John 9:35-41

Jesus is the Good Shepherd. He seeks the lost and brings them into His fold. He came to earth so that through Him the world could be saved. God placed His breath of life into every person and He wants no one to live without Him…we just need to let Jesus light the flame. 

John 12:47 And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.

God places people in your life that can help you see your worth. Others may cast you out but Jesus never will!

Luke 4:18-19 records Jesus reading a prophecy from Isaiah 61:1-2 describing Jubilee. Jesus is our Jubilee, our Redeemer, the Restorer of all things. He has set the captives free, (Galatians 3:22) paid the debt of our sin (Colossians 2:13-14) and become our rest forever. First5 

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.” Albert Schweitzer

We need to repair the world (rekindle the light) so that its Creator is no longer hidden within, but shines through each thing in magnificent, harmonious beauty.

Tikkun, to repair the soil of the world with nutrients: kindness,
a balm of generosity,
a capacity to accommodate fragility,
and a softness of spirit. 

What Eve Ensler called, “The daily subtle simple gathering of kindness.” SabbathMoments 

This was the promise of Jesus. “Jesus stood up and said in a loud voice, ‘If anyone believes in me, rivers of living water will flow out from that person’s heart’…Jesus was talking about the Holy Spirit” (John 7:37-39 NCV). Max Lucado

John 9:35-41

35 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?” 36 He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” 37 And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.” 38 Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him. 39 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.” 40 Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains. The New King James Version

The formerly blind man is the only one to respond appropriately to Jesus. His journey from physical blindness to sight also symbolized his transition from spiritual darkness to finding the light of the world. 

Giving sight to the blind was one of the miraculous signs expected to accompany the coming of the Messiah. 

If the Pharisees were truly without knowledge of God and His requirements, then they would not be accountable for breaking that law. Faithlife Study Bible

The Signs of Jesus in the Gospel of John 

A blind man sees; a lame man walks. Everywhere Jesus went, people were amazed at His miraculous powers. John uses Jesus’ miracles as an organizing principle in his Gospel. He calls them all semeia, or “signs,” indicating that each miracle was a concrete demonstration of Jesus’ divinity and messiahship. Their purpose was to engender belief as they did for the disciples and the nobleman’s household. But these same miracles would incite some to anger and violence. 

John records seven specific “signs.” 

The first was Jesus’ miracle of turning water into wine in Cana. John specifically mentions that this sign signified Christ’s glory, that is, His deity. With this sign Jesus demonstrated His creative power over nature, and His disciples appropriately placed their faith in Him. 

The second sign was Jesus’ healing of the nobleman’s son. Although the son was in Capernaum and Jesus was in Cana, He told the boy’s father, “Your son lives”. This sign indicated that Jesus was more than a mere mortal; He possessed the power not only to defeat disease, but to transcend space. Jesus did not have to be physically present to heal. Once again, the sign produced belief. 

But with the third sign, another reaction to Jesus’ miracles can be seen. A man at the pool of Bethesda had been sick for a long time. When Jesus told him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk”, immediately he was well. But this healing took place on the Sabbath. Instead of rejoicing with the healed man, the Jewish leaders reprimanded him for carrying his bed on the Sabbath. The Jewish leaders’ traditions and ideas kept them from believing in the clear signs of Jesus. 

The fourth sign was Jesus’ miraculous feeding of the five thousand. By creating a great quantity of food out of five loaves and two fishes, Jesus was again demonstrating His deity, for only God can create. But the crowd, instead of submitting to Jesus’ teaching and following Him, wanted to make Him their king. They sought out Jesus for the food for their stomachs, and not for the spiritual food that would give them eternal life. 

The fifth sign was Jesus’ walking on the water. After the feeding of the five thousand, the disciples took a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee on their way to Capernaum. When they were three or four miles out, they saw Jesus walking on the water toward them. This time, Jesus demonstrated His complete control of nature, from the winds above to the water below. This was another sign of His deity, and another reason for the disciples to place complete trust in Him. 

Jesus’ sixth sign highlights the different responses to Jesus’ miraculous works. In this account, the Pharisees’ spiritual blindness is clearly contrasted with the vibrant faith of the blind man. After being healed, this man told others about Jesus and correctly concluded that He was from God. The blind man saw clearly what Jesus’ sign meant, and believed. But the Pharisees refused to believe. They ridiculed the man’s faith and arrogantly questioned Jesus. 

The seventh sign was Jesus’ raising of Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus had been buried for four days when Jesus arrived in Bethany. With the simple words “Lazarus, come out,” Jesus restored to life the brother of Mary and Martha. This last sign was the greatest: Jesus at once demonstrated His power over the grave and pointed to His own resurrection. Not even death could limit Him, for He was truly God. 

These seven signs certainly should have been enough to convince anyone that Jesus was the promised Messiah. Yet the miracles singled out by John were no more than “samples” of the enormous scope of Jesus’ signs and wonders. 

For John, all these signs pointed to the two miracles that are the greatest of all: Jesus’ incarnation (1:14) and resurrection (20:1–18). Jesus is God’s only Son become man. Although He died for our sins, He was raised from the dead. Today, He still lives and intercedes for all who believe in Him. The NKJV Study Bible.

John 5:22 For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son,

John 5:27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.

John 15:22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.

Romans 2:19 and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness,