John 9:1-41—In the Gospel lesson Jesus,
the Light, gives spiritual vision. A man
born blind receives physical and spiritual sight. It takes a whole chapter to
tell the story of how Jesus brings spiritual light to a man born blind.
The actual miracle is told in a few verses, but the healing gives
an occasion for Jesus to bring a man from agnosticism to faith. We see the
formation of faith: from “the man called Jesus,” to “prophet,” to “a man from
God” to “Son of Man.” In contrast to the light of the healed man, the Pharisees
are in the darkness of sin and unbelief.
In Jesus’ day, the popular view was that sin caused suffering. In
the case of the man born blind, the disciples asked whose sin caused the
handicap. Jesus answered that no one sinned in this case. Some suffering is
caused by sin, but we should see suffering as an opportunity for God’s healing.
Collect for Friday of the week of Lent 3: Merciful Father, fill our hearts with your love and keep us faithful to the gospel of Christ. Give us the grace to rise above our human weakness. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives, and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen [2]
[1]
Trinity, © Ed Riojas, Higher Things
[2] Collect for Friday of the week of Lent 3, For All the Saints, A Prayer Book For and By the Church, Vol. III © 1995 The American Lutheran Publicity Bureau. Delhi, NY
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