Theme: Jesus, the light of the world
Text: 1 Sam. 16:1, 6-7, 10-13; Eph. 5:8-14; Jn. 9:1-41
Life teaches us many lessons and we can learn a lot from even the games we play as children. One popular childhood game is Hide and Seek. In this game, one child gives the other children a chance to hide by closing his or her eyes and then looks for them trying to find out where they are hiding. Another similar game is called Blind Man’s Bluff. In this game one of the children is blindfolded and then he or she has to find and touch another child. It is usually very funny as the blindfolded child tries to feel its way, groping and stumbling over obstacles that are in the way. This game really gives us a good picture of the way we behave in life. Many people go through life blindfolded, groping in the darkness, stumbling and tripping over many obstacles. Only this time it is not being done for amusement and it affects their eternal destiny. This is because we are all born spiritually blind because we are descended from Adam. Worse still is that we are not only born spiritually blind, but also born into a dark world without light. God’s love and grace made provision to meet our need. When God appeared to Moses in the burning bush, He revealed His name to be Yahweh, meaning I Am Who I Am. His name, however, is only fully revealed by Jesus Christ when He describes Himself by the words “I am the bread of life. I am the door. I am the good shepherd; I am the way, the truth and the life, I am the resurrection and the life; I am the light of the world.” Jesus Christ is the light of the world. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”
We need Light to see and what we see with our eyes is only possible when there is light. When there is no light, when there is absolute darkness, we cannot see anything even with exceptional good eyesight. When, however, the problem is with the eyes no amount of light will enable us to see unless sight is first restored. Since we are all born blind into a world, we need Christ the light of the world, to restore our sight. Unfortunately the world loves and prefers the darkness to the light. When the light of Christ confronted the world, the world very clearly said that they would rather have darkness. When they came face to face with the light, they fled from the light because they hated the light. They didn’t want the light to expose what they were doing. They preferred to live without the light so that they could do what they wanted because the light would expose their evil deeds.
The gospel reading today tells the story of a blind man Jesus healed. He was born blind and for him everything was in darkness since the day of his birth. He had never seen the light of day and was forced to beg since there were no work opportunities for blind people in those days. Asked the reason for the man’s blindness Jesus declared that he was born blind so that God could reveal his great work of salvation in him; so that God, through Jesus Christ, could show his majesty, his power and his great mercy. In the sovereign providence of God, this man was born blind so that the Lord Jesus Christ could heal him of his physical and spiritual blindness as a symbol or a sign for all mankind. We are all born blind into a dark world because of sin and grope around in the darkness because we cannot see and need the light of the world, Jesus Christ. There is more to seeing than what we see with our eyes. Because of our spiritual blindness we cannot discern the truth and as a result we cannot see things as they really are and therefore value the wrong things. Only the light of Christ can restore our sight and make us see things as they really are.
Without light and without sight we cannot see and understand the truth about God. The tragedy of many people is that they are not conscious they are blind and are in darkness because they have rejected the light. The Pharisees were in a way right to condemn the man born blind. They accused him of being steeped in sin at birth and so he was. But so were they and so are we all. The Pharisees by rejecting Christ showed how blind they were. They could not see their own sin and need for salvation. Instead of rejoicing that people were being healed and lives were being changed and taking advantage of the healing taking place, the Pharisees were only concerned about the observance of the Sabbath. Keeping the Sabbath was more important to them than caring for the needs of others. Because of their blindness they did not realize that God never intended the Sabbath to prevent an act of mercy or of kindness.
