of what will soon come.
Believers face this rejection regularly by their our own family members who do not believe. This is the cross placed on us by the world that we must carry and follow Christ until the end. We must continue to endure patiently until Jesus returns to gather His church before the wrath of God comes upon those who’ve rejected Him.
The Depth of Spiritual Blindness
(Verses 24-27) Those in the crowd grew more angry with the man who was blind. It appeared that nothing could pierce through the veil of spiritual blindness that was draped over them.
Look carefully at the frustration of Jesus’ words in John’s previous chapter.
“Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say.” (John 8:43)
Now compare Jesus words to those of the formerly blind man as He also speaks in frustration to the crowd explaining God’s miracle.
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?” (John 9:27)
This speaks to the depth of the spiritual blindness of all those who witnessed or heard of the miracle performed on the blind man. Those words of Jesus couldn’t convince them. It was as if God was to show that even a human like them couldn’t convince them to see through their blindness.
The Man Gives a Lesson on Spiritual Blindness
(Verses 28-34) The crowds anger grows to the point of hurling insults at the healed man. Led by his belief in God’s miracle through Christ, he turns the words of the crowd back onto them.
The man is shocked that they don’t know where Christ is from but they’re certain that He’s a sinner. Then he teaches them a lesson and closes with a powerful affirmation that Jesus can only be from God.
“Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
(John 9:32-33)
This serves as an important lesson for us today. Not everyone will accept our efforts to share Christ with them. But we must continue to do the work of God to help those believe in the One that He sent. We must also take the lesson that Paul received from Christ when he entered the sinfully drenched society of the Greek city of Corinth.
One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God. (Acts 18:9-11)
Placing Focus on Spiritual Blindness
(Verses 35-41) John masterfully does not close out this chapter before placing the focus where it really needs to be—spiritual healing.
While much of the chapter focuses on the physical aspects of the miracle that Jesus performed on the blind man. Both Jesus and the man who was given sight to see attempted to teach the people and religious leaders that this could only occur by the power of God.
The intention of God with this miracle was not to heal him of his blindness. The intention was that by Jesus performing this miracle, the people around to witness would be healed of their spiritual blindness. The aim was that they would come to believe in Jesus as God and recognize their dependence on Him as the only One that can remove the spiritual blindness caused by their sins.
Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”
(John 9:39)
The blind that Jesus speaks of here is not physical blindness, but spiritual blindness. The blindness caused by sin that prevents those from seeing the only pathway back to God which is Jesus Christ.
By grace ALONE, through faith ALONE, in CHRIS ALONE!
Those “who can see” Christ says, are those who think they know the way to God but are blind to the true path which runs through the only One that is full of grace and truth—Jesus Christ. And those who claim to be blind are those who can now see recognizing Christ as the Light of the world.