Fresh Perspective - 10/03/08
Christian faith is not just about believing, trusting, or being committed to Christ and his cause in the world (the kingdom of God). It also has to do with how and what we see.
The story of the healing of a blind man in chapter 9 of John's Gospel illustrates this beautifully. The story begins with Jesus "seeing" a man born blind. The disciples with Jesus do not really "see" him; in their view he is merely the subject for a theological discussion. They ask Jesus: "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents?" Their question is based on a faulty cultural belief that attributes sickness and unfortunate circumstances to the judgment of God. The disciples think they can "see," but are actually blind to the truth.
Jesus heals the man, and because it is the Sabbath some of the Pharisees who see themselves as the guardians of the Torah become angry with Jesus for violating Sabbath law. As the story unfolds the Pharisees first question the man who was healed; then they call in his parents and question them; finally, they call back the man who was healed for a second round of interrogations.
In the second round of questioning the man who was healed responds courageously to their verbal assaults. The Pharisees accuse Jesus of being a sinner, and when the healed man objects they say to him, "You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!" Then they excommunicate him from the synagogue community.
They see sin everywhere but in themselves. In the final line of the story Jesus says to the Pharisees, "If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains."
The assumption that we already know blocks spiritual teaching and keeps us in the dark.
Healthy religion never claims certainty. It confesses to being blind. It takes a humble approach that nurtures honest, sincere seekers of God. And while these seekers feel God's love and experience God's grace, they know that God is always beyond them.
Unhealthy religion spins a false confidence that results in spiritual arrogance. It creates people who think they have God in their pockets. They dismiss their critics with glib, simplistic answers and become spiritual gatekeepers claiming to know who's "in" and "out," who's saved and unsaved, etc. Immense harm is done by people who presume to see, but are really blind.
Here's the paradox: Those who claim to see are really blind; those who know they are blind can really see. Do you "see"? Be careful how you answer.