But what I wanted to get to is this. In verse 5, Jesus says "As long as I'm in the world, I am the light of the world." I love that he started that statement the way he did. "As long as I'm in the world...." He was the light! He did great works. He healed this blind man! As you continue this story, you see that the Pharisees are pretty angry about this work being done. They asked the man how he was healed, and he told them the whole story about how the man made mud with his spit, and sent him to the river (that translates to the word "Sent" by the way) and now he could see! Well, the Pharisees weren't on board with this. You see, it was the Sabbath, and no one was supposed to work on the Sabbath...therefore, this man couldn't be from God. Then there were others that didn't believe this was the man that had been blind in the first place, so they called his parents to testify. They claimed that he was their son, who had been blind his whole life. They then asked his parents for details, to which they responded in an interesting way. "As him, for he is of age." They knew they would be kicked out of the synagogue if they testified. So they shyed away from it all together, and pushed the pressure back onto their son. I can only imagine the shame that would surround being sent out of the synagogue...that's excommunication! When they asked the man again, he explained the story again and then began to preach a little bit. Let's read:
So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out. (John 9:24-34 ESV)
They cast him out because he told the truth! But have no fear....Jesus is bigger than all this nonsense.
Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.” He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains. (John 9:35-41 ESV)
This is just so great. I love it when Jesus lays the smack down!
My main thought today is this: when Jesus was here on earth, he was the light of the world. Now he's gone, and that responsibility is left for us. I went to a school who's mascot is the "beacon." We literally take pride in being lights. Here in Cambodia, our saying is "light the darkness." I want to be a light in this dark world! There's darkness in these states. There's definitely darkness here. There's darkness everywhere we look. I pray that everyone reading this commits to being a light in the darkness. That's what we've been left here to do. Let's seek and save the lost!! (Or at least seek them. Let's let Jesus do the saving).
One last thought for this post. I was talking to some people on the van ride today about how cool it is to see mine and Lars' life verses side by side. It's awesome to see how much they fit our goals in life.
Mine is Galatians 2:20 that says
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Lars' is Colossians 1:28
Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.
I like to put them together this way:
We have been crucified with Christ. It's no longer we who live, but Christ lives through us. We proclaim Him, using our lives to warn and teach everyone with all wisdom. The life we now live in the flesh, we live by faith in the Son of God, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For He loved us and gave himself for us.
That mashup of verses is what gives me motivation. Together, Lars and I work to live that out. But while I here without him, I'm working on furthering the kingdom and showing that combination through my actions.
Please continue praying for the things I've been posting. I've definitely been feeling the power of prayer since I've been here. Thank you!!!
God bless.
Xo
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