26 March 2017, 4th Sunday Lent
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Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a • Psalm 23 • Ephesians 5:8-14 • John 9:1-41 •
The Man Born Blind (Lent) (2017-03-26)
[__01__] When I
started wearing reading glasses, I was absolutely relieved and consoled that
now I could see again.
The choice of glasses was not a choice
of style or fashion but a necessity of vision.
One person in family said, however,
“this is a new look. We have never seen this before.”
And, the Pharisees also took notice,
immediately, because the man in their midst was able to see and was also
speaking of a cure. They also had not heard of such a cure. Very suspicious are the Pharisees.
Suspicion and doubt led them and some
of his neighbors to conclude there
really had been no healing. In fact,
they were concluding that the man who could see was a different person. We
read: “His neighbors and those who
had seen him earlier as a beggar said, ‘Isn’t this the one [blind man]’ who
used to sit and beg?’ Some said, ‘It
is.’ But other said, ‘No, it just looks like him.’” (John 9:___)
Later, the mother and father and are
consulted. They did a background check, an ANCESTRY.COM search and they
eventually agreed he was the same person.
Change your vision and you might not
be recognized immediately.
Then, of course, there is also the
reaction we might receive after years of wearing the same frames and lenses and
someone asks…. “when did you start wearing glasses?”
[__02__] What
blocks or hinders your vision or my vision? In the Gospel, we read about the
man born blind. Through this experience / episode / encounter with Jesus, we
learn about the importance of vision and the need to correct our vision, our
sight with God’s help.
We read this also in our reading from
1st Samuel today. Samuel the prophet has gone to anoint a successor,
a king, to follow after Saul. He goes to Bethelehem to the house of Jesse. And,
he encounters several worthy candidates and gives several of them a good
scouting report. He wants to make one of a first round draft pick.
However, Samuel is told by God to
search beyond the surface: “Do not judge from his appearance or from his
lofty stature, because I have rejected him. Not as man sees does God see,
because man sees the appearance but the LORD looks into the heart.” (1
Samuel 16:_)
[__03__] We
are, you and I, are also called to regain, to recover our sight with God’s
help. Of course, very few of us would suffer from the acute and congenital /
hereditary blindness of the man in the Gospel.
Nevertheless, we all need God’s help
to see.
Jesus surely does not heal his vision
against his will.
And, the Lord heals you, heals me of
our sinfulness when we ask.
And, in these cases, our vision is
often corrected.
[__04__] In what ways does the blind man suffer?
First, he experiences great sorrow,
sadness, poverty. A blind man in the
days of our Savior (Christ) and the Roman Empire would be destitute and would
unable to earn a living.
He was alone and reduced to begging
for charity, for alms.
Isn’t it true that we sometimes
experience great sorrow, great difficulty?
And, at such times, we might not even have the strength or willingness
to call out for help.
We might observe that this blind man
does not actually call out for help. There are other encounters where Jesus
picks up a signal or message. This is not one of them.
Nevertheless, he does his part and
allows Jesus to help him.
Yes, he is suffering, alone, but he
permits the Lord to enter his life.
[__05__] In
what ways does the blind man suffer?
Secondly, the blind man suffers
because he cannot work. His eyes do not function. He does not earn a living.
Jesus, in this case, touches him heals
him with clay that is put on his face and eyes…and simply tells him to wash in
the pool of Siloam.
The man born blind is healed when he
takes the time to receive, to rest, to be healed.
[__06__] In what ways does the blind man suffer?
Third, the man born blind suffers
because there are large objects in his path.
Even though he now has “sight” the
objects remain. They are not to his advantage.
The large objects are the Pharisees.
When I was in high school, I recall we
had very crowded corridors and limited time to transfer between classes, to go
to our lockers for a book or anything else.
Sometimes, once in a while, a large
object helped. This was the large object of an upperclassmen, usually a
linebacker or power forward behind whom you could walk more quickly and get to
your classroom.
However, the man born blind, the large
objects – and those with big reputations and power – are in his way. They are
immobile, stubborn.
They are the Pharisees and the
Pharisees are not simply doubting his history of blindness.
They were, as we said, doing
background checks, “Is this really him?” They call in his parents for testimony.
The Pharisees are powerful, the top
seeds in the tournament and they have not lost in a very long time.
At times, we may have an adversary or
even an acquaintance or family member with whom we have a conflict.
This person may be elder, may be more
powerful. This person may have influence over us. Sometimes, whether we are younger or older,
we can be led astray by peer pressure to do what we know is dishonest or wrong.
A large object can block or view or
cause a blind spot.
[__07__] The
blind man, you and I, are called to seek Jesus as our vision and light
especially when we are faced with…
[__07.01__] sorrow or tears or feelings of
abandonment. This sadness can, however,
be a way for us to open our eyes and allow the help of God and neightbor.
[__07.02__] fragility or our inability or unwillingness
to work. The Lord may not be asking us to do more but simply to be immersed,
submerged in his water, in his presence and to rest in his presence.
[__07.03__] and we are called to recognize that the
largest objects can be moved out of our way, out of our vision, as the stone
was rolled away on Easter Sunday.
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