Rev. Tiffany Trent
Associate Pastor for Drama Ministries
John 9:1-41

Know For Yourself 

How many times in scripture did the Pharisees attack Jesus about keeping the Sabbath? Just like the man with new sight now knows for himself the hue and depth and shading of red, or blue, or green, in ways that nobody could have told him, Jesus also knows the grace and mercy that urge us to help out a neighbor, even on the Sabbath. What better fellowship is there than sharing the miracle of gospel with a brother or sister in Christ on the LORD’s day? And what better means of sharing this gospel than an example of God’s grace? Beloved, we have to know for ourselves the service that God would have us to offer to those we see that we can help along the way. Our blind brother in this text had spent years since birth sharpening his hearing and other senses, to overcome the lack of sight. Thus, he could sharply hear how the Pharisees are trying to entrap him, and persecute Jesus. And, unlike his parents, and others who witnessed the light of Christ, our newly sighted brother boldly claims his miracle.

This scripture is calling us to serve—with boldness. Our serving of the poor, the least, and the left out, provides them with a God encounter to help show that not only can God meet their physical needs but that on top of that, God loves them, sacrificed Christ for them, and will reveal God’s self to them. The God encounter opens eyes AND hearts. And God is so awesome that we get to participate in that.

Prayer 

Holy God, thank You for the experiences that help me to know You; give me the courage to bear witness to knowing You.

Thought for the day 

God meets each one of us where we are in our particular and specific need, so that we might recognize our Savior for ourselves.