Jesus teaches about spiritual blindness
John 9:35-41Intro Questions
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- God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
- We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
- I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
- You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
OPEN:
- What 24-hour period in your life had the most ups and downs?
- Why does Jesus wait until now to fully present himself? How is the man, only now, able to affirm Jesus as Lord?
- What blindness is the result of sin (John 9:39-41)? How do such guilty people see again?
- Describe your own spiritual sight: 20-20? Near-sighted? Far-sighted? A few "blind spots"? Why? What could correct this?
"The Reality of Judgment"
“Jesus said, "For judgment I
have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will
become blind." (John 9:39)
One of God’s purposes in redemption was for Christians to be a megaphone
for God with the life they live. Matthew 5:16 calls us to be light, “In
the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good
deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
The truth without love is nothing more than a clanging cymbal (1 Corinthians
13:1). On the other hand a life without the profession of Christ looks like a
good person who can live self-sufficiently apart from Christ.
Ephesians 5:14a says, “For it is light that makes
everything visible.” Both evangelism through lifestyle (embodying the gospel) and by the
spoken Word (proclaiming the gospel) are needed, but both must be propelled
with a compassion for the lost that comes from understanding their condition
and knowing their eternal destination.
Jesus used judgment in today’s verse as a separation between those who
believe in Him and those who reject Him. You move to evangelism by prayerfully
living your life, stepping boldly into opportunities to share the good news of
knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
In John 3, you see how the life of Jesus attracted Nicodemus to Jesus.
Jesus explained that to be a part of the kingdom of God, one must be “born
of water and Spirit” (3:5). Then Jesus used the opportunity to share the love of God through
Christ, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and
only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (3:16).
In verse 18 Jesus combined judgment and salvation to galvanize in
Nicodemus’ life the importance of placing his faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior.
“Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not
believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of
God's one and only Son.”
Nicodemus went from being attracted to Jesus through lifestyle
evangelism to learning how to find salvation to feeling judgment if he refused
the good news. Yes, Jesus spoke of judgment because Jesus knew that Nicodemus’
life stood between eternal life with God and eternal separation from God. Jesus
loved Nicodemus enough to not get caught up in the flattery of a very important
person, but rather, shared how he could spend eternity with God.
Ultimately our passion to share Christ hinges on two strongly held
beliefs: 1) You believe God and His Word. 2) You love others enough to become
vulnerable enough to give up stature, so another can have eternal life with
God. Both of these beliefs are based on acknowledging as in 2 Corinthians 4:5
that it is not you, but God doing the calling, “For we do not preach
ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus'
sake.”
