WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.120 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.740 --> 00:00:15.300 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.660 --> 00:00:22.660 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:25.480 --> 00:00:26.539 Good morning. 00:00:26.539 --> 00:00:33.560 Good morning. I'm Megan Doxon, and I am part of the Thursday evening North Berkeley community group. 00:00:34.379 --> 00:00:47.140 Today's scripture reading is from the Gospel according to John 8, verse 12, and chapter 9, verses 1 to 17 and 24 to 41, as printed in your liturgy. 00:00:49.079 --> 00:00:52.179 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 00:00:52.179 --> 00:00:59.460 I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 00:00:59.460 --> 00:01:06.500 As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, 00:01:07.040 --> 00:01:11.239 Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? 00:01:12.180 --> 00:01:19.620 Neither this man nor his parents sinned, said Jesus, but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. 00:01:19.620 --> 00:01:26.700 As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming when no one can work. 00:01:27.320 --> 00:01:30.359 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world. 00:01:31.420 --> 00:01:37.680 After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:41.480 Go, he told him, wash in the pool of Siloam. 00:01:41.480 --> 00:01:43.520 This word means sent. 00:01:44.299 --> 00:01:46.820 So the man went and washed and came home seeing. 00:01:47.480 --> 00:01:51.219 His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, 00:01:51.700 --> 00:01:54.659 Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg? 00:01:55.780 --> 00:02:00.060 Some claimed that he was. Others said, no, he only looks like him. 00:02:00.560 --> 00:02:03.340 But he himself insisted, I am the man. 00:02:04.020 --> 00:02:06.560 How then were your eyes opened, they asked. 00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:12.360 He replied, the man they called Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. 00:02:12.539 --> 00:02:15.240 He told me to go to Siloam and wash. 00:02:15.719 --> 00:02:18.240 So I went and washed, and then I could see. 00:02:18.900 --> 00:02:20.819 Where is this man, they asked him. 00:02:21.280 --> 00:02:22.420 I don't know, he said. 00:02:23.580 --> 00:02:27.020 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 00:02:27.860 --> 00:02:32.780 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath. 00:02:32.780 --> 00:02:40.219 Therefore, the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. 00:02:40.719 --> 00:02:44.599 He put mud on my eyes, the man replied, and I washed, and now I see. 00:02:45.219 --> 00:02:50.340 Some of the Pharisees said, this man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath. 00:02:51.159 --> 00:02:55.000 But others asked, how can a sinner perform such signs? 00:02:55.500 --> 00:02:56.500 So they were divided. 00:02:57.199 --> 00:02:59.259 Then they turned again to the blind man. 00:02:59.759 --> 00:03:01.500 What have you to say about him? 00:03:01.500 --> 00:03:03.780 It was your eyes he opened. 00:03:04.219 --> 00:03:06.340 The man replied, he is a prophet. 00:03:08.379 --> 00:03:11.199 A second time, they summoned the man who had been blind. 00:03:11.639 --> 00:03:14.199 Give glory to God by telling the truth, they said. 00:03:14.500 --> 00:03:15.979 We know this man is a sinner. 00:03:16.520 --> 00:03:20.219 He replied, whether he is a sinner or not, I do not know. 00:03:20.800 --> 00:03:21.939 One thing I do know. 00:03:22.539 --> 00:03:24.340 I was blind, but now I see. 00:03:25.759 --> 00:03:28.680 Then they asked him, what did he do to you? 00:03:28.780 --> 00:03:30.080 How did he open your eyes? 00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:33.880 He answered, I have told you already, and you did not listen. 00:03:34.400 --> 00:03:36.180 Why do you want to hear it again? 00:03:36.640 --> 00:03:38.880 Do you want to become his disciples too? 00:03:39.900 --> 00:03:44.500 Then they hurled insults at him and said, you are this fellow's disciple. 00:03:45.080 --> 00:03:46.460 We are disciples of Moses. 00:03:46.460 --> 00:03:52.879 We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don't even know where he comes from. 00:03:53.939 --> 00:03:56.680 The man answered, now that is remarkable. 00:03:57.020 --> 00:04:00.240 You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 00:04:00.620 --> 00:04:02.960 We know that God does not listen to sinners. 00:04:03.540 --> 00:04:06.500 He listens to the godly person who does his will. 00:04:07.500 --> 00:04:11.200 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:14.919 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing. 00:04:15.799 --> 00:04:19.519 To this they replied, you were steeped in sin at birth. 00:04:19.800 --> 00:04:21.060 How dare you lecture us? 00:04:21.620 --> 00:04:22.839 And they threw him out. 00:04:23.620 --> 00:04:29.039 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, do you believe in the son of man? 00:04:29.680 --> 00:04:30.719 Who is he, sir? 00:04:30.839 --> 00:04:31.699 The man asked. 00:04:32.339 --> 00:04:34.599 Tell me so that I may believe in him. 00:04:35.400 --> 00:04:37.980 Jesus said, you have now seen him. 00:04:38.100 --> 00:04:40.220 In fact, he is the one speaking with you. 00:04:40.860 --> 00:04:44.720 Then the man said, Lord, I believe, and he worshipped him. 00:04:45.500 --> 00:04:52.800 Jesus said, for judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see, and those who see will become blind. 00:04:53.840 --> 00:04:58.120 Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, what? 00:04:58.560 --> 00:04:59.620 Are we blind too? 00:05:00.200 --> 00:05:03.939 Jesus said, if you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin. 00:05:03.939 --> 00:05:07.879 But now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains. 00:05:08.740 --> 00:05:10.639 This is the gospel of the Lord. 00:05:11.300 --> 00:05:14.680 Thank you for that reading, Megan. 00:05:14.899 --> 00:05:15.600 Good morning, everyone. 00:05:15.680 --> 00:05:17.879 My name is Andrew, one of the pastors here at Christ Church. 00:05:18.560 --> 00:05:22.899 Will you join me in prayer as we listen to what God has to say from his word? 00:05:25.259 --> 00:05:30.379 Lord, we come before you wanting to encounter the light of the world. 00:05:30.379 --> 00:05:35.139 And we give thanks to you that that is who you are. 00:05:35.240 --> 00:05:38.579 You are indeed the light of the whole world. 00:05:38.579 --> 00:05:44.319 And we pray for that light to shine on our world in moments like these. 00:05:44.379 --> 00:05:50.620 And every day, this dark and broken world that so desperately needs the light of Christ. 00:05:51.620 --> 00:05:55.240 So we pray for that light, and we pray that it would start here with us. 00:05:55.439 --> 00:06:00.199 Use the preaching of your word to bring glory to yourself and light to the nations, we pray. 00:06:00.199 --> 00:06:01.920 In Jesus' strong name. 00:06:02.759 --> 00:06:03.039 Amen. 00:06:04.300 --> 00:06:07.620 So we are continuing our series in the Gospel of John. 00:06:08.039 --> 00:06:14.079 And the good news about Jesus that John especially wants to communicate is that Jesus is God himself. 00:06:14.319 --> 00:06:16.060 Come to be with us in the flesh. 00:06:16.159 --> 00:06:20.259 He's Yahweh among us, the great I am God among us. 00:06:20.459 --> 00:06:25.560 Come to be everything that our darkened, sin-stained world needed but never deserved. 00:06:25.560 --> 00:06:30.040 And that's why the Gospel of John famously has these I am statements. 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:34.160 Two weeks ago, we talked about Jesus saying, I am, what, the bread of life? 00:06:34.540 --> 00:06:40.480 Last week, Jonathan preached about Jesus saying, before Abraham was, I am. 00:06:41.180 --> 00:06:50.439 Well, today on Transfiguration Sunday, this day that we remember Jesus' brilliance and the brightness that emanated from him in the presence of his Father, 00:06:50.439 --> 00:06:57.279 we are looking at the next I am statement where he says, I am the light of the world. 00:06:57.360 --> 00:06:58.620 I am the light of the world. 00:06:58.699 --> 00:07:05.459 Now, to understand what this means and why it matters, I want to invite us to imagine a world without light. 00:07:05.839 --> 00:07:07.920 Try to imagine that, a world without light. 00:07:08.899 --> 00:07:14.439 If you think about it, it would be both literally and metaphorically a pretty dark place, right? 