Jesus found him
Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” (John 9:35).
When Jesus met the blind man, at the beginning of John chapter 9, He did not heal him straightaway. He anointed his eyes with clay and sent him to wash in the ancient pool of Siloam. The man had to exercise faith from the outset of his meeting with Jesus, which led to his healing. What followed was a series of events through which his faith increased. Growing antagonism towards Christ and his own persecution did not diminish his faith. He defended the Saviour and was excommunicated by the Pharisees. The man went to the pool because he believed Jesus. He had only heard His voice, but from that moment, he never moved from the simple faith he had in Christ. Everything he said and did was based on the man who opened his eyes, and he suffered for his faith. But after his excommunication, Jesus found him.
The Lord had longed for people to believe in Him. So often, Christ was doubted throughout His ministry and even in resurrection. But we see utter faith and devotion in a man who knew so little of the Lord, yet was so faithful to Him. The man was a vivid picture of what Peter writes, “Whom having not seen ye love” (1 Peter 1:8, AV). Through his testimony, the Lord shows how powerful true faith is and how it can withstand any test when grounded in the Person of Christ.
It is after the man had shown such faith that the Lord found him again. I don’t believe the Lord ceased to watch over him as he made his way in blindness to the pool, when he returned seeing, and as he confronted unbelief and rejection. The words, “He found him” convey so much of the heart of Christ. In the next chapter, chapter 10, Jesus speaks of Himself as the Good Shepherd. As this Shepherd, he found the man and asked him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” The heart of the man was ready to be filled by the Saviour. He had faith in Jesus even though he had not seen Him, and through that faith he grew in appreciation of the Person of Christ and wanted to