Gospel Message & Recording
We are now entering the sixth week of the Great and Holy Lent. Here we see that Jesus heals a blind man who was blind from birth. The details of the narrative are too many to list here but let me highlight some important points. First, Jesus’ disciples asked if the blind man was born blind due to his sin or that of his parents. Jesus emphatically replies that it was neither his sin nor that of his parents that caused his blindness; but rather, it was for the glory of God. Moving to the end of the narrative, after Jesus healed the blind man by applying mud and spit, he approaches Jesus, bows down and worships him. Many of the Jewish elite that were witnessing this miracle were offended because Jesus said, “For judgment, I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.” On hearing this the Pharisees asked, “Then, are we blind also?” Jesus said in reply, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.”
Here we might conclude that Jesus is talking about actual sight, that is, the ability to see. In part, that is true. But a closer look at the context tells us that there is more to what Jesus is saying: true sight is to see Jesus for who He is and be able to worship Him as Lord, as did the blind man after he was healed. The Pharisees, even though they could see, were blind to the fact the Son of God was standing before them. Blindness is not only a physical condition but also spiritual. The blind man was no longer blind because he could now see, but rather because he could “see” Jesus as the Son of God. In other words, the blind man “worshiped” Jesus. To see and to worship are synonymous. On the contrary, the Pharisees, who could see, were now blind because they couldn’t see Jesus as the Son of God. That is, they did not “worship” him.
As Christians, we can become spiritually blind, because even though we can see, we don’t worship Christ. We use our sight to worship the things of this world. We use our eyes for the wrong reasons. The bible says ‘if the eye is good, the body is full of light, but if the eye is bad, the body is full of darkness.’ The ancients referred to the eye as the gateway to the body. Indeed, spiritually this is true! Rather than bowing down to Christ (as did the blind man), we bow down to our physical desires, which lead us astray from God. Our “sight” is focused on our computers, laptops, video games, magazines, TVs, iPads, iPhones, Facebook, Instagram etc. Our eyes are geared toward these things, and in turn, what we are doing is worshiping them. Because, in the end, what we give most importance to in our life is what we worship. And suffice it to say, many of us are giving more importance to the things of the world than God. Can we put our iPads down and pick up a prayer book? Think of the ease and the minimal resistance that we have to turn on the TV, or go on facebook. Similarly, think of the difficulty and high resistance that we have when we have to pray the Prayers, read the Bible, read the writing of the Fathers. The reason is straightforward: our eyes are worshiping the things of the world, rather than the Christ who stands before us.
As the Lenten season slowly approaches its end, let us make an ardent effort to manage what we look at, hence what we worship. Let us all the more strive to gaze our eyes on the holy things of God and grow in a stronger relationship with Him.
Discussion Questions:
- What are some ways that we can control our attachment to our iPhones, iPads, laptops, Facebook, video games, etc. Similarly, how can we increase our attachment to our prayer books, bibles, etc? How is our sight closely connected to this idea of attachment?
- “true sight is to see Jesus for who He is and be able to worship Him as Lord, as did the blind man after he was healed. The Pharisees, even though they could see were blind to the fact the Son of God was standing before them. Blindness is not only a physical condition but also spiritual. The blind man was no longer blind because he could now see, but rather because he could “see” Jesus as the Son of God. In other words, the blind man “worshiped” Jesus. To see and to worship are synonymous. On the contrary, the Pharisees, who could see, were now blind because they couldn’t see Jesus as the Son of God. That is, they did not “worship” him.” Please comment and discuss.
- During the Lenten Season is it a part of our fasting practice to watch less TV, or to go on the Internet less? If so, has it helped you to grow closer to Christ?
- “Think of the ease and the minimal resistance that we have to turn on the TV, or go on facebook. Similarly, think of the difficulty and high resistance that we have when we have to pray the Prayers, read the Bible, read the writing of the Fathers. The reason is straightforward: our eyes are worshiping the things of the world, rather than the Christ who stands before us.” Do you find this comment to be relevant in your life? If so, explain.