00:07:14.439 --> 00:07:17.680 I mean, there couldn't be life as we know it. 00:07:17.719 --> 00:07:24.219 And even if there was life somehow, imagine how you would know and understand anything without light. 00:07:24.620 --> 00:07:26.219 It wouldn't be by sight, right? 00:07:26.680 --> 00:07:30.560 You'd have to be like, oh, this is a rock because it tastes like a rock. 00:07:30.659 --> 00:07:32.220 Or it smells like a rock. 00:07:32.279 --> 00:07:33.300 It sounds like a rock. 00:07:33.360 --> 00:07:38.800 But you couldn't actually say that this is a rock because I see that it is a rock. 00:07:38.839 --> 00:07:40.199 And it's bizarre to think about, right? 00:07:40.699 --> 00:07:42.439 A world without light. 00:07:42.439 --> 00:07:47.000 Light, no life, no sight, none of that without light. 00:07:47.819 --> 00:07:48.839 So here Jesus is. 00:07:48.899 --> 00:07:51.740 He's saying, I am the light of the world. 00:07:51.819 --> 00:07:54.180 He's saying, in me is abundant life. 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:57.959 And it's only in my light that anyone can see rightly and truthfully. 00:07:58.079 --> 00:08:00.360 And man, that's a pretty radical claim, right? 00:08:00.879 --> 00:08:02.100 It's a pretty radical claim. 00:08:02.220 --> 00:08:08.680 Last week, we heard about how the Jewish people wanted to stone him for invoking the divine name, I am who I am. 00:08:09.519 --> 00:08:12.259 But this week, he's saying something pretty radical, too. 00:08:12.660 --> 00:08:15.959 That he is the light of the world, the very source of life. 00:08:15.959 --> 00:08:20.879 And the only light by which we can see truthfully, truly, and rightly. 00:08:21.860 --> 00:08:28.500 Or in other words, what he's saying in no man's words is that without me, even if you think you're alive, you're actually dead. 00:08:29.139 --> 00:08:34.440 Without me, even if you think that you can see just fine, you're actually blind and in the dark. 00:08:34.440 --> 00:08:41.400 And this is the provocative, even offensive claim that we are confronted with today from John's gospel. 00:08:41.540 --> 00:08:43.100 I am the light of the world. 00:08:43.180 --> 00:08:43.940 It's a challenge. 00:08:44.380 --> 00:08:50.920 A challenge to all the other gods, all the other sources of light that we might be tempted to trust in and hope in. 00:08:51.919 --> 00:09:00.799 See, with these I am statements, what John's gospel is trying to accomplish, what John is trying to do is he's trying to lift up Jesus as a superior God, a superior deity. 00:09:00.979 --> 00:09:04.579 So far superior to all the other gods of all the other nations. 00:09:04.580 --> 00:09:11.520 So when Jesus says, I am the light of the world, John is making explicit that Jesus is not just the I am, Yahweh. 00:09:11.740 --> 00:09:16.960 He's making explicit that Jesus is a better God than Ra of Egypt, right? 00:09:17.000 --> 00:09:23.820 That God that Yahweh conquered when he sent the plague of darkness upon Egypt and delivered his people out of slavery. 00:09:24.040 --> 00:09:30.759 Or in the Greek world, John was saying, Jesus, when he says, I am the light of the world, he's superior to Apollo, right? 00:09:30.759 --> 00:09:33.419 The son of Zeus, the God of light and sun. 00:09:34.279 --> 00:09:40.600 See, the message of John's gospel is that Jesus is God among us and he is not just the true God, but he's better. 00:09:41.120 --> 00:09:43.120 He's better than any other God. 00:09:43.159 --> 00:09:47.759 And I think this is very instructive for us, especially for those of us investigating Christianity. 00:09:47.759 --> 00:09:55.879 You know, I think sometimes with our rationalistic, you know, modernistic mindsets, we can get stuck on the question, is Jesus true? 00:09:56.600 --> 00:09:59.799 And this is an important question that I hope we all wrestle with. 00:09:59.799 --> 00:10:01.179 I hope we all check the evidence. 00:10:01.279 --> 00:10:04.919 I hope we all try to be as objective as possible and examine all these claims. 00:10:05.079 --> 00:10:14.000 But the beauty of the good news about Jesus is not only has God given himself objectively to us to examine as credible and true, 00:10:14.000 --> 00:10:17.399 but he's also subjectively compelling. 00:10:18.059 --> 00:10:20.120 He's also subjectively compelling. 00:10:21.000 --> 00:10:25.799 I want you to imagine if Greek mythology were true, right? 00:10:25.799 --> 00:10:27.459 Imagine if that were true. 00:10:28.319 --> 00:10:29.859 It wouldn't be satisfying, right? 00:10:30.479 --> 00:10:32.479 Would you really want a God like Zeus? 00:10:33.120 --> 00:10:36.299 Would you really want a God like Apollo or Hermes, right? 00:10:36.399 --> 00:10:37.099 Or Aphrodite? 00:10:37.919 --> 00:10:47.659 But the good news of Jesus is that he's not only objectively true, but he is also subjectively compelling and satisfying better than any other option. 00:10:47.659 --> 00:10:56.319 So for those of us who are investigating Christianity here today, even those of us who might just struggle with consistent doubt and skepticism, 00:10:56.459 --> 00:11:01.059 maybe you're in a season of deconstruction, we're super glad you're here. 00:11:01.059 --> 00:11:06.979 And what I want to propose to you is that, yes, keep grappling with that question, is Jesus true? 00:11:07.079 --> 00:11:07.699 Is this true? 00:11:07.779 --> 00:11:11.959 But I also want to challenge you to grapple with the question, is this better? 00:11:12.699 --> 00:11:20.699 Is this more beautiful, more compelling than any other alternative I might place my faith in and give my life to? 00:11:21.579 --> 00:11:26.119 And I think that if we dare to ask this question, is Jesus better? 00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:32.379 I wonder if we might be pleasantly surprised at the way that our Heavenly Father draws us to himself, 00:11:32.720 --> 00:11:39.039 the way his Spirit persuades us about who Jesus is objectively and subjectively, 00:11:39.220 --> 00:11:42.120 as the one who truly is better. 00:11:43.240 --> 00:11:49.039 Now, one way we might consider if Jesus is better is by asking, does he give us a better story? 00:11:49.700 --> 00:11:53.980 Does he make better sense of the world and reality around us? 00:11:53.980 --> 00:11:57.360 And I think Jesus is getting at this when he says, I am the light of the world. 00:11:57.980 --> 00:12:01.500 I think he's wanting to speak to that question, is he better? 00:12:01.580 --> 00:12:02.920 Does he give us a better story? 00:12:03.800 --> 00:12:06.519 You know how a lot of people love to quote Dr. King, right? 00:12:06.580 --> 00:12:11.659 Dr. King said that the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. 00:12:11.759 --> 00:12:12.740 People love that, right? 00:12:13.139 --> 00:12:14.259 Religious people love that. 00:12:14.639 --> 00:12:16.019 Irreligious people love that. 00:12:16.399 --> 00:12:18.600 Agnostics, atheists, we all love that story. 00:12:18.600 --> 00:12:21.019 We all want to believe in that story, right? 00:12:21.639 --> 00:12:26.320 That ends in injustice and goodness and light triumphing. 00:12:27.340 --> 00:12:33.460 But when Jesus says, I am the light of the world, what he's saying is that the story of universal history ending in justice, 00:12:34.279 --> 00:12:38.200 it's only possible because he says, I am the light of the world. 00:12:38.279 --> 00:12:42.800 See, when Jesus says, I am the light of the world, he's retelling the story of the universe. 00:12:42.799 --> 00:12:45.919 We're taking all the way back to the beginning of history. 00:12:46.219 --> 00:12:48.979 Page one of your Pew Bibles, Genesis chapter one, verse one. 00:12:49.099 --> 00:12:51.620 In the beginning, God created what? 00:12:51.699 --> 00:12:52.879 The heavens and the earth. 00:12:52.939 --> 00:12:54.419 And then what does it say in the very next verse? 00:12:54.479 --> 00:12:54.879 Verse two. 00:12:55.959 --> 00:12:57.879 Now the earth was formless and empty. 00:12:58.879 --> 00:12:59.279 Darkness. 00:13:00.319 --> 00:13:02.859 Darkness was over the surface of the deep. 00:13:02.899 --> 00:13:04.879 And I want you to think about that for a second. 00:13:04.879 --> 00:13:14.779 God, the triune God, Father, Son, and Spirit, has existed from all eternity in his own unapproachable light, right? 00:13:15.279 --> 00:13:21.299 But when he decided to create, when he decided to bring into existence something other than himself, 00:13:22.679 --> 00:13:29.940 that was the moment when darkness, formlessness, emptiness, and the potential for chaos and evil came to be, 00:13:29.940 --> 00:13:34.760 when God made something other than himself, something that was not God. 00:13:34.820 --> 00:13:36.260 It seems a little precarious, right? 