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Mother Theresa used to say, "I know that God won't give me more trouble than I can handle ... but sometimes I wish God wouldn't trust me so much." I am pretty sure that the blind man whom Jesus healed in today’s Gospel reading could relate to that.
Can you imagine how tough it must have been to continually explain what happened and how he was healed; being accused of doing something wrong when in reality all that man did was receive healing from Jesus. Throughout the reading we hear this man continually explaining who Jesus is, and we can hear his understanding and his testimony as they develop. As a result of receiving sight and being mistreated by his own people, we observe his faith and his understanding of God develop until they culminate in the statement of faith.
When questioned by his neighbors, we heard him say, “The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see” (John 9:11). What he basically said was, “this man healed me, he is a talented doctor.”
Later when questioned by the Pharisees, he was asked whether the healing happened on Saturday. He replied, “He [- Jesus] is a prophet” (John 9:17), which is different from being a doctor.
Still, more questions were raised. This time Jesus was accused of being a sinner because he healed on the Sabbath. At that juncture the man said, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see.” (John 9:25) “If this man were not from God, he could do nothing” (John 9:33). He actually defended Jesus.
Finally, Jesus and that man met for the first time since the healing. That was the first time that the man actually saw Jesus. In the course of that conversation we heard the man say, “Lord, I believe” (John 9:38). That is a confession of faith.
As the story progressed, this man’s understanding started with “Jesus healed me, he is a talented doctor” and ended with “He is the LORD and savior, I put my trust in him.”
In her book The Kitchen Table Wisdom, Dr. Remen recalls a story out of her medical practice that happened at Sloan-Kettering in the mid-1970s.
There was a man who came into the hospital to die. Back then, the hospice movement was not common and frequently people were admitted into hospitals to die. A man riddled with cancer was admitted to die. His treatments were stopped approximately 11 months ago and there was nothing that medical science could do to heal him anymore. His bones looked like Swiss cheese. Cancer was throughout his entire body. However, in the two weeks or so that he was in the hospital, his cancer disappeared and even his bones began to heal.
Dr. Remen recalls how FRUSTRATED all the doctors were. Think about it: there were not in awe of the healing that they witnessed, they were frustrated. Second opinions were thought out (copies of X-Rays were sent out to many other leading authorities) and the original diagnosis was confirmed. The only conclusion that the doctors could come up with was that the chemotherapy that was stopped 11 months earlier suddenly worked.
Dr. Remen writes: “For the next 15 years I never questioned this conclusion. I think too great a scientific objectivity can make you blind.” She continued: “I think that that was one of the purest encounters with mystery that I have ever had in my life.”
It took Dr. Rachel Remen fifteen years to recognize the healing touch of God on her patient. In today’s Gospel reading, the man born blind made a similar recognition of God’s presence in his own life.
The doctors at Sloan-Kettering were frustrated with their patient’s scientifically unexplainable healing. They were so focused on “why” their patient was healed that they completely overlooked “what” happened – their patient was healed. Similarly, in today’s reading, the blind man’s neighbors, family, friends and religious leaders were frustrated with the man’s unexplained healing. That is why they were questioning him; that is why they were trying to understand how Jesus did it… They completely overlooked what Jesus did, and by doing that, they were blinded to who Jesus was.
Just like that, we can also be blind to the presence of the Holy in our midst. Today’s Gospel reading teaches us that Jesus is with us always, giving us opportunities to heal our spiritual blindness and to recognize God in our lives and the presence of the Holy all around us.
In the mid-13th century (between 1244 and 1253), Bishop Richard of Chichester, wrote a prayer that was popularized in our culture by Stephen Schwartz in the musical GODSPELL. Richard of Chichester prayed, “Most Merciful Redeemer, may we know you more clearly, may we love you more dearly, and may we follow you more nearly every day of our lives.”
That prayer acknowledges that we don’t become mature Christians instantaneously; it is a gradual (and at times very uncomfortable) adjustment and reorientation of every aspect of our lives. It is a process and a journey that takes time. For the man healed in today’s Gospel reading this journey began with, “Jesus is a doctor” and ended with “Jesus is my Savior.”
Today I want to leave you with a question – Where did your journey begin? Where are you at on your journey? How is your understanding of God’s presence in your life different than it was when you were 15, 25, 40, 50, or even 60 years old? How did you grow in your faith and how is this growth is evident in your life?
To remind us that God is with us on that journey, Jesus established the Sacrament of the Holy Communion. Today we will celebrate this Sacrament.
{Transition into the Holy Communion}
= = = = = = = God is my conscience, Jesus lives in my heart = = = = = = =
Currently Pastor Asher Tunik is serving at Christ United Methodist church located in Chestertown, MD.
Pastor Asher blogs at Zis-N-Zat; his blog is at this link.
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