John 9:1-3 ESV
“As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.’”
His Blindness Served a Purpose
Jesus was not claiming that this man and his parents were
not sinners, but that his blindness was not a result of anyone’s sin. He was
born blind according to the will of God that God might display his works in him.
For God had a plan for this man’s life and for how he was going to use him for
the glory of God. And so he allowed him to be born blind because God knew what
he had planned to do in this man’s life.
Now, think with me about this for a moment, especially in
light of Psalms 139 where we read that the Lord formed our inward parts and
that he knit us together in the womb’s of our mothers. We are fearfully and
wonderfully made by God. Wonderful are his works. In his book were written,
every one of them, the days that were formed for us, when as yet there was none
of them, for they had not yet come into being.
It sounds really good doesn’t it? But then think about this.
Think about all the children who are born with disabilities, or who are born
into abusive home environments and to abusive and/or neglectful parents. Think
about the children who are sold into slavery or who are treated as cattle and
not as human beings. Think about those who are born into war-torn nations and
to extreme poverty. Where was God in all of that?
He was in the same place he was when this man was born blind.
He was fully sovereign and fully in control over all things. Although he is not
the author of evil, he allows evil to exist, and he allows evil people to
inflict pain and suffering on the people of this world. And so he knits some of
us together in the wombs of women who are married to abusers, knowing full well
that we are going to be abused. So, why would a loving God do this?
Think with me about Joseph. Joseph believed God. But God
allowed for him to be nearly put to death but then sold into slavery. Why?
Because Joseph was going to be a kind of savior for his people. God sent him
ahead of his people to prepare the way for a time of famine to save their lives
during the time of famine, which is what then brought them into Egypt. And
Joseph declared that what his brothers had done to harm him God intended for
good to accomplish the saving of many lives (Gen 50:20). Amen!
A Personal Example of This
And let me give a personal example of this. God placed me
with a father who was the epitome of Satan. He was a bully, an abuser, a child
molester, and a wife beater, etc. And God placed me with a mother who was
emotionally neglectful who often handed us over to our father. And this caused
much harm to me physically, mentally, and emotionally. And if it weren’t for
God, I would not be here today, I am most certain.
But the abuse did not end there. God gave me a marriage to a
man who was a sex addict, though I did not know that when I married him. And
there were abuse issues there, as well (not physically). And then I faced a lot
of rejection from pastors and church people throughout my life, and there were
other men who tried to or who took advantage of me, and then there was a short
time in my life when I caved to it all and sinned against my Lord.
Now, God did not cause people to sin against me and he did
not cause me to sin. But because of all that I went through in my life, for
good or for evil, God was preparing me for a ministry for which he had planned
for my life even from before he created the world. For he knew us all from
before he even laid the foundations of the earth, not just from when he formed
us in the wombs of our mothers (Rom 8:29; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Eph 1:3-4).
In 2004 the Lord called me to this ministry of writing down
what I understand of what he is teaching me from my times with him in his word
and then to place those writings on the internet. And then he sends the
writings wherever he wants them to go. And they are going to people all over
the world. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever imagined that this is
what I would be doing with my life in my senior years.
But when you look at where we are as the nations of the
world and as the world as a whole right now, it was very timely of God to call
me to this specific ministry at this time in my life. And I do believe very
much that it is also for the saving of lives. For we live in a time, at least
here in America, when the church is indistinguishable from the world and where
the gospel is being diluted in order to give them permission to keep living in
sin.
And so God sent me and others like me to the internet at
this time in history to proclaim the truths of the gospel and to refute the
lies of the enemy, and to expose the fruitless deeds of darkness so that many
people will be saved before our Lord comes back to judge the people of the
earth and to take his bride to be with him for eternity. And his bride are
those who are dying with him to sin daily and who are living to him and to his
righteousness.
John 9:4-5 ESV
“We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
Not only did God display his works in this man’s life, but
he had planned from before the creation of the world who we would be and what
works he had planned to be displayed in our lives, too. For, we who belong to
him are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God
prepared in advance that we should walk in them. Yes, we are to do works, but
they are the works of God which he has planned for us to do.
John 9:6-7 ESV
“Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud and said to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’ (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.”
I love this! Jesus didn’t always heal in the same way. His
healing ministry was not a “cookie cutter” ministry. He had different ways he
did things with different people, and he does the same today. He could have
just touched him and said, “Be healed!”, but he didn’t. And I think that served
a purpose in the man’s life, perhaps to increase his faith because he was not
instantaneously healed.
Also, Jesus didn’t heal everyone. He healed a lot of people,
for sure, but he didn’t heal everyone, and not all in the same way. For when I
think of the way in which Jesus healed this man, the man had to step out in
faith, and in his blindness he had to walk to this pool, and he had to
physically wash the mud off his eyes, and then he came back seeing. So although
Jesus was the healer, the man had a part in his healing by his actions of faith.
And in reality, that is how faith works. Jesus gave his life
up for us on that cross so we would die with him to sin and live to him and to
his righteousness. We can’t do this in ourselves, for even the faith to believe
in Jesus is a gift from God. But we have to do what Jesus says. Obedience,
repentance, and submission to Christ as Lord are part of believing faith. We
obey him and then we receive the spiritual healing which he provides.
So, if you identify with any of this in any way, and if you
have struggled with things you have had to endure, and with accepting the
sovereignty of God over your life, I pray you will yield your life over to the
will of God and let him do his work in your life and through your life for his
glory, in spite of and because of what you have had to endure. He is our
healer! And he can heal any suffering.
Also, if you have not yet submitted your life to the
Lordship of Jesus Christ because you have bought into Satan’s lies, and because
you are wanting to hold on to your sinful practices, then I pray you will
surrender your lives to Jesus today and let him truly be Lord (owner-master) of
your lives. And then let him do his work in and through your lives as you walk
in obedience to his commands for his glory, and also for the saving of many lives.
[Lu 9:23-26; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Tit
2:11-14]
By Mark Altrogge
You are beautiful
You are beautiful
beyond description
Too marvelous for
words
Too wonderful for
comprehension
Like nothing ever
seen or heard
Who can grasp Your
infinite wisdom?
Who can fathom the
depth of Your love?
You are beautiful
beyond description
Majesty, enthroned
above
And I stand, I stand
in awe of You
I stand, I stand in
awe of You
Holy God, to whom
all praise is due
I stand in awe of
You
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