00:13:37.280 --> 00:13:42.000 Yet from the beginning, this God, who is the inspiration of light itself as we know it, 00:13:42.040 --> 00:13:43.100 he was not at all threatened. 00:13:43.640 --> 00:13:47.080 He was not at all threatened by the darkness of what he created. 00:13:47.920 --> 00:13:53.620 His spirit from the beginning was hovering over the deep, dark waters, giving order to it, conquering it, 00:13:53.900 --> 00:13:56.340 giving it purpose and meaning and beauty. 00:13:56.340 --> 00:14:00.360 And with a simple word, God put darkness in its place, right? 00:14:00.920 --> 00:14:02.500 And God said, let there be light. 00:14:02.540 --> 00:14:06.700 And this light was the life of mankind, the light that dispelled the darkness. 00:14:07.019 --> 00:14:11.019 It brought the beginnings of order and form and life and vitality to this world. 00:14:11.820 --> 00:14:14.940 And this is how the beautiful story of creation began. 00:14:15.080 --> 00:14:19.080 In the beginning, God made the world and said, let there be light. 00:14:19.660 --> 00:14:23.100 And we were meant to live in creation by his light. 00:14:23.100 --> 00:14:29.279 And to know and relate to this world in his pure and powerful light that conquered the initial darkness. 00:14:30.820 --> 00:14:33.920 But see, what the fall of history is, the fall of creation, 00:14:34.040 --> 00:14:36.779 is when the crown of God's creation, humanity, us, 00:14:37.240 --> 00:14:42.019 made in God's image, dependent upon God's light for knowledge and life. 00:14:42.680 --> 00:14:47.240 The fall was when we chose to walk in darkness outside of God's light. 00:14:47.240 --> 00:14:56.940 The fall was the result of us reintroducing and actualizing the possibilities of emptiness and chaos back into creation. 00:14:58.060 --> 00:14:59.000 And what was the result? 00:14:59.259 --> 00:15:01.580 The result, as Apostle Paul says in his letter to the Romans, 00:15:01.759 --> 00:15:06.919 was that our sinful hearts were darkened because we exchanged the truth about God for a lie. 00:15:07.720 --> 00:15:10.100 And we even began to suppress the truth about God. 00:15:10.100 --> 00:15:13.620 And see, that's the big predicament that we're in. 00:15:14.240 --> 00:15:17.440 That's exactly why we need the divine light once again. 00:15:17.519 --> 00:15:20.420 So you see, this story that Jesus is telling, 00:15:21.000 --> 00:15:23.420 this story that he's inserting himself into when he says, 00:15:23.659 --> 00:15:25.100 I am the light of the world, 00:15:25.820 --> 00:15:30.540 he's saying that though you rejected the initial light of creation that I gave to this world, 00:15:31.180 --> 00:15:33.519 though you let darkness back in, 00:15:34.139 --> 00:15:39.379 I'm entering into this dark world to shine again the light of new creation. 00:15:40.379 --> 00:15:43.080 I'm shining the light of new creation, he says. 00:15:43.120 --> 00:15:47.700 He's saying, I've come to bring new life and to help you see rightly again. 00:15:48.279 --> 00:15:51.139 To rescue you, as Paul says, from the dominion of darkness 00:15:51.139 --> 00:15:54.679 and to bring you into the kingdom of the sun, the kingdom of light. 00:15:55.419 --> 00:15:58.960 He's saying, I've come to get you to the happy ending of the story. 00:15:59.519 --> 00:16:04.200 A story that begins and ends with a triumph of divine light. 00:16:04.340 --> 00:16:08.039 John writes about this in the very last chapter of the Bible, Revelation chapter 22. 00:16:08.039 --> 00:16:12.639 He writes of a city with no more tears, no more darkness, no more night, 00:16:12.740 --> 00:16:14.519 and in no need of a lamp or even the sun, 00:16:14.860 --> 00:16:19.240 for it says the Lord God will give it its light and he'll reign forever. 00:16:20.240 --> 00:16:24.299 History ends with God's people who once chose and walked in darkness, 00:16:24.699 --> 00:16:28.519 somehow still dwelling with him at the end in unapproachable light. 00:16:28.559 --> 00:16:31.399 And that's the good news that Jesus came to bring as the light of the world. 00:16:31.399 --> 00:16:38.259 And John and Jesus, they both want us to end up enjoying that happy ending to the story 00:16:38.259 --> 00:16:40.079 and the final defeat of darkness. 00:16:40.220 --> 00:16:44.220 But the question is, will we walk by faith in his light? 00:16:44.299 --> 00:16:48.179 Will we walk by faith in his light into his abundant life? 00:16:49.340 --> 00:16:52.220 You know, the context in which Jesus says this statement, 00:16:52.379 --> 00:16:53.519 I am the light of the world, 00:16:53.779 --> 00:16:58.819 what's going on here in the Gospel of John is something called the Feast of Tabernacles, 00:16:58.820 --> 00:17:00.160 the Festival of Tabernacles. 00:17:00.300 --> 00:17:04.720 And what that was was a celebration of how God provided for his people 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:07.420 as they wandered out of Egypt in the wilderness. 00:17:08.259 --> 00:17:12.340 And what they would do, what they would do during the Feast of Tabernacles 00:17:12.340 --> 00:17:13.700 is they would camp out. 00:17:14.100 --> 00:17:16.820 They would camp out for a whole week in booths 00:17:17.380 --> 00:17:20.080 and just remember how God took care of them 00:17:20.080 --> 00:17:22.980 as they were tent dwellers all throughout the wilderness. 00:17:23.799 --> 00:17:27.460 And then at the temple, four huge lamps would be lit up at the temple court 00:17:27.460 --> 00:17:30.759 and people would dance and sing and hold burning torches 00:17:30.759 --> 00:17:35.680 and they would remember the light that led them out of Egypt into the Promised Land. 00:17:35.740 --> 00:17:40.019 They would remember the pillar of fire that led them through the wilderness by night. 00:17:40.900 --> 00:17:42.819 And so the point Jesus is making here by saying, 00:17:43.079 --> 00:17:44.500 I am the light of the world, 00:17:45.100 --> 00:17:48.200 the point he's making as he's about to give sight to this man born blind 00:17:48.200 --> 00:17:51.019 and as he's about to confront the Pharisees 00:17:51.019 --> 00:17:53.620 is that we are all in the dark. 00:17:53.619 --> 00:17:55.259 We are all in the dark. 00:17:55.379 --> 00:17:56.559 We are all in the wilderness. 00:17:56.739 --> 00:17:58.899 We are all blinded by sin. 00:17:59.659 --> 00:18:01.899 And it's only through him, the light of the world, 00:18:01.979 --> 00:18:04.979 that we can enter into life and light and sight. 00:18:05.819 --> 00:18:09.059 So I want to look at this story now with the next half of what I got to say. 00:18:09.759 --> 00:18:12.019 I want to look at how Jesus makes this point 00:18:12.019 --> 00:18:14.000 about how we're all in darkness, 00:18:14.119 --> 00:18:15.019 how we're all blind, 00:18:15.279 --> 00:18:16.799 how we are all in the wilderness. 00:18:17.639 --> 00:18:19.339 I want to see how Jesus, 00:18:19.639 --> 00:18:22.599 he really executes a real life living parable here 00:18:22.599 --> 00:18:25.000 as he heals this man born blind. 00:18:25.180 --> 00:18:26.119 And I love how it begins. 00:18:26.220 --> 00:18:27.740 Look with me at how it begins. 00:18:28.680 --> 00:18:30.000 If you remember from last week, 00:18:30.099 --> 00:18:33.019 Jesus was just about to get stoned at the temple 00:18:33.019 --> 00:18:35.319 because he had invoked the divine name 00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:37.119 and claimed it for himself. 00:18:37.740 --> 00:18:40.119 And you might expect that the very next thing that he was going to do 00:18:40.119 --> 00:18:41.180 was go find some security, 00:18:41.319 --> 00:18:42.440 go find a place to hide. 00:18:42.639 --> 00:18:44.559 But here in chapter 9, verse 1, 00:18:45.240 --> 00:18:45.980 what does it say? 00:18:45.980 --> 00:18:47.640 As he went along, 00:18:48.319 --> 00:18:51.160 he saw a man blind from birth. 00:18:52.380 --> 00:18:54.440 He sees a man blind from birth. 00:18:54.460 --> 00:18:55.099 I love that. 00:18:55.779 --> 00:18:57.200 Remember, he is the God of Abraham. 00:18:57.319 --> 00:18:58.259 He's the God of Hagar. 00:18:58.380 --> 00:18:59.940 He's the God who sees. 00:19:00.579 --> 00:19:01.440 And he sees rightly, 00:19:01.980 --> 00:19:03.539 and he sees compassionately. 00:19:03.640 --> 00:19:05.839 And seeing rightly and compassionately, 00:19:05.960 --> 00:19:07.620 he saw what no one else saw. 00:19:08.599 --> 00:19:12.200 Imagine the whole world probably blind to this blind man, 00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:14.259 this man blind from birth. 