Reflection on Jn 9:35-38

Jesus heard they had ejected him, and when he found him he said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of man?” He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.” Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him.

Chapter nine of John’s Gospel describes in detail the event relating to the healing of the blind man and the spiteful reaction of the religious leaders – the Pharisees and the scribes. The event begins as follows: Jesus and the Apostles met a man in Jerusalem who was blind from birth. The Apostles obviously felt sorry for the young man and asked Jesus an interesting question: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.” And He added: “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” Then He made a certain gesture. He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him: “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam.” The blind man had no objections. He did not say that it was pointless. He believed. Probably he had heard about Jesus before, and now he was fascinated by the tone of His voice filled with compassion, love and divine power. He believed. So he went and washed, and came back healed. What delight when for the first time in his life he could see the walls of Jerusalem, the temple, a blue sky, the sun and especially the people. His neighbours were astonished because they previously had seen him begging. Therefore they asked each other: “Is this he?” And some said: “No, but he is like him.” So he said: “I am he.” Therefore they said to him: “How were your eyes opened?” He answered and said: “Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed, and I received sight.” Then they said to him: “Where is He?” He said: “I do not know.”

How astonishing was the reaction of the people and of the religious leaders! They brought him to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath. The Pharisees asked him: “How did you receive your sight?” He said to them: “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” Therefore some of the Pharisees said about Jesus: “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” Others said: “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them. They said to the blind man again: “What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?” He said: “He is a prophet.” What was the response of the Jews? They did not believe that he had been blind and received his sight. They called his parents and asked them: “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” His parents answered them: “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself.” His parents said these things because they knew that the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. So the Pharisees again called the young man who had been blind and forced him to make an absurd confession. They said: “Give glory to God by telling the truth.” They took no account of the fact that he had already told the truth. And what is more, they said absurdly: “We know that this Man is a sinner.” Naturally, it was a lie because they could not convict Jesus of a single sin. The man who had been blind said: “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.” The Pharisees attacked him again and forced him to think and speak the way they wanted him to; in other words, they wanted him to deny the truth and reality. They said to him: “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?” He answered them: “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again?” And then he made a slight joke, which was also an expression of his faith and a testimony. He asked them, saying: “Do you also want to become His disciples?” There was a lightning response. They reviled him and said: “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.” This man, although he was no teacher of the law or theologian, said to them simply: “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.” What was their response? They refused to accept the truth and snubbed him with a religious phrase: “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him: “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered and said: “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” And Jesus said to him: “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.” Then he said: “Lord, I believe!” And he worshipped Him.

There are three kinds of blindness: physical blindness when man is sightless, mental blindness when man is bereft of reason and spiritual blindness when man does not believe in God. God created the whole universe and placed laws in both living and non-living matter. But to be saved, it is not enough to assent to the existence of God. It is necessary to receive His word. To receive Jesus as the Messiah, the Saviour sent by God.

Just as in the times of Christ, so also today there are people who reject Christ and are spiritually blind, though they are able to see and sane in mind. The main reason why people do not believe is that they do not want to. They do not want to accept the way of salvation which God offers them. They prefer to walk in their own ways of self-redemption. The way of salvation which is in Jesus is viewed by them as primitive.

Jesus opened the eyes of the blind man in Jerusalem. This man was put out of the synagogue because he told the truth. In this situation, Jesus finds him and asks him: “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” And the man who received his sight asks: “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” Jesus says to him: “You have seen Him.” He thus reminded him of his personal experience with God who had opened his eyes. This personal experience, through which God touched his heart, awakened the saving faith in him and opened his spiritual eyes. Without this personal experience of God, faith is dead, theoretical, and leaves man in darkness. Everyone needs personal experience with God. This experience should be transmitted by those who have known the living Jesus and carry Him in their hearts. It is the primary duty of the converted Christians to transmit to others this personal encounter with the living Jesus. Without the experience of the living God there is no living faith. As soon as Jesus said to him: “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you”, the interior knowledge poured out of his heart and he cried out, saying: “Lord, I believe!”, and worshipped Him. No theological study can substitute for this personal faith. The living faith is poured into our hearts by God. It is His gift. We receive this gift in our personal encounter with Him.

Jesus’ words are for our instruction and salvation too. They touch each of us personally. God speaks to each of us with a gentle voice, through our thoughts. Our prayer should be an encounter with Jesus and through Him with the Heavenly Father. The Spirit of God helps us in our weakness, so that our prayer may be a prayer of our spirit and our heart and unite us to Jesus. Do you believe in the Son of Man? Do you believe that Jesus is your personal Saviour? If you open your heart to Jesus, give Him your sins, tell Him about your pains and worries, and put this all into His hands, you will encounter the living Christ. He speaks to you – not with a physical voice but through your mind and your heart. And you can see Him with the eyes of faith and experience His presence. He takes away your sins and fills your heart with peace which the world cannot give. Jesus says to you too: “I am with you always, all the days of your life.” (Mt 28:20)

Download: Reflection on Jn 9:35-38