(The audio recording of this sermon will be uploaded here after the Sunday service.)
①
For the third time in a row, today I would like us to look together at John chapter 9 and encounter the deep love of God revealed to us there.
John chapter 9 tells us about a man who had been blind from birth anｄ sat by the roadside. One day, he encountered the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only were his eyes healed, but his whole life afterward was transformed into an entirely new one—a life of serving God, overflowing with the joy of salvation, and telling others about the goodness and greatness of God.
It is truly a story filled with hope.
John tells us about this event in great detail. Because of this, someone reading the chapter might even get the impression that all these events took place over a long period of time.
However, when we carefully read through chapter 9, it appears that everything recorded here actually happened in just one day.
Now, there is something interesting about the man who had been blind. For some reason, his name is never mentioned anywhere in the chapter. We may find that a little strange.
But when I think about it more carefully, I feel that there may be an important message from God hidden even in this detail.
Yes, I believe that what is recorded in John chapter 9 is more than simply the personal experience of one man. Rather, it shows us a universal pattern—a process through which a person is led to become a follower of Christ.
In other words, as we read this chapter, we can see how any one of us, just like this man, can come to recognize the presence of God, encounter His deep love, and then be led into the wonderful life of serving Him.
It shows us the process by which this happens.
②
With that in mind, let us now turn to today’s passage.
What happened to this nameless man who had been blind after his dramatic encounter with the Lord Jesus?
Incredibly, he was eventually thrown out by the Pharisees. And sadly, the people of the community were unable to stop the Pharisees from treating him in such an inhumane way.
And what about his parents?
Perhaps because they were afraid for their own safety and position, they ultimately allowed the Pharisees to do as they pleased. In the end, even his own parents behaved in a way that was almost as if they had abandoned him.
Have any of you ever experienced being abandoned?
Perhaps there may be no one in our church who has had such an experience.
And in Japanese society, it may sometimes be difficult for us to recognize people who have been pushed aside or abandoned by society. But such people certainly do exist. In fact, there are surprisingly many of them. This is part of the reality of our human world.
As a pastor, I have come to realize this.
Physical illness, mental illness, an accident, difficult family circumstances—there are actually many things that can lead a person to become isolated or pushed to the margins of society.
Many years ago, someone came to our church and asked me for advice. This person was struggling with powerful feelings related to gender identity—feelings that had arisen within and could not simply be stopped.
This person told me that after struggling deeply and painfully for a long time, he finally made a very difficult decision and told his mother about it. He had believed that his mother would understand him better than anyone else. But the mother said to him, “You are no child of mine.”
After this happened, the person not only continued to struggle with gender identity, but the mother’s words also led to severe depression. Eventually, the person could no longer continue working and became increasingly isolated from ordinary social life.
③
So what happened to the man in John chapter 9 after he was thrown out of his community?
In the Japanese Bible, verse 35 doesn’t simply state that Jesus happened to find the man who was cast out. It implies that Jesus actively sought him out until He found him.
It was not that the man needed Jesus. It was not that the man was searching for Jesus.
Jesus was searching for him. And finally, Jesus found him.
This is who Jesus Christ is.
And when Jesus found the man, Jesus asked him:
“Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
The expression “the Son of Man” was the title Jesus used for Himself.
Here Jesus was asking him, “Do you believe in Me—the Savior who has come as the Son of Man?”
The man responded very directly to Jesus’ question.
I am deeply moved by the way he responded.
He did not simply repeat back, “Yes, I believe.”
He had absolutely no intention of reading the atmosphere around him to come up with a reply that would please Jesus.
The man honestly expressed what was truly in his heart.
“Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
Jesus then said to him in verse 37:
“You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
Many Bible scholars say that this exchange between Jesus and the man reminds us of the baptismal ceremonies of the early church, when the apostles were still alive.
Bible scholars suggest that before a person was baptized, there may have been an exchange of questions and answers similar to this one, followed by baptism.
④
I believe we should pay particular attention to the words Jesus spoke at this moment:
“You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
After I had been a Christian for more than fifty years, I began to think more and more about the starting point of my own faith.
What is the source of the energy that has sustained my faith all these years?
As I thought about this, one of the first things that came to mind was the missionary I met when I first visited a church.
I still remember how earnestly he preached about the love of Jesus—putting his whole heart and soul into his message.
Of course, Jesus Christ was not physically standing beside the preacher.
And yet, behind that preacher, I could always sense the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And it was not only that preacher.
Over the years, I have been privileged to see the Lord Jesus Christ reflected in the lives of mature believers.
I believe this must have played a decisive role in my own decision to follow Christ.
If someone were to ask me, “How many people have you seen Christ in?” I could probably say that I have seen Christ reflected in roughly a hundred people.
Just the other day, I received a letter from a woman missionary who is now caring for refugees who have been arriving in Europe.
The sisters who are serving these refugees must all be over eighty and almost ninety years old by now.
And yet, even today, they have not stopped supporting these refugees in their daily lives.
I can picture those sisters even now, faithfully and tirelessly working to care for those people.
⑤
Now, let us return to the Bible.
The man in John chapter 9 who had been blind from birth did not simply receive physical sight.
Gradually, he began to recover his spiritual sight, which is far more important for every human being.
He began to recognize the presence of God and he began to see the love of God.
And when we read this chapter carefully, we realize that this spiritual recovery did not happen all at once.
At first, in verse 11, he says:
“The man they call Jesus…”
Then, in verse 17, he says:
“He is a prophet.”
And by the time we reach verse 33, he says that Jesus is “from God.”
His spiritual vision was becoming clearer, little by little.
And finally, in verse 38, he turned to Jesus and said:
“Lord, I believe.”
And he worshiped Jesus.
He bowed down before Jesus.
A mature believer bows down before the Lord.
When your spiritual sight is only beginning to open, you may think that faith is mainly about asking God: “Please do this for me.” “Please do that for me.”
But as your spiritual vision gradually becomes clearer,
you begin to realize that there are things far more important to pray about than simply what God will do for you.
Your prayers begin to change.
Before you even realize it, what God can do for you stops being the main thing.
The very nature of our prayers changes from being self-centered to being God-centered.
Our prayers are no longer primarily about seeking our own satisfaction.
Instead, our energy becomes focused on faith itself—on continuing to trust God no matter what happens.
In other words, we mature from believers who mainly ask things of God into believers who bow down before God.
This spiritual growth takes place step by step.
The spiritual growth lies in the ability to see the certainty of God’s salvation, the greatness of His love, the depth of His mercy, and the vastness of His purposes.
May we also continue to grow, one step at a time.
As we see the Lord reflected in the lives of His faithful disciples, may we ourselves become believers who increasingly bow down before our Lord Jesus Christ.
Prayer
Merciful Heavenly Father,
Today we have looked at the story of that blessed man who, nearly two thousand years ago, was sought out and found by the Lord Jesus Christ, and who finally bowed down before Jesus and said,
“Lord, I believe.”
And we are reminded that the loving gaze You directed toward that man is also directed toward each one of us today.
Holy Spirit, please fill us once again with the strength of faith throughout this coming week.
Please use us freely according to Your will so that Your work would be accomplished.
In the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
日本語