Christ the light of the world restores our sight and brings us into the light so that we can also become light. In the New Testament we read of stories of people who were brought to Jesus and healed. Many of them, after they had been healed wanted to go with Him. Jesus always refused and advised them to stay where they were to serve as a light for those who had known them and where the difference in their lives was evident for all to see. Christ came into the world to give light but it is left to us to accept that light or reject it. We need to understand that the gospel is not only good news but also bad news. Good news to those who receive it and bad news to those who reject it. The gospel heard and accepted is life; the gospel heard and refused is death. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones puts it this way, “the same sun that melts ice hardens clay.” The story of the healing of the blind man is both a miracle and a drama of the central conflict going on in the gospel. The first character is the blind man himself. When first healed and asked about the miracle he replied that “a man called Jesus” healed him. The next time he was asked his reply was that “He is a prophet.” When pressed again about Jesus he asserts “If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.” And when he finally came face to face with Jesus, he fell down and worshipped Him. The man who was healed gained not only physical sight but also spiritual sight as he recognized Jesus as his Lord. Contrasted with this is the hostility of the Pharisees. At first some Pharisees defend Jesus but soon they all decided that Jesus’ defiance of the Sabbath was inexcusable and they told the man who had been healed to “give glory to God,” declaring that they knew him to be a sinner. Light represents what is good and holy and darkness what is sinful and evil. In the dark good and evil look alike. In the light they can be clearly distinguished. Just as darkness cannot exist in the presence of light, so sin cannot exist in the presence of a holy God. Let us come into the light and put aside our sinful ways of living.
There is to be a distinct walk on the part of those whose sight has been restored and who are in the light. It is a walk and lifestyle that is different from that of the world. It is a life that is blameless and pure. We are to live in such a way that our behaviour is above criticism. It is not living a perfect life, but a life that nobody can point a finger at. We should live a life that will astonish a darkened world. As someone has said, "People may doubt what you say, but they will always believe what you do.” As people in the light we are to be a light. Being a light should remind us of the children’s song we used to love singing in Sunday school. I’m sure many of us still remember it but we only fail to live it. It goes like this: This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine. This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine; Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. We as Christians are to let our light shine. We are to be a light.
A young Christian girl had just got her first job after finishing school. She realised at her first day at work that she was completely unprepared for the things she heard and saw. The language shocked her, and the lifestyles sickened her. In great despair she went home and told her Christian parents that she was not going back. She just could not put up with that kind of sin. In the middle of her complaining her father asked, "Where do you place lights?" She shrugged the question off. What could that have to do with her problem? She carried on telling them all about the horror stories, and again her father interrupted. "Where do you place lights?" "Dad, what do you mean? You know that you place lights where it is dark." "Exactly" said her father. As a Christian you are a light and lights are placed in dark places. You go on to work tomorrow and be careful to let your light shine before those godless men and women so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." It is only when we feel at home in the light of Christ that we can face the many challenging temptations, which come to us in the ordinary experiences of life. Whenever Jesus performed a miracle, it provoked all kinds of questions. Often these questions give the believer an opportunity to witness for the Lord. The man who had been blind at first did not know how or why he was healed, but he knew that his life had been miraculously changed and he was not afraid to tell the truth. His testimony was simple, yet convincing. He recited the facts of his healing; giving credit to the one who performed the miracle. We don’t need to know all the answers in order to share Christ with others. It is important to tell others how He has changed our lives.
We live in a fallen world where good behaviour is not always rewarded and bad behaviour not always punished. Therefore innocent people sometimes suffer. If God took suffering away whenever we asked, we would follow him for comfort and convenience, not out of love and devotion. Regardless of the reasons for our suffering, Jesus has the power to help us deal with it. He is able to heal us both physically and spiritually. Those who admit they cannot see are given sight, but those who insist that they can see perfectly, without the Lord Jesus Christ, are confirmed in their blindness. Spiritual sight comes from a personal encounter with Jesus Christ and leads to a new life in relationship with Him. In the world today there is light and darkness. There are those who accept to live in the light and those who choose to remain in the darkness. Darkness prevents us from seeing things clearly. It hides the reality from us. It also hides the dangers that threaten our well-being and even our life itself. Light enables us to see clearly. We can see where we are going, see what we are doing and have a fuller awareness of all that surrounds us. Turning on a light in a dark room brings the darkness to an end, because light always overcomes darkness, just like Christ has overcome all darkness. By his death on the cross he has disarmed and overcome the powers of darkness so that we can turn away from the darkness, come into the light and become a light. It is the light this dark world needs. The light of Christ will never be overcome by the darkness; nor will those who live in the light. We have the choice to accept Jesus Christ, the light of the world and become light or to reject the light and remain in darkness. Those who accept the light of the Lord Jesus Christ become children of light and will remain in His light forever. But those who reject the Light and choose the darkness will be condemned to remain in darkness forever when Christ returns. Christ, the light of the world wants everyone to come into His light and remain in His presence forever. Amen!
