Opened Your Eyes

He opened your eyes

JOHN 9 BIBLE STUDY ◄
John 9:13-16 Healed on the Sabbath

John 9:17-23 Opened Your Eyes

JOHN 9:17-18 17 They said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him since He opened your eyes?” And he said, “He is a prophet.” 18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and then had received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight.

Why do the Pharisees ask the formerly blind man what he thinks?
Religious leaders suddenly asking a street beggar for his opinion on a theological issue indicates how desperate they were to find a way to resolve the conflict between the miraculous “sign” (John 9:16) from God and their man-made laws about the Sabbath.

Why did they “not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and then had received his sight” (John 9:18)?
They decided to try to resolve the conflict by continuing to uphold their man-made Sabbath laws (see Pharisees) and claiming that the miraculous “sign” from God never took place.

Is his reply - “He is a prophet” (John 9:17) - what they want to hear?
No, so they throw up their hands and decide to wait for his parents to arrive and to hopefully tell them what they want to hear.

JOHN 9:19-21 19 And they asked them, saying, “Is this your son, whom you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” 20 His parents answered them and said, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind. 21 But how he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself.”

Do his parents tell the Jews' what they want to hear?
No, they defer back to their healed son: “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself” (John 9:20-21).

What should his parents have done instead?
Greet their healed son with tears of joy, tell the Jews to leave him alone, go and find, thank, and worship Jesus for having healed their son, and then throw a party to celebrate.

JOHN 9:22-23 22 His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jews, for the Jews already had agreed that anyone who confesses Him Christ would be put out of the synagogue. 23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

Why did his parents say what they said above?
“They were afraid of the Jews, for the Jews already had agreed that anyone who confesses Him Christ would be put out of the synagogue” (John 9:22).

What was the big deal about being put out of the synagogue? Couldn't they just join another synagogue down the street or do without it?
For Jews, life back then revolved around the synagogue, which was the center of their social, religious and economic life. There was one synagogue per community, so being “put out” of it meant the end of one's social and religious life in that community, and economic hardship.

If you belong to a church, have you ever agreed with what is false or not said what is true for fear of losing your status within or being ostracized by your congregation?