00:19:14.259 --> 00:19:17.879 Imagine a whole world so used to seeing him beg, 00:19:18.220 --> 00:19:20.240 so used to his plight, 00:19:20.379 --> 00:19:21.420 so used to his suffering, 00:19:21.519 --> 00:19:24.960 that they could have never even imagined a different life for him. 00:19:25.819 --> 00:19:26.440 I think about it. 00:19:26.480 --> 00:19:29.400 How did everyone know that this man was blind from birth? 00:19:30.180 --> 00:19:33.339 They must have seen him and have been familiar with him 00:19:33.339 --> 00:19:35.279 and his story for years, maybe decades. 00:19:35.480 --> 00:19:37.799 They all, including Jesus' disciples, 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:39.440 simply got used to it. 00:19:40.480 --> 00:19:41.659 And as we see in the story, 00:19:41.759 --> 00:19:42.359 many of these people, 00:19:42.440 --> 00:19:43.339 they couldn't even believe 00:19:43.339 --> 00:19:45.059 that he was the same guy 00:19:45.059 --> 00:19:48.359 after his eyes were opened, right? 00:19:48.980 --> 00:19:50.839 They didn't have eyes to see. 00:19:51.639 --> 00:19:52.899 But when all of Jerusalem, 00:19:53.259 --> 00:19:54.919 all these pious worshipers, 00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:56.680 passed by him and saw his suffering, 00:19:57.220 --> 00:19:59.859 and yet really didn't see him at all, 00:20:00.859 --> 00:20:01.779 Jesus saw him. 00:20:02.559 --> 00:20:05.399 Because Jesus saw a man 00:20:05.399 --> 00:20:08.299 that he wanted to display the works of God in. 00:20:09.079 --> 00:20:10.539 And because Jesus saw him, 00:20:10.659 --> 00:20:12.939 his life was changed forever. 00:20:13.439 --> 00:20:14.399 His life was changed forever. 00:20:15.359 --> 00:20:16.259 Now again, the disciples, 00:20:16.419 --> 00:20:16.879 they saw him, 00:20:16.939 --> 00:20:18.159 but they didn't really see him, right, 00:20:18.199 --> 00:20:19.359 with the proper lighting. 00:20:19.459 --> 00:20:20.319 Really, they didn't see him 00:20:20.319 --> 00:20:22.559 as anything other than an occasion 00:20:22.559 --> 00:20:25.719 to have an intriguing theological discussion, 00:20:25.939 --> 00:20:26.839 a theological debate. 00:20:26.839 --> 00:20:27.539 They don't ask, 00:20:27.819 --> 00:20:29.079 Rabbi, what amazing thing 00:20:29.079 --> 00:20:30.599 are you about to do for this guy? 00:20:31.079 --> 00:20:32.720 What amazing thing are you going to do 00:20:32.720 --> 00:20:34.439 to bring glory to your Father in heaven? 00:20:35.079 --> 00:20:36.099 In verse 2, they ask, 00:20:36.199 --> 00:20:37.839 Rabbi, who sinned? 00:20:38.459 --> 00:20:40.799 This man or his parents, 00:20:41.159 --> 00:20:42.500 that he was born blind? 00:20:43.539 --> 00:20:44.759 Now they must have thought 00:20:44.759 --> 00:20:45.779 they were being so clever. 00:20:46.379 --> 00:20:46.980 They must have thought 00:20:46.980 --> 00:20:49.179 they were being so theologically astute, 00:20:49.179 --> 00:20:50.119 because everyone knows 00:20:50.119 --> 00:20:52.379 that suffering is a result of sin, right? 00:20:52.779 --> 00:20:54.059 That was their premise. 00:20:55.220 --> 00:20:56.819 And yet this man was born 00:20:56.819 --> 00:20:58.619 suffering from blindness. 00:20:59.039 --> 00:21:00.659 So like, did he do something? 00:21:00.740 --> 00:21:01.799 Maybe like in the womb? 00:21:02.279 --> 00:21:03.799 Or was his suffering linked 00:21:03.799 --> 00:21:05.019 to someone else's sin? 00:21:05.059 --> 00:21:06.259 Maybe like his parents. 00:21:07.079 --> 00:21:08.939 In essence, what they were asking was, 00:21:09.099 --> 00:21:10.099 is this man suffering 00:21:10.099 --> 00:21:11.960 as a perpetrator of sin 00:21:11.960 --> 00:21:14.679 or as a victim of sin? 00:21:14.740 --> 00:21:15.480 Who's at fault? 00:21:16.039 --> 00:21:17.119 Who's to blame? 00:21:18.179 --> 00:21:20.419 But Jesus, being the light of the world, 00:21:20.559 --> 00:21:21.519 seeing truly, 00:21:21.700 --> 00:21:23.259 seeing past this false, 00:21:23.639 --> 00:21:24.659 foolish dichotomy 00:21:24.660 --> 00:21:26.200 that seeks to blame people 00:21:26.200 --> 00:21:27.680 and pin people in darkness, 00:21:28.620 --> 00:21:29.759 he says in verse 3, 00:21:30.400 --> 00:21:30.640 neither. 00:21:31.640 --> 00:21:32.100 Neither. 00:21:32.820 --> 00:21:33.640 Neither did this man 00:21:33.640 --> 00:21:34.700 nor his parents sin, 00:21:34.779 --> 00:21:35.440 but this happened 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:38.000 so that the works of God 00:21:38.000 --> 00:21:40.720 might be displayed in him. 00:21:41.720 --> 00:21:43.800 Jesus sheds further light 00:21:43.800 --> 00:21:46.580 on the story of this blind man. 00:21:47.040 --> 00:21:48.900 A far more nuanced light 00:21:48.900 --> 00:21:50.960 than simply attributing his blindness 00:21:50.960 --> 00:21:51.880 to his own sin 00:21:51.880 --> 00:21:53.500 or someone else's sin, 00:21:53.579 --> 00:21:54.259 Jesus says, 00:21:54.819 --> 00:21:55.100 neither. 00:21:55.779 --> 00:21:56.740 Because he knows the truth. 00:21:57.240 --> 00:21:57.980 That the relationship 00:21:57.980 --> 00:21:59.620 between sin and suffering 00:21:59.620 --> 00:22:01.460 is way more complex, right? 00:22:01.660 --> 00:22:02.819 It's way more complex than this. 00:22:02.900 --> 00:22:03.980 As scripture teaches, 00:22:04.079 --> 00:22:04.960 like in the book of Job, 00:22:05.460 --> 00:22:06.640 or as Jesus taught elsewhere 00:22:06.640 --> 00:22:07.799 in Luke chapter 13 00:22:07.799 --> 00:22:08.980 about the 18 people 00:22:08.980 --> 00:22:10.299 who got crushed by a tower, 00:22:10.700 --> 00:22:11.299 and he talked about 00:22:11.299 --> 00:22:12.579 whether they were more guilty 00:22:12.579 --> 00:22:13.340 than the survivors. 00:22:13.539 --> 00:22:14.259 No, they weren't. 00:22:14.920 --> 00:22:15.700 Scripture teaches, 00:22:15.880 --> 00:22:16.660 Jesus confirms, 00:22:16.779 --> 00:22:17.640 that while all suffering 00:22:17.640 --> 00:22:19.780 is due to sin in general, 00:22:20.780 --> 00:22:22.520 not every instance of suffering 00:22:22.520 --> 00:22:23.860 is directly related 00:22:23.860 --> 00:22:25.020 and simply due 00:22:25.020 --> 00:22:27.759 to a particular instance of sin, 00:22:27.820 --> 00:22:28.840 like some tit-for-tat 00:22:28.840 --> 00:22:30.259 karmic formula. 00:22:31.480 --> 00:22:31.880 And honestly, 00:22:32.020 --> 00:22:33.080 this exchange warrants 00:22:33.080 --> 00:22:34.060 a sermon of its own, 00:22:34.120 --> 00:22:34.700 and I was tempted 00:22:34.700 --> 00:22:35.720 to just preach on this, 00:22:36.200 --> 00:22:37.540 but I decided not to. 00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:38.300 If you want, 00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:39.300 you can look at a sermon 00:22:39.300 --> 00:22:41.020 we preached last year, 00:22:41.100 --> 00:22:41.860 Luke chapter 13, 00:22:41.860 --> 00:22:42.780 where he talks about 00:22:42.780 --> 00:22:43.860 the tower that fell 00:22:43.860 --> 00:22:44.920 on those 18 people. 00:22:45.400 --> 00:22:45.980 Or you could read 00:22:45.980 --> 00:22:46.980 Tim Keller's book, 00:22:46.980 --> 00:22:48.039 Walking with God 00:22:48.039 --> 00:22:48.880 Through Pain and Suffering. 00:22:49.120 --> 00:22:50.039 It's one of my favorites. 00:22:50.720 --> 00:22:51.599 But in the interest of time 00:22:51.599 --> 00:22:52.420 and wanting to get, 00:22:52.839 --> 00:22:54.220 wanting to keep the big picture 00:22:54.220 --> 00:22:55.180 of what's going on here, 00:22:55.599 --> 00:22:56.920 I love what the Oxford 00:22:56.920 --> 00:22:58.120 New Testament scholar 00:22:58.120 --> 00:22:58.579 N.T. Wright, 00:22:58.640 --> 00:23:00.819 he says about Jesus' response 00:23:00.819 --> 00:23:01.819 to this blind man 00:23:01.819 --> 00:23:03.000 and his disciples' 00:23:03.160 --> 00:23:03.960 simplistic question. 00:23:04.079 --> 00:23:04.740 N.T. Wright says, 00:23:05.960 --> 00:23:07.240 Jesus didn't waste time 00:23:07.240 --> 00:23:09.059 describing the chaos, 00:23:09.819 --> 00:23:10.680 analyzing it, 00:23:10.740 --> 00:23:11.420 or discussing 00:23:11.420 --> 00:23:12.579 whose fault it was. 00:23:13.120 --> 00:23:13.519 Instead, 00:23:14.480 --> 00:23:15.360 he created light. 00:23:15.359 --> 00:23:16.719 Instead, 00:23:16.799 --> 00:23:17.579 he just created light. 00:23:17.699 --> 00:23:18.819 Jesus' answer 00:23:18.819 --> 00:23:19.419 was basically 00:23:19.419 --> 00:23:20.139 that you guys 00:23:20.139 --> 00:23:21.139 are missing the point, 00:23:21.399 --> 00:23:22.159 trying to figure out 00:23:22.159 --> 00:23:22.759 who is to blame. 