Scripture: John 9:1-41
When I begin working with a Scripture, one of the things I do is pray about how God may be speaking to us today through this text. The thing that stood out to me about our text from John 9 is how much blame there is. The disciples ask Jesus- who to blame? Who sinned to make this man blind?
Casting blame seems to be par for the course these days. I guess It’s human nature to look for cause and effect, hoping that if we know the cause we can control and limit the effect.
It is important to know how diseases are spread. Especially in our current circumstances of COVID-19. We want to avoid getting sick and making others sick: we wash our hands, stay home as much as possible and increase social distancing. We want to be careful but we know that hardly anything is fool proof. some will ignore all the rules and never get sick and others will do everything right and still get sick.
But we also play the blame game: Either we fuss about businesses being closed and accuse people of over reacting or we shout at our leaders for not responding quicker. We blame Other nations, cruise lines, travelers, governments past and present and every day citizens young and old.
Somebody has to be at fault, right? Or so we think.
Blame for sickness isn't new. Even the diseases and circumstance we have lived with for centuries, result in blame. We blame Smoking habits and alcohol consumption, too much fast food, not enough exercise, some people work too much and others not enough. We blame economic issues on some people's greed and other's inability to manage money wisely. And if you've driven on the highway you know we blame some drivers for being too aggressive or not defensive enough.
The disciples are no different: They want to know who to blame.
Jesus essentially says: stop blaming, just pay attention to how God’s at work. Jesus knows that the Glory of God will be revealed. This man and his life will be redeemed and that’s what matters.
Once the man is healed, it starts all over again. I am always shocked at this man’s friends and family. (Smh) No one praises God for this miracle. No one offers to throw him a party. Some denied it was even him! His friends take him to the religious leaders who should have praised God for this miracle but instead they start the blame game too. Who can we blame for breaking the rules? Who can we blame for doing something that is out of our control? Who would dare suggest God doesn’t play by our rules? They are so consumed by the blame game that they cannot see the miracle of God right in front of their eyes.
The blind man who had been healed essentially says the same thing Jesus said… Who cares! I am healed! I can see!
It is easy to read passages like this and play our own blame game. How can the Pharisees be that blind? How could they see all that Jesus was doing and not recognize him as God? But we all do it. We get so caught up in how we think the world should work that it’s hard to see God in our midst. We get so consumed with our own suffering, our own efforts to belong, to not be infected that we forget to stop, pray, invite God into this moment and ask how the Glory of God may be shown, through this pandemic, through whatever circumstance you, our community or our churches are facing.
So let’s do that this morning. Let’s open our eyes to see how God is at work in our current circumstances and how God may be calling us to participate in God’s kingdom around us. We are social distancing but God is also providing an opportunity for many to rest, to spend time with family and to explore new ways of connecting.
God is at work as we reach out by phone, especially when it’s to people we wouldn’t normally speak to in a typical week. I have even heard of people meeting across the nation over the phone and internet to pray together- things we hadn’t been doing before. God has given us the gift of technology which I am learning more about and will be inviting you to do the same. We will be able to connect in ways that will allow us to expand things like worship and Bible study reaching people outside our immediate community and spreading the good news of Jesus Christ to people who wouldn’t normally hear it.
Not being inside the walls of church may force us to go beyond them in new ways.
God is opening our eyes to the millions of people who live pay check to pay check including the over 2 million people who applied for unemployment this week and discerning new ways to be in ministry with them. And I and this church want to hear how the Holy Spirt might be speaking to you as we discern how to do that better.
God is bringing us together in new ways as a global community. In this moment we have the opportunity to think more about we and less about me. We know we are interconnected and the actions of one affect all, the actions of one community, state, nation and person impacts others in ways that may not have been anticipated. This happens in positive as well as negative ways and reminds us to be careful about the choices we make.
The way God’s glory will be seen in and through this experience is still yet unknown and as my husband likes to say- more will be revealed. But when we have eyes to see, God’s glory will be revealed in any and every circumstance.
Now, This isn’t to negate the pain and suffering that many are experiencing. Many are sick and may be unable to get the care they need. Others are separated from loved ones, unable to visit hospitals and care facilities.
Health care workers, grocery store employees, sanitation workers, police, government leaders, and many others who are working overtime are suffering too. Business are having to make major adjustments and jobs are being lost.
But it is a reminder to open our eyes to God’s presence that goes with us always. No matter what we face.
When we see and experience suffering, we are invited to open our eyes to Jesus.
There is no way the disciples could look upon the events of Jesus’ life, on Holy Week, from the triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to the last supper, sham trail and crucifixion and see God at work. No matter how many times Jesus told them, there are some things that we simply must see through the rear view mirror.
Our Lord, Jesus suffered the pain and humiliation of the cross and is at one with us as we suffer through the circumstances of our lives. Jesus knew in the moment of his greatest suffering, that even then, God was and would be glorified forever.
So we can look at our own lives, our own suffering, no matter what the cause and know that God can and will be glorified through us. The suffering will not last forever but the hope we find in Christ will. In Jesus we can find our hope and light in our darkest moments.
May our Lord, Jesus Christ bring you comfort, reassurance and peace no matter what life brings your way. May we have eyes to see and a heart to accept the truth of this hope We find in him.
