Tuesday, April 30 - John 9

Sharpening the Knife

In today's reading, notice the following exchange between the formerly blind man and the religious leaders: 

24 A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. “Give glory to God by telling the truth,” they said. “We know this man is a sinner.”
25 He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”
26 Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”
27 He answered, “I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?”
28 Then they hurled insults at him and said, “You are this fellow’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.”
30 The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. 32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
34 To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.

Surprisingly it almost seems like the man's faith grows during his inquisition.  He begins by saying, "whether he is a sinner or not I do not know" and ends by saying "if this man were not from God he could do nothing."  The Pharisees meant to break him down and unwittingly seem to have strengthened his resolve to believe in Jesus as his Savior.

But isn't it often the case that our faith grows through controversy, difficulty and challenge?  Isn't hardship often the honing device to sharpen us as God's people?

In 1996, my faith was challenged by an automobile accident that left me with a fractured vertebrae in my neck.  As I lay on a hospital bed uncertain of my future, I found a deeper strength from God's presence than I had known before.  Relying on His healing hand and not on my own ingenuity or insight helped me know how utterly dependent I was on His love.

So, if you are walking in the middle of difficulty and hardship, keep your eyes focused upward.  Strength might be on its way in the most surprising form.