00:23:22.839 --> 00:23:23.619 The main point 00:23:23.619 --> 00:23:25.559 is that I am 00:23:25.559 --> 00:23:26.939 the light of the world. 00:23:27.779 --> 00:23:28.759 And every instance 00:23:28.759 --> 00:23:29.319 of suffering 00:23:29.319 --> 00:23:30.219 is not an occasion 00:23:30.219 --> 00:23:30.859 to discern 00:23:30.859 --> 00:23:31.679 where the darkness 00:23:31.679 --> 00:23:32.179 came from 00:23:32.179 --> 00:23:33.019 and who's to blame. 00:23:33.139 --> 00:23:33.299 Rather, 00:23:33.419 --> 00:23:34.000 every instance 00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:34.719 of suffering 00:23:34.719 --> 00:23:36.199 is an occasion 00:23:36.199 --> 00:23:37.859 for me to display 00:23:37.859 --> 00:23:39.839 the works of God. 00:23:39.839 --> 00:23:42.019 And maybe this is a word 00:23:42.019 --> 00:23:42.959 for some of us today 00:23:42.959 --> 00:23:44.459 who find ourselves 00:23:44.459 --> 00:23:46.119 in a season of suffering. 00:23:46.240 --> 00:23:46.859 Maybe some of us 00:23:46.859 --> 00:23:47.759 feel guilty, 00:23:47.919 --> 00:23:49.079 ashamed of ourselves 00:23:49.079 --> 00:23:49.779 for the suffering 00:23:49.779 --> 00:23:50.359 we believe 00:23:50.359 --> 00:23:51.959 that we're responsible for 00:23:51.959 --> 00:23:53.099 because of past mistakes 00:23:53.099 --> 00:23:53.939 and flaws 00:23:53.939 --> 00:23:54.659 and failures. 00:23:55.619 --> 00:23:56.679 Or maybe some of us 00:23:56.679 --> 00:23:57.500 feel like victims, 00:23:58.179 --> 00:23:59.500 angry at others, 00:23:59.579 --> 00:24:00.099 our parents, 00:24:00.240 --> 00:24:00.779 our family, 00:24:00.879 --> 00:24:01.240 our spouse, 00:24:01.319 --> 00:24:01.799 our community, 00:24:02.220 --> 00:24:03.319 maybe even at God 00:24:03.319 --> 00:24:04.339 for the suffering 00:24:04.339 --> 00:24:04.879 we believe 00:24:04.879 --> 00:24:06.099 we've been unfairly 00:24:06.099 --> 00:24:07.099 afflicted with. 00:24:08.019 --> 00:24:08.359 And you know, 00:24:08.359 --> 00:24:09.639 maybe you're not wrong. 00:24:09.740 --> 00:24:11.000 Maybe we are responsible 00:24:11.000 --> 00:24:11.699 for our suffering 00:24:11.699 --> 00:24:12.719 or maybe others 00:24:12.719 --> 00:24:13.479 are responsible 00:24:13.479 --> 00:24:14.279 for our suffering. 00:24:14.379 --> 00:24:15.219 But what if? 00:24:16.399 --> 00:24:17.579 Imagine what kind of people, 00:24:17.679 --> 00:24:18.259 what kind of community 00:24:18.259 --> 00:24:18.959 we would be. 00:24:19.240 --> 00:24:20.279 What if we saw ourselves 00:24:20.279 --> 00:24:21.779 not simply as guilty 00:24:21.779 --> 00:24:23.199 or as victims, 00:24:24.119 --> 00:24:24.979 but more importantly 00:24:24.979 --> 00:24:25.539 as people 00:24:25.539 --> 00:24:26.399 on whom God 00:24:26.399 --> 00:24:27.319 wants to shine 00:24:27.319 --> 00:24:28.359 his transformative 00:24:28.359 --> 00:24:29.679 life-giving light. 00:24:30.619 --> 00:24:31.819 How might that bring 00:24:31.819 --> 00:24:33.319 the transcendent healing 00:24:33.319 --> 00:24:34.639 and reconciliation 00:24:34.639 --> 00:24:35.579 that we 00:24:35.579 --> 00:24:36.859 and this whole world 00:24:36.859 --> 00:24:37.519 need? 00:24:38.359 --> 00:24:39.419 This is what happened 00:24:39.419 --> 00:24:39.959 to the man 00:24:39.959 --> 00:24:40.879 blind from birth 00:24:40.879 --> 00:24:41.619 after his encounter 00:24:41.619 --> 00:24:42.459 with Jesus. 00:24:42.579 --> 00:24:43.419 He didn't need 00:24:43.419 --> 00:24:44.279 an answer to why 00:24:44.279 --> 00:24:44.819 he was blind 00:24:44.819 --> 00:24:45.719 in the first place. 00:24:46.299 --> 00:24:47.359 He didn't even need 00:24:47.359 --> 00:24:47.839 a detailed 00:24:47.839 --> 00:24:49.179 rational explanation 00:24:49.179 --> 00:24:50.000 for how exactly 00:24:50.000 --> 00:24:50.719 he came to see 00:24:50.719 --> 00:24:51.240 all of a sudden 00:24:51.240 --> 00:24:52.059 for the first time 00:24:52.059 --> 00:24:52.539 in his life. 00:24:52.779 --> 00:24:53.500 All of a sudden 00:24:53.500 --> 00:24:54.439 his life became 00:24:54.439 --> 00:24:57.079 a story 00:24:57.079 --> 00:24:58.299 with Jesus 00:24:58.299 --> 00:24:59.199 at the center 00:24:59.199 --> 00:25:00.019 as his life 00:25:00.019 --> 00:25:01.119 transforming Savior, 00:25:01.279 --> 00:25:01.779 as his life 00:25:01.779 --> 00:25:02.699 transforming light. 00:25:03.139 --> 00:25:03.839 All of a sudden 00:25:03.839 --> 00:25:05.199 his whole life 00:25:05.199 --> 00:25:05.939 became about 00:25:05.940 --> 00:25:06.820 what Jesus 00:25:06.820 --> 00:25:07.680 had done 00:25:07.680 --> 00:25:08.420 for him. 00:25:09.620 --> 00:25:10.420 When his neighbors 00:25:10.420 --> 00:25:11.220 and the Pharisees 00:25:11.220 --> 00:25:11.880 all continued 00:25:11.880 --> 00:25:12.440 to ask him 00:25:12.440 --> 00:25:13.180 what happened 00:25:13.180 --> 00:25:13.840 and how he gained 00:25:13.840 --> 00:25:14.140 his sight, 00:25:14.220 --> 00:25:14.880 all he could say 00:25:14.880 --> 00:25:15.620 was that this man 00:25:15.620 --> 00:25:16.460 named Jesus 00:25:16.460 --> 00:25:17.160 did it. 00:25:17.720 --> 00:25:18.380 When the Pharisees 00:25:18.380 --> 00:25:19.480 pushed and pushed 00:25:19.480 --> 00:25:20.120 to get him 00:25:20.120 --> 00:25:20.660 to explain 00:25:20.660 --> 00:25:21.220 how someone 00:25:21.220 --> 00:25:21.860 who supposedly 00:25:21.860 --> 00:25:22.640 broke the Sabbath 00:25:22.640 --> 00:25:23.880 by making mud 00:25:23.880 --> 00:25:24.840 on the day 00:25:24.840 --> 00:25:25.299 he was supposed 00:25:25.299 --> 00:25:25.759 to rest, 00:25:25.840 --> 00:25:26.380 how he could 00:25:26.380 --> 00:25:27.440 heal him like that, 00:25:27.500 --> 00:25:28.019 all this man 00:25:28.019 --> 00:25:28.539 could say 00:25:28.539 --> 00:25:29.600 in verse 25 00:25:29.600 --> 00:25:30.880 was whether he's 00:25:30.880 --> 00:25:31.660 a sinner or not, 00:25:32.039 --> 00:25:32.640 I don't know. 00:25:32.640 --> 00:25:34.600 one thing 00:25:34.600 --> 00:25:35.840 I do know. 00:25:36.620 --> 00:25:37.580 I was blind 00:25:37.580 --> 00:25:39.300 but now I see. 00:25:40.520 --> 00:25:41.120 That's all 00:25:41.120 --> 00:25:41.900 he cared to know. 00:25:42.560 --> 00:25:43.240 That's all 00:25:43.240 --> 00:25:44.600 he had to know. 00:25:44.680 --> 00:25:45.300 I don't know 00:25:45.300 --> 00:25:46.860 how it worked, 00:25:46.920 --> 00:25:47.500 why he spit 00:25:47.500 --> 00:25:48.040 on the ground 00:25:48.040 --> 00:25:48.800 and made mud 00:25:48.800 --> 00:25:49.320 and put that 00:25:49.320 --> 00:25:50.140 on my face. 00:25:50.740 --> 00:25:51.400 I don't know 00:25:51.400 --> 00:25:52.020 why he told me 00:25:52.020 --> 00:25:52.620 to go to this 00:25:52.620 --> 00:25:53.540 pool, Siloam. 00:25:54.259 --> 00:25:54.780 And by the way, 00:25:54.860 --> 00:25:55.520 most commentators 00:25:55.520 --> 00:25:56.460 don't really know either. 00:25:57.500 --> 00:25:58.440 I don't know. 00:25:59.120 --> 00:26:00.180 But what I know 00:26:00.180 --> 00:26:01.500 is that 00:26:01.500 --> 00:26:03.079 I was blind 00:26:03.079 --> 00:26:04.859 and now I see. 00:26:04.920 --> 00:26:05.740 This was his truth. 00:26:06.420 --> 00:26:07.259 This was his truth 00:26:07.259 --> 00:26:07.859 and this is what 00:26:07.859 --> 00:26:08.619 he was sticking to 00:26:08.619 --> 00:26:09.559 and nothing else 00:26:09.559 --> 00:26:10.400 mattered. 00:26:11.240 --> 00:26:11.900 For this man 00:26:11.900 --> 00:26:12.700 who had only 00:26:12.700 --> 00:26:13.819 ever known darkness, 00:26:14.779 --> 00:26:15.599 Jesus had become 00:26:15.599 --> 00:26:16.220 his light, 00:26:16.819 --> 00:26:17.980 the light of the world. 00:26:18.059 --> 00:26:18.519 And as it says 00:26:18.519 --> 00:26:19.119 in verse 38, 00:26:19.180 --> 00:26:20.299 he placed all his faith 00:26:20.299 --> 00:26:20.720 in Jesus 00:26:20.720 --> 00:26:22.079 and he fell down 00:26:22.079 --> 00:26:23.579 and he worshipped him. 00:26:24.640 --> 00:26:25.039 And again, 00:26:25.140 --> 00:26:26.099 this is the real life 00:26:26.099 --> 00:26:26.460 parable, 00:26:26.599 --> 00:26:27.599 the real life picture 00:26:27.599 --> 00:26:28.460 Jesus used 00:26:28.460 --> 00:26:29.160 to explain 00:26:29.160 --> 00:26:29.799 what it meant 00:26:29.799 --> 00:26:30.759 that he is 00:26:30.759 --> 00:26:31.799 the light of the world. 00:26:31.859 --> 00:26:32.019 I mean, 00:26:32.059 --> 00:26:32.960 just try to explain, 00:26:33.180 --> 00:26:34.039 try to imagine, 00:26:34.500 --> 00:26:35.220 try to think through 00:26:35.220 --> 00:26:36.019 the details 00:26:36.019 --> 00:26:37.019 of this story. 