Will We Grasp The Role Of The Holy Spirit In Helping Us To See The Spiritual Blindness In Our Midst?

Will We Grasp The Role Of The Holy Spirit In Helping Us To See The Spiritual Blindness In Our Midst?

 

Good Morning Friends,

 

William Molyneux, an Irish philosopher, whose wife was blind wrote to the philosopher John Locke in July 1688 and asked whether a person born blind and taught to distinguish things by touch could attain the same knowledge by sight if they were suddenly able to see. The answer came back, “No.” Now today we meditate on the story of the man born blind, who has his sight restored by Jesus and we ponder how he could have said what he said about what he saw in front of him without the help of the Holy Spirit. So, this morning, continuing on the Lenten Road, we ponder Molyneux’s Problem as we open our eyes to Greek Philosophy in the mystic perspective in John’s Gospel story and look at the Holy Spirits actions in the mercy of us having second chances. Today we affirm that we believe Occam’s razor… that the simplest explanation is generally the right one. Today as we enter the first days of Spring, we affirm our belief in God clarified in our Creeds. And maybe we will get a do over. And maybe we need a second look if we can see. But for us now I think the connection with what all the world is experiencing… no longer through rose colored glasses…is the opportunity for a Holy Spirit intervention made possible through Christ’s redeeming light converging in on us pure and clear. Still it can be difficult to see. King David before he was king was overlooked. In today’s Gospel reading from John the story is about the healing of a blind man, and it seems it is only Jesus who takes the time to notice this blind beggar. So today we explore the hope of second looks and second chances. And we hope to diagnose the problem of a lack of vision and seek a cure. But, Will We Grasp The Role Of The Holy Spirit In Helping Us To See The Spiritual Blindness In Our Midst?

 

Scripture: The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is now before the Lord.” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.” Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.” He sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome. The Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; for this is the one.” Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.

 

1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a (NRSV)

 

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.  It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.  But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

 

Ephesians 5:8-14 (NIV)

 

As he walked 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?” Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him. We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” Some were saying, “It is he.” Others were saying, “No, but it is someone like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” But they kept asking him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.” They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.” They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.” Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And they were divided. So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” He said, “He is a prophet.” The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” His parents answered, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.” So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.” He answered, “I do not know whether he is a sinner. 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?” Then 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, “Here is an astonishing 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 he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” And they drove him out. Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” He said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped him. Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

 

John 9:1-41 (NRSV)

 

Isaiah answered, “This is the Lord’s sign to you that the Lord will do what he has promised: Shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or shall it go back ten steps?” “It is a simple matter for the shadow to go forward ten steps,” said Hezekiah. “Rather, have it go back ten steps.”

 

2 Kings 20:9-10 (NIV)

 

Message:  The religious authorities of Jesus’ day, crawled all over this story from John’s Gospel and they seem to ask the very question that is posed by Molyneux’s problem. They seem utterly convinced that the blind man could not possibly draw the conclusion that Jesus is the Messiah because they imagined he had no point of reference to form this view. But here’s the thing: what happened to that man was not that he had his sight restored but that God had, in Jesus, created something entirely new in him. Yes, he received his physical sight: but the greatest part of this story is how pliable his spiritual sight is in adapting. The beauty of Molyneux’s question is not just that it relates to how representations are formed in the brain but how the Holy Spirit works in helping us to see. An empirical solution to the question remains beyond the reach of the cognitive sciences so it appears that the simplest solution to the problem’s resolution is in the work of the Holy Spirit. The paradox of the Bible story as a thought experiment is that those who are without physical sight can see spiritually, but the Pharisees, who all have their physical sight are, nonetheless, blind. They cannot for the life of them see the obvious in front of them. The takeaway is that people need to have the Gospel presented to them in a way they can relate to easily, but they also must receive the Holy Spirit helping them to see. So now with eyes opened by the Spirit we see how the reading of our creeds helps us to grow in focus. But we need to see with spiritual concepts and understanding. What we believe here makes the difference. So, it is the Holy Spirit that empowers the church, unites the saints, regenerates sinners, breathes resurrection life into transformed bodies, and sustains us in the life everlasting. The Holy Ghost who conceives Jesus is also birthed in us so we too might see with new eyes with the Light of Creation that is the Word of God.

 

And So, in our passage from 2 Kings Hezekiah gets a do over of sorts that demonstrates the Light of Life at work in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Bible is filled with stories of second chance mercy. Jacob and Esau were reconciled. Joseph and his brothers as well. Everyone Jesus healed got a second chance. Peter denied Christ and yet got a do over. Paul as well. Hezekiah, on his death bed was visited by the prophet Isaiah who told him that he was not going to die…he was going to get a second chance. Hezekiah did not believe him and asked for a sign as proof. God redeemed the time for him and Good King Hezekiah experienced the shadows going backwards. Who knows maybe it was an eclipse or partial eclipse of the sun. Regardless of what happened Hezekiah received a do over and the mark of the Holy Spirit is all over it. And here is the good news for all of us in need of redemption. God specializes in taking a broken life and setting it straight again by giving us a spiritual perspective. God is proficient at taking a hopeless situation and infusing it with hope and light and sight. God is competent at offering perfect love and forgiveness to people who have broken their promises over and over. Our God is the God of second chances and do overs…the light of healing of the nations. Believe and have hope in the one who sees.

 

Pray we not be blinded by judgments, traditions, skepticism and fear. Pray the hole in our heart, the blind spot in our sight is filled with the Holy Spirit. Pray we feel and see the Spirit at work in us. Pray that the Spirit of God takes us in the direction God has planned. Pray the spiritual seal of our heart’s meditation open our eyes to the treasure of our soul growing in a community of love. Pray we see the fruits of the Spirit in front of our eyes. Pray we know in our hearts that the Holy Spirit comes from God. Pray we humbly understand the sight of the blind and the blindness in sight. Pray we, for the love of God, experience God and share the Spirit’s purposed focus in our own lives so others in faith might also come to see spiritually. Pray we pay attention to what Jesus is telling us he is seeing. Pray we realize that Jesus is the Light of the World. Pray we take advantage of every opportunity to share Christ’s love in the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

Blessings,

 

John Lawson