As he
went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who
sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” John 9:1-2 (NIV)
It was widely believed in the Israel of Jesus’ day that a righteous life would always counteract evil outcomes. The righteous never suffer evil things. God would not allow it! So, the disciples of Jesus believed a man blind from birth might be guilty of sin and born under the judgment of God.
If this man was the guilty party of his blind state, the question remains what was the sin he committed in his mother’s womb causing his blindness? If the answer is the sins he would later commit, then we would all be born in some kind of iniquitous physical condition for the psalmist writes, I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me (Psalm 51:5).
It is
unfortunate that if someone is suffering, we seldom
first consider that God may be working to refine and purify their lives and bring
Himself honor and glory (Phil 2:13). Job was a virtuous man (Job 1:8) yet suffered
unimaginably horrific trials and setbacks. We can do as his friends did in
their unjust judgment of him, and automatically assume suffering’s cause is always
hidden sin, and the suffering person is just getting God’s payback, but that is both petty and vindictive, and those things are not listed in God’s attributes of holiness. He is none of those things.
Jesus’ reply
to the disciple’s query was both on point in God’s estimation and gracious in His
promise of help. He said, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,
but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” And
the works of God were indeed displayed as Jesus healed this man’s sight and he became
a believer on Jesus as the Son of God (9:38).
Being quick
to think and slow to speak are the prerequisites taught throughout Scripture.
God was very angry with Job’s friends for their arrogance and self-righteous
judgments of this righteous man, and how that misrepresented God Himself! The LORD severely
rebuked them (Job 42:7-8).
God sometimes
allows suffering in our lives that can forge our molten pain into spiritual
steel. We come out of the furnace of affliction tempered and stronger in our
faith and shaped on adversity’s anvil into His perfect instrument for service.
We can throw
stones much too easily that hurt those who are already wounded. Let us open our fingers and drop any stones of angry contention. The only stone
we need to be touching is the foundation stone of Christ Himself and His welcoming
touch of grace. In that touch we can see how to do the same for others and for ourselves.
Maranatha,
Ken