00:26:37.119 --> 00:26:37.879 This guy has been 00:26:37.879 --> 00:26:38.579 in the dark 00:26:38.579 --> 00:26:40.319 his whole life, right? 00:26:40.900 --> 00:26:42.039 He doesn't have a clue 00:26:42.039 --> 00:26:43.779 what light even is. 00:26:44.279 --> 00:26:45.099 The word color 00:26:45.099 --> 00:26:45.720 or red 00:26:45.720 --> 00:26:46.160 or green 00:26:46.160 --> 00:26:46.579 or purple, 00:26:47.039 --> 00:26:48.140 it means nothing 00:26:48.140 --> 00:26:48.680 to him. 00:26:49.460 --> 00:26:50.039 And he's going 00:26:50.039 --> 00:26:51.220 about his daily routine 00:26:51.220 --> 00:26:52.799 just trying to 00:26:52.799 --> 00:26:54.000 helplessly beg 00:26:54.000 --> 00:26:54.859 for charity. 00:26:55.859 --> 00:26:56.279 And then 00:26:56.279 --> 00:26:57.339 from some direction, 00:26:57.779 --> 00:26:58.500 maybe he hears 00:26:58.500 --> 00:26:59.420 the judgmental, 00:26:59.519 --> 00:27:00.740 dehumanizing questions 00:27:00.740 --> 00:27:02.059 of the disciples 00:27:02.059 --> 00:27:02.740 about, 00:27:03.099 --> 00:27:03.460 hey Jesus, 00:27:03.599 --> 00:27:04.180 who sinned? 00:27:04.799 --> 00:27:05.599 Who sinned 00:27:05.599 --> 00:27:06.440 to make that guy 00:27:06.440 --> 00:27:07.400 blind? 00:27:08.299 --> 00:27:08.920 No doubt 00:27:08.920 --> 00:27:09.920 he's probably wondered 00:27:09.920 --> 00:27:10.799 the same thing, 00:27:10.880 --> 00:27:11.059 right? 00:27:11.599 --> 00:27:12.440 Why me, God? 00:27:12.519 --> 00:27:13.500 What did I do? 00:27:13.579 --> 00:27:14.440 Or why did you let 00:27:14.440 --> 00:27:15.880 this happen to me? 00:27:16.940 --> 00:27:18.140 And then all of a sudden 00:27:18.140 --> 00:27:19.880 he hears this rabbi 00:27:19.880 --> 00:27:22.480 give a crazy surprising answer 00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:24.140 that neither he 00:27:24.140 --> 00:27:25.680 nor his parents' sin 00:27:25.680 --> 00:27:27.319 led to his blindness, 00:27:27.319 --> 00:27:29.119 but that the work 00:27:29.119 --> 00:27:29.500 of God 00:27:29.500 --> 00:27:30.179 was about to be 00:27:30.179 --> 00:27:31.460 displayed somehow 00:27:31.460 --> 00:27:33.200 and whatever that meant. 00:27:33.879 --> 00:27:34.720 And all of a sudden 00:27:34.720 --> 00:27:35.139 he hears 00:27:35.139 --> 00:27:35.899 right? 00:27:36.519 --> 00:27:36.980 He hears someone 00:27:36.980 --> 00:27:37.899 spit on the ground. 00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:39.740 He feels some mud 00:27:39.740 --> 00:27:40.519 on his eyes 00:27:40.519 --> 00:27:41.639 and he's given 00:27:41.639 --> 00:27:42.299 some strange 00:27:42.299 --> 00:27:42.919 and maybe even 00:27:42.919 --> 00:27:44.200 inconvenient instructions 00:27:44.200 --> 00:27:45.099 to go wash 00:27:45.099 --> 00:27:46.359 in this certain pool 00:27:46.359 --> 00:27:47.099 in the city. 00:27:48.220 --> 00:27:49.000 And so just imagine 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:50.139 this blind guy, 00:27:50.299 --> 00:27:51.179 he's still blind 00:27:51.179 --> 00:27:52.399 with mud on his face. 00:27:52.859 --> 00:27:54.000 He's groping around 00:27:54.000 --> 00:27:55.259 trying to make his way 00:27:55.259 --> 00:27:56.500 to this pool 00:27:56.500 --> 00:27:57.940 called Siloam 00:27:57.940 --> 00:27:59.299 with mud on his face, 00:27:59.379 --> 00:27:59.599 right? 00:27:59.740 --> 00:28:00.660 And he's trying 00:28:00.660 --> 00:28:01.539 to get to this pool 00:28:01.539 --> 00:28:02.160 so that he could 00:28:02.160 --> 00:28:02.859 clean up, 00:28:02.940 --> 00:28:03.539 not knowing, 00:28:03.660 --> 00:28:04.460 not knowing 00:28:04.460 --> 00:28:05.160 what's going to happen. 00:28:05.259 --> 00:28:06.079 Jesus didn't even say, 00:28:06.200 --> 00:28:06.400 right? 00:28:07.500 --> 00:28:07.839 But hey, 00:28:07.859 --> 00:28:08.319 he's got nothing 00:28:08.319 --> 00:28:08.940 better to do 00:28:08.940 --> 00:28:09.519 and he's got mud 00:28:09.519 --> 00:28:09.920 on his face, 00:28:09.960 --> 00:28:10.579 he's got to get it off 00:28:10.579 --> 00:28:11.059 so he's going, 00:28:11.200 --> 00:28:11.400 right? 00:28:12.279 --> 00:28:13.180 But then imagine 00:28:13.180 --> 00:28:15.740 as soon as he washed 00:28:15.740 --> 00:28:16.619 in the pool, 00:28:17.819 --> 00:28:19.279 as soon as the mud 00:28:19.279 --> 00:28:20.819 came off his eyes, 00:28:21.559 --> 00:28:22.240 try to imagine 00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:23.279 that moment, 00:28:23.799 --> 00:28:24.000 right? 00:28:24.000 --> 00:28:25.140 the transformation 00:28:25.140 --> 00:28:25.799 there. 00:28:26.779 --> 00:28:27.859 Imagine everything 00:28:27.859 --> 00:28:29.119 he must have thought, 00:28:29.900 --> 00:28:30.920 everything he must have 00:28:30.920 --> 00:28:32.259 felt as he gained 00:28:32.259 --> 00:28:33.519 sight for the first 00:28:33.519 --> 00:28:34.160 time ever. 00:28:34.200 --> 00:28:34.759 It's hard to even 00:28:34.759 --> 00:28:35.579 fathom, right? 00:28:36.200 --> 00:28:37.039 The experience 00:28:37.039 --> 00:28:38.519 of never having 00:28:38.519 --> 00:28:39.460 been able to see 00:28:39.460 --> 00:28:40.180 and then suddenly 00:28:40.180 --> 00:28:41.200 seeing for the first 00:28:41.200 --> 00:28:41.640 time, I mean, 00:28:41.680 --> 00:28:42.480 it's almost like, 00:28:42.619 --> 00:28:43.359 it's almost like 00:28:43.359 --> 00:28:44.039 a new birth. 00:28:45.019 --> 00:28:45.819 It's almost like 00:28:45.819 --> 00:28:46.279 the beginning 00:28:46.279 --> 00:28:47.299 of new life. 00:28:47.400 --> 00:28:48.140 Maybe the first thing 00:28:48.140 --> 00:28:49.700 he sees is the water 00:28:49.700 --> 00:28:50.299 in the pool 00:28:50.299 --> 00:28:51.180 at Siloam. 00:28:52.099 --> 00:28:52.900 Maybe he sees 00:28:52.900 --> 00:28:53.779 his own reflection, 00:28:54.599 --> 00:28:55.339 does he even know 00:28:55.339 --> 00:28:55.880 that it's him? 00:28:56.619 --> 00:28:57.539 Does he even know 00:28:57.539 --> 00:28:59.019 what a reflection is? 00:28:59.220 --> 00:29:00.819 Everything is new. 00:29:01.440 --> 00:29:02.440 Everything is changed. 00:29:02.519 --> 00:29:03.160 Maybe everything is 00:29:03.160 --> 00:29:03.559 confusing, 00:29:03.720 --> 00:29:04.160 but you've got to 00:29:04.160 --> 00:29:04.859 believe that with 00:29:04.859 --> 00:29:06.440 this new sensation, 00:29:06.720 --> 00:29:08.140 everything is also 00:29:08.140 --> 00:29:10.079 unimaginably exciting 00:29:10.079 --> 00:29:11.440 and life-giving 00:29:11.440 --> 00:29:12.700 and transformative 00:29:12.700 --> 00:29:13.859 and awe-inspiring. 00:29:14.940 --> 00:29:15.779 Have you ever seen 00:29:15.779 --> 00:29:16.579 those videos 00:29:16.579 --> 00:29:18.619 of colorblind people 00:29:18.619 --> 00:29:19.460 getting those special 00:29:19.460 --> 00:29:20.339 glasses, 00:29:20.839 --> 00:29:21.940 where they put them on 00:29:21.940 --> 00:29:22.740 and then all of a sudden 00:29:22.740 --> 00:29:23.640 they're just weeping. 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:24.960 They're just weeping 00:29:24.960 --> 00:29:26.160 because they're seeing 00:29:26.160 --> 00:29:26.680 the world 00:29:26.680 --> 00:29:28.320 in a whole new way 00:29:28.320 --> 00:29:29.580 and brilliance 00:29:29.580 --> 00:29:30.140 like they've never 00:29:30.140 --> 00:29:30.759 seen before. 00:29:31.759 --> 00:29:32.380 Well, this is like 00:29:32.380 --> 00:29:33.320 a million times, 00:29:33.380 --> 00:29:34.360 a gazillion times 00:29:34.360 --> 00:29:35.799 more amazing than that. 00:29:36.700 --> 00:29:37.539 This guy can see 00:29:37.539 --> 00:29:38.460 his parents' faces 00:29:38.460 --> 00:29:39.460 for the first time. 00:29:40.320 --> 00:29:41.920 He can walk back home 00:29:41.920 --> 00:29:43.039 without a cane 00:29:43.039 --> 00:29:44.220 or assistance. 00:29:44.500 --> 00:29:45.660 He no longer has 00:29:45.660 --> 00:29:47.220 to beg for a living. 00:29:48.279 --> 00:29:48.940 Unlike before, 00:29:48.940 --> 00:29:49.940 he can now literally 00:29:49.940 --> 00:29:51.519 taste and see 00:29:51.519 --> 00:29:53.120 that the Lord is good. 00:29:54.080 --> 00:29:55.380 He's a brand new man 00:29:55.380 --> 00:29:57.400 delivered from darkness 00:29:57.400 --> 00:29:58.400 by the light of the world, 00:29:58.820 --> 00:29:59.519 Jesus Christ. 00:30:00.320 --> 00:30:01.200 And because of this 00:30:01.200 --> 00:30:02.080 encounter with Jesus 00:30:02.080 --> 00:30:03.000 and by faith in this 00:30:03.000 --> 00:30:03.779 true light of the world, 00:30:03.900 --> 00:30:05.559 this guy who is only seen 00:30:05.559 --> 00:30:06.740 for maybe a couple minutes, 00:30:06.860 --> 00:30:07.720 maybe a couple hours, 00:30:08.539 --> 00:30:09.940 he now sees better 00:30:09.940 --> 00:30:11.460 than the most learned, 00:30:11.779 --> 00:30:12.420 the most studied, 00:30:12.559 --> 00:30:13.000 educated, 00:30:13.180 --> 00:30:14.420 and respected teachers 00:30:14.420 --> 00:30:15.259 of his community. 