“So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.” ²⁵ He answered, “I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” ²⁶ They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” ²⁷ He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” ²⁸ Then they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. ²⁹ We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” ³⁰ The man answered, “Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. ³¹ We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. ³² Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. ³³ If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” ³⁴ They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” And they drove him out. ³⁵ Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” ³⁶ He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.” ³⁷ Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” ³⁸ He said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped him. ³⁹ Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” ⁴⁰ Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” ⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.” John 9:24-41

I was asked by a friend to be a character witness for her child custody case in Cumberland County Court a few years ago. I have known this woman for many years – I worked with her at the day care center in the church where I used to attend services, and she has been a day care teacher for my children over the years. She and her husband divorced several years ago and they have one daughter together who is eight years old. The father was seeking full custody of the child claiming that my friend was an unfit mother. It is sad to me to see people argue over issues such as child custody, especially when neither parent is unfit to raise the child. What gets in the way of our relationships, husband and wife, friend to friend, church member to church member, is sin. And usually we are blind to the sin that we live in. Jesus says in our text today, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see’, your sin remains.”  Usually, our blindness keeps us from recognizing the fact that we do not see ourselves as we truly are – sinners desperately in need of God’s mercy and grace. Once we can see ourselves for who we really are, sinners in need of repentance, then, and only then, can we repair the relationships that we have destroyed by our sin.

Pastor Dave