The Pharisees Frustrated (J38)

“Give glory to God,” the Jews insisted;
Jesus is a sinner, which we all know!”
But the man healed by Jesus resisted,
Answering them like a debating pro!
“Whether he’s a sinner, I do not know;
There is one thing that’s crystal clear to me:
From birth, I could not see the way to go,
Until I met Jesus, and now I see!
You know God hears not a sinful man pray;
No one born blind has ever received sight;
God heard Jesus and healed me on that day—
When I washed away mud and first saw light!”
They insulted him, and then threw him out;
He left them frustrated, and in some doubt!

Scripture Quoted: John 9:26-33 (NIV)
“Then they [the Pharisees] asked him, ‘What did he [Jesus] do to you? How did he open your eyes?’ 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?’ They then hurled insults at him and said, ‘You are this man’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses! We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.’ The man answered, ‘Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man that does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.’ “ [Brackets added]

Commentary on: John 9:24-34 (NIV)
This was a rare man that could be so self-possessed, yet blind from birth and a beggar. I’m sure Jesus knew his ability when He chose him to heal. He was braver than his parents, who equivocated with the Pharisees for fear of being cast out of the synagogue. In the end the son did get thrown out, but he put in a strong word of support for Jesus’ having come from God. The healed man gave a skillful argument for Jesus’ being the Messiah. First, he said that it was well known that God did not listen to or grant miracles to sinners; He did that only for “godly” men who do God’s will. Then he pointed out that in the history of the world there had never been any man blind from birth who had gotten their eyes opened miraculously. Then he clinched his case by saying that if Jesus had not been sent by God He could not have opened the blind man’s eyes. He told the Jews that “it was remarkable” that they could not know where Jesus was from. Those self-righteous “dignitaries” were left open-mouthed and stunned, with nothing to say but insults.

This raises the question: Why did the leading Jews not see the logic in the man’s argument and accept Jesus as the Christ? They were more educated and far more advanced in theology than people like the man who had been healed. It must have been their pride; Jesus had already told them their perversions of the Mosaic law and how they were the chiefest of sinners. If they accepted Him after that, it would have been humiliating; they would have to humble themselves, confess their transgressions, and ask forgiveness of God for their sins. They had too much pride—this was a fight to the death—Jesus’ death (and their own deaths, on Judgment Day)! Pride keeps people lost today.

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9)