00:30:16.160 --> 00:30:17.700 All because he now sees 00:30:17.700 --> 00:30:19.100 according to the light 00:30:19.100 --> 00:30:19.580 of the world 00:30:19.580 --> 00:30:21.340 because of Jesus. 00:30:22.360 --> 00:30:22.840 And this is where 00:30:22.840 --> 00:30:24.080 I want to end the sermon today 00:30:24.080 --> 00:30:25.200 with the Pharisees. 00:30:25.980 --> 00:30:26.900 Now the Pharisees, 00:30:26.980 --> 00:30:27.920 they didn't have that, 00:30:27.940 --> 00:30:28.120 you know, 00:30:28.220 --> 00:30:28.920 self-righteous, 00:30:29.400 --> 00:30:29.980 judgmental, 00:30:30.080 --> 00:30:31.100 hypocritical reputation 00:30:31.100 --> 00:30:31.900 in their society 00:30:31.900 --> 00:30:33.120 that we so easily 00:30:33.120 --> 00:30:34.259 identify them with 00:30:34.259 --> 00:30:36.000 in our colloquial speech. 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:37.400 They were really trying 00:30:37.400 --> 00:30:38.380 to save Israel. 00:30:38.819 --> 00:30:39.299 They believed 00:30:39.299 --> 00:30:40.120 what the prophets said, 00:30:40.180 --> 00:30:41.120 that Israel had gone 00:30:41.120 --> 00:30:41.860 into exile 00:30:41.860 --> 00:30:43.100 because they failed 00:30:43.100 --> 00:30:43.920 to observe the law. 00:30:44.600 --> 00:30:45.860 And what the Pharisees 00:30:45.860 --> 00:30:46.460 wanted to do 00:30:46.460 --> 00:30:47.200 was they wanted to 00:30:47.200 --> 00:30:48.180 save the nation 00:30:48.180 --> 00:30:49.660 by obeying the law 00:30:49.660 --> 00:30:51.880 and pressuring everyone else 00:30:51.880 --> 00:30:52.860 to obey the law. 00:30:52.940 --> 00:30:54.180 If anyone saw clearly 00:30:54.180 --> 00:30:55.039 the truth about God 00:30:55.039 --> 00:30:55.539 and the world, 00:30:56.039 --> 00:30:56.799 it was these guys 00:30:56.799 --> 00:30:57.620 who were experts 00:30:57.620 --> 00:30:59.360 who knew and studied 00:30:59.360 --> 00:31:00.299 the law of Moses. 00:31:01.500 --> 00:31:02.420 And yet in Jesus' 00:31:02.660 --> 00:31:03.600 real life parable, 00:31:04.460 --> 00:31:05.319 while everyone can 00:31:05.319 --> 00:31:06.840 clearly see the work of God, 00:31:07.279 --> 00:31:08.140 this man born blind, 00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:09.019 he knows what's happened, 00:31:09.420 --> 00:31:10.360 his neighbors see it, 00:31:10.860 --> 00:31:12.039 his parents see it, 00:31:12.680 --> 00:31:13.460 well, none of them 00:31:13.460 --> 00:31:14.600 can deny the transformation 00:31:14.600 --> 00:31:15.400 brought about 00:31:15.400 --> 00:31:16.319 by the light of the world 00:31:16.319 --> 00:31:18.519 into this man's life. 00:31:19.419 --> 00:31:21.539 The supposedly righteous Pharisees, 00:31:21.659 --> 00:31:23.139 they remained blind. 00:31:23.779 --> 00:31:24.759 They remained blind 00:31:24.759 --> 00:31:26.419 because they could not see Jesus 00:31:26.419 --> 00:31:28.439 for who he really was. 00:31:29.099 --> 00:31:30.139 And this is the point, 00:31:30.679 --> 00:31:31.740 Jesus' parable, 00:31:32.259 --> 00:31:33.059 his miracle, 00:31:33.379 --> 00:31:34.119 it ends in. 00:31:34.179 --> 00:31:34.619 Verse 39, 00:31:34.980 --> 00:31:35.399 Jesus said, 00:31:35.400 --> 00:31:36.240 for judgment, 00:31:36.920 --> 00:31:37.940 I have come into the world 00:31:37.940 --> 00:31:40.019 so that the blind will see 00:31:40.019 --> 00:31:41.480 and those who see 00:31:41.480 --> 00:31:43.300 will become blind. 00:31:44.160 --> 00:31:45.259 Claiming to be wise, 00:31:45.380 --> 00:31:46.120 the Pharisees, 00:31:46.340 --> 00:31:47.420 they became fools. 00:31:48.320 --> 00:31:49.220 Claiming to see, 00:31:49.740 --> 00:31:51.460 they proved themselves blind. 00:31:52.120 --> 00:31:52.640 And therefore, 00:31:52.800 --> 00:31:53.780 according to verse 41, 00:31:53.940 --> 00:31:54.860 claiming to be innocent, 00:31:55.340 --> 00:31:56.180 they proved themselves 00:31:56.180 --> 00:31:57.840 to actually be guilty. 00:31:58.960 --> 00:32:00.040 And I just want to say, 00:32:00.120 --> 00:32:01.180 isn't that a scary thing? 00:32:01.180 --> 00:32:03.600 The scary thing 00:32:03.600 --> 00:32:05.340 is that they were so sure. 00:32:06.000 --> 00:32:07.240 These were experts 00:32:07.240 --> 00:32:08.600 in the law of Moses. 00:32:09.400 --> 00:32:10.140 And as a preacher, 00:32:10.700 --> 00:32:12.140 this terrifies me. 00:32:13.320 --> 00:32:15.160 These guys were so sure 00:32:15.160 --> 00:32:16.019 that they were right. 00:32:17.120 --> 00:32:17.440 Why? 00:32:18.279 --> 00:32:20.200 How could I come up here 00:32:20.200 --> 00:32:21.200 with any kind of confidence? 00:32:21.940 --> 00:32:22.720 These guys studied 00:32:22.720 --> 00:32:23.420 way more than me, 00:32:23.480 --> 00:32:23.960 I'm sure. 00:32:25.880 --> 00:32:27.160 Speaking to the healed man 00:32:27.160 --> 00:32:28.000 in verse 28, 00:32:28.900 --> 00:32:29.980 this is how sure they were. 00:32:29.980 --> 00:32:30.380 They said, 00:32:31.220 --> 00:32:32.680 you are this fellow's disciple. 00:32:33.339 --> 00:32:34.880 We are disciples of Moses. 00:32:35.620 --> 00:32:37.640 We know that God spoke to Moses. 00:32:38.920 --> 00:32:40.299 But as for this fellow, 00:32:40.860 --> 00:32:41.700 we don't even know 00:32:41.700 --> 00:32:42.559 where he comes from. 00:32:43.640 --> 00:32:44.059 And you know, 00:32:44.140 --> 00:32:45.460 this was precisely the problem. 00:32:46.460 --> 00:32:47.059 They identified 00:32:47.059 --> 00:32:48.579 with the law of Moses, 00:32:48.839 --> 00:32:49.779 yet they ironically, 00:32:50.000 --> 00:32:50.720 they ironically 00:32:50.720 --> 00:32:52.240 did not identify 00:32:52.240 --> 00:32:54.079 with the very word of God, 00:32:54.500 --> 00:32:55.279 Jesus Christ, 00:32:55.700 --> 00:32:56.380 the light of the world. 00:32:57.019 --> 00:32:57.819 They failed to see 00:32:57.819 --> 00:32:58.779 the shadow of Christ 00:32:58.779 --> 00:33:00.180 in the law of Moses. 00:33:00.420 --> 00:33:00.920 They failed to see 00:33:00.920 --> 00:33:02.079 the whole point of the law. 00:33:02.139 --> 00:33:03.240 The whole point of the law 00:33:03.240 --> 00:33:05.039 was not self-salvation 00:33:05.039 --> 00:33:05.899 through obedience 00:33:05.899 --> 00:33:06.779 and adherence. 00:33:07.240 --> 00:33:08.259 The whole point of the law 00:33:08.259 --> 00:33:09.079 was to point out 00:33:09.079 --> 00:33:09.799 our slavery 00:33:09.799 --> 00:33:11.799 to the dominion of darkness 00:33:11.799 --> 00:33:12.460 and our need 00:33:12.460 --> 00:33:13.859 for the light of the world. 00:33:13.920 --> 00:33:14.819 The law was not meant 00:33:14.819 --> 00:33:16.059 to divide good people 00:33:16.059 --> 00:33:17.200 from bad people. 00:33:17.899 --> 00:33:18.639 But as the missionary 00:33:18.639 --> 00:33:19.240 and commentator 00:33:19.240 --> 00:33:20.059 Leslie Newbigin writes, 00:33:20.440 --> 00:33:21.480 the proper distinction 00:33:21.480 --> 00:33:22.940 is between those 00:33:22.940 --> 00:33:23.519 who acknowledge 00:33:23.519 --> 00:33:24.119 their blindness 00:33:24.119 --> 00:33:25.919 and those who don't. 00:33:27.819 --> 00:33:28.679 See, the whole point 00:33:28.679 --> 00:33:30.299 of this real-life parable 00:33:30.299 --> 00:33:31.719 is the sobering truth 00:33:31.719 --> 00:33:33.899 that we can think we see. 00:33:34.439 --> 00:33:36.139 We can be so sure 00:33:36.139 --> 00:33:38.319 and yet be blind 00:33:38.319 --> 00:33:39.199 and in the dark 00:33:39.199 --> 00:33:40.119 all along. 00:33:40.759 --> 00:33:41.559 The Pharisees 00:33:41.559 --> 00:33:42.500 were so sure 00:33:42.500 --> 00:33:43.319 they were upholding 00:33:43.319 --> 00:33:45.219 God's law against Jesus. 00:33:45.659 --> 00:33:47.359 The medieval European 00:33:47.359 --> 00:33:48.979 crusaders were so sure 00:33:48.979 --> 00:33:49.979 they were standing 00:33:49.979 --> 00:33:50.939 for God's kingdom 00:33:50.939 --> 00:33:52.379 when they slaughtered 00:33:52.380 --> 00:33:54.120 thousands, millions of Muslims. 00:33:55.080 --> 00:33:55.740 Vladimir Putin 00:33:55.740 --> 00:33:56.700 is so sure 00:33:56.700 --> 00:33:58.300 that his violent invasion 00:33:58.300 --> 00:33:59.040 of Ukraine 00:33:59.040 --> 00:33:59.740 is justified 00:33:59.740 --> 00:34:01.020 and even in accord 00:34:01.020 --> 00:34:01.720 with his Russian 00:34:01.720 --> 00:34:03.280 Orthodox Christianity. 00:34:04.740 --> 00:34:05.860 But they were, 00:34:06.160 --> 00:34:06.780 they are, 00:34:07.160 --> 00:34:08.820 all terribly wrong. 00:34:09.940 --> 00:34:11.099 And we could be wrong 00:34:11.099 --> 00:34:12.119 about so many things too. 00:34:12.220 --> 00:34:12.880 None of us 00:34:12.880 --> 00:34:13.640 is immune 00:34:13.640 --> 00:34:15.000 to darkness. 00:34:15.599 --> 00:34:16.019 None of us 00:34:16.019 --> 00:34:16.640 is immune 00:34:16.640 --> 00:34:17.760 to the blindness. 00:34:18.500 --> 00:34:19.180 I'm not. 00:34:19.800 --> 00:34:20.579 Neither is Jonathan 00:34:20.579 --> 00:34:21.660 nor the Pope 00:34:21.659 --> 00:34:22.500 were your favorite 00:34:22.500 --> 00:34:23.259 podcaster, 00:34:23.480 --> 00:34:24.359 your favorite journalist, 00:34:24.500 --> 00:34:25.319 your favorite politician. 00:34:26.359 --> 00:34:27.139 None of us. 00:34:27.699 --> 00:34:28.940 We're all fallible 00:34:28.940 --> 00:34:29.879 and finite 00:34:29.879 --> 00:34:31.119 in this broken, 00:34:31.559 --> 00:34:32.239 darkened world. 00:34:33.519 --> 00:34:34.039 Well then, 00:34:34.079 --> 00:34:34.839 you might be thinking, 00:34:35.299 --> 00:34:36.579 to whom shall we go? 00:34:37.599 --> 00:34:39.299 Who then can we trust? 00:34:40.139 --> 00:34:41.199 Are we bound 00:34:41.199 --> 00:34:41.859 for a life 00:34:41.859 --> 00:34:43.579 of endless deconstruction 00:34:43.579 --> 00:34:45.859 and just perpetual skepticism? 00:34:46.059 --> 00:34:47.079 Is that the application 00:34:47.079 --> 00:34:48.159 of this sermon? 00:34:48.299 --> 00:34:49.559 To just doubt everything? 00:34:50.099 --> 00:34:50.699 Be skeptical 00:34:50.699 --> 00:34:51.960 for the rest of your life. 00:34:52.059 --> 00:34:53.039 Trust nothing. 00:34:53.840 --> 00:34:54.559 Is that the application 00:34:54.559 --> 00:34:55.119 that we shouldn't 00:34:55.119 --> 00:34:55.779 trust ourselves 00:34:55.779 --> 00:34:56.759 because we could 00:34:56.759 --> 00:34:57.460 always be wrong? 00:34:57.639 --> 00:34:58.239 Are we left 00:34:58.239 --> 00:34:59.480 in the dark forever? 00:35:00.920 --> 00:35:02.079 Well, it's to that question 00:35:02.079 --> 00:35:03.779 that Jesus' word 00:35:03.779 --> 00:35:04.440 to us today 00:35:04.440 --> 00:35:04.759 is, 00:35:04.900 --> 00:35:05.539 I am 00:35:05.539 --> 00:35:06.920 the light of the world. 00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:08.759 It's a claim 00:35:08.759 --> 00:35:09.460 that absolutely 00:35:09.460 --> 00:35:10.380 humbles us 00:35:10.380 --> 00:35:11.980 and gives us 00:35:11.980 --> 00:35:12.480 the confidence 00:35:12.480 --> 00:35:12.960 we need 00:35:12.960 --> 00:35:13.719 to live life 00:35:13.719 --> 00:35:14.659 to the fullest. 00:35:15.659 --> 00:35:15.860 See, 00:35:15.900 --> 00:35:16.340 when he says, 00:35:16.480 --> 00:35:17.199 I am the light 00:35:17.199 --> 00:35:17.619 of the world, 00:35:18.059 --> 00:35:19.019 it means that yes, 00:35:19.119 --> 00:35:19.960 we could be wrong 00:35:19.960 --> 00:35:21.119 about a lot of things, 00:35:21.199 --> 00:35:22.399 even most things, 00:35:22.480 --> 00:35:24.059 even the most important things. 00:35:25.099 --> 00:35:25.539 And therefore, 00:35:25.659 --> 00:35:26.859 we must always maintain 00:35:26.859 --> 00:35:28.339 a posture of humility 00:35:28.339 --> 00:35:29.539 because Jesus alone 00:35:29.539 --> 00:35:30.539 is the light 00:35:30.539 --> 00:35:31.019 of the world. 00:35:31.699 --> 00:35:32.579 We must always be ready 00:35:32.579 --> 00:35:33.699 to take the logs 00:35:33.699 --> 00:35:34.779 out of our own eyes 00:35:34.779 --> 00:35:36.239 before trying to take 00:35:36.239 --> 00:35:36.779 the specks 00:35:36.779 --> 00:35:38.699 out of other people's eyes. 00:35:39.739 --> 00:35:40.500 But I am the light 00:35:40.500 --> 00:35:40.879 of the world 00:35:40.879 --> 00:35:41.759 doesn't just mean 00:35:41.759 --> 00:35:43.119 that I could be wrong 00:35:43.119 --> 00:35:43.960 about a whole lot 00:35:43.960 --> 00:35:44.439 of things. 00:35:44.779 --> 00:35:45.279 I am the light 00:35:45.280 --> 00:35:45.600 of the world 00:35:45.600 --> 00:35:46.460 also means 00:35:46.460 --> 00:35:48.060 that there is truth 00:35:48.060 --> 00:35:49.620 that God wants us 00:35:49.620 --> 00:35:50.019 to know 00:35:50.019 --> 00:35:51.340 and to see 00:35:51.340 --> 00:35:52.840 and to live 00:35:52.840 --> 00:35:53.640 and depend upon. 00:35:54.260 --> 00:35:55.340 And while we can be wrong 00:35:55.340 --> 00:35:56.640 about many things, 00:35:57.140 --> 00:35:58.160 we can trust 00:35:58.160 --> 00:35:58.960 in the light 00:35:58.960 --> 00:35:59.440 of the world. 00:35:59.640 --> 00:36:00.280 We can trust 00:36:00.280 --> 00:36:01.700 in Jesus Christ. 00:36:02.980 --> 00:36:03.400 And though 00:36:03.400 --> 00:36:05.200 we could never, 00:36:05.760 --> 00:36:06.360 though we could never 00:36:06.360 --> 00:36:07.200 be the source 00:36:07.200 --> 00:36:08.120 of truth and light, 00:36:08.980 --> 00:36:09.680 as the moon 00:36:09.680 --> 00:36:10.720 reflects the sun, 00:36:10.860 --> 00:36:11.980 so can we 00:36:11.980 --> 00:36:13.000 relate to Christ, 00:36:13.100 --> 00:36:13.840 the light of the world, 00:36:14.000 --> 00:36:15.040 declaring with the heavens 00:36:15.039 --> 00:36:16.119 his glory. 00:36:17.239 --> 00:36:17.759 And Christ Church, 00:36:17.840 --> 00:36:18.539 this is the gospel. 00:36:19.219 --> 00:36:19.900 This is the gospel 00:36:19.900 --> 00:36:20.679 that though we were 00:36:20.679 --> 00:36:21.199 in darkness 00:36:21.199 --> 00:36:22.699 and though we could 00:36:22.699 --> 00:36:23.759 see no light, 00:36:24.779 --> 00:36:25.800 the good news 00:36:25.800 --> 00:36:26.360 is that we don't 00:36:26.360 --> 00:36:27.159 have to supply 00:36:27.159 --> 00:36:28.300 our own light. 00:36:28.779 --> 00:36:29.699 We don't have to be 00:36:29.699 --> 00:36:30.219 the source 00:36:30.219 --> 00:36:31.139 of our own light, 00:36:31.800 --> 00:36:32.840 but that the 00:36:32.840 --> 00:36:33.739 unconquerable 00:36:33.739 --> 00:36:34.699 light of the world, 00:36:34.800 --> 00:36:35.440 the I am, 00:36:35.980 --> 00:36:36.759 has graciously 00:36:36.759 --> 00:36:37.279 entered 00:36:37.279 --> 00:36:38.699 into our darkness 00:36:38.699 --> 00:36:40.179 as the light 00:36:40.179 --> 00:36:40.679 of the world, 00:36:41.340 --> 00:36:42.019 even hanging 00:36:42.019 --> 00:36:42.800 upon a cross 00:36:42.800 --> 00:36:44.139 for three hours 00:36:44.139 --> 00:36:44.980 in the dark 00:36:44.980 --> 00:36:46.679 in order to bring us 00:36:46.679 --> 00:36:47.859 the light of life, 00:36:48.319 --> 00:36:48.619 hope, 00:36:48.819 --> 00:36:49.319 and truth 00:36:49.319 --> 00:36:50.000 that we all 00:36:50.000 --> 00:36:51.279 so desperately 00:36:51.279 --> 00:36:52.319 need. 00:36:52.900 --> 00:36:53.759 This is the gospel. 00:36:54.400 --> 00:36:55.099 Jesus Christ 00:36:55.099 --> 00:36:56.139 is the light 00:36:56.139 --> 00:36:56.599 of the world. 00:36:57.219 --> 00:36:57.859 Will you pray with me? 00:36:57.860 --> 00:37:05.340 Lord, would you 00:37:05.340 --> 00:37:07.260 open our eyes 00:37:07.260 --> 00:37:08.940 to our blindness? 00:37:10.300 --> 00:37:11.539 Would you dispel 00:37:11.539 --> 00:37:12.980 our darkness? 00:37:15.140 --> 00:37:16.260 Would we trust in you 00:37:16.260 --> 00:37:17.820 as the light 00:37:17.820 --> 00:37:18.380 of the world? 00:37:20.140 --> 00:37:21.579 Would we see ourselves 00:37:21.579 --> 00:37:22.599 in this blind man? 00:37:23.700 --> 00:37:24.880 Would we see ourselves 00:37:24.880 --> 00:37:26.380 in the Pharisees, 00:37:26.380 --> 00:37:27.780 even refusing 00:37:27.780 --> 00:37:28.420 to acknowledge 00:37:28.420 --> 00:37:29.140 all the ways 00:37:29.140 --> 00:37:30.400 that we could 00:37:30.400 --> 00:37:31.680 conceivably be wrong 00:37:31.680 --> 00:37:32.340 before you? 00:37:33.960 --> 00:37:34.980 We thank you 00:37:34.980 --> 00:37:36.200 that we don't have 00:37:36.200 --> 00:37:37.220 to be our own lights. 00:37:38.360 --> 00:37:38.780 We thank you 00:37:38.780 --> 00:37:39.500 that your son 00:37:39.500 --> 00:37:39.940 has come 00:37:39.940 --> 00:37:42.000 to give us 00:37:42.000 --> 00:37:42.340 the light 00:37:42.340 --> 00:37:42.980 that we need. 00:37:43.740 --> 00:37:44.180 We ask that you 00:37:44.180 --> 00:37:45.140 help us to trust him, 00:37:45.820 --> 00:37:47.059 to bear wonderful witness 00:37:47.059 --> 00:37:49.519 to this incomparable light 00:37:49.519 --> 00:37:50.920 better than any other, 00:37:51.019 --> 00:37:51.920 we pray in his name. 00:37:52.599 --> 00:37:52.840 Amen. 00:37:52.840 --> 00:37:52.940 Amen. 00:37:52.940 --> 00:37:53.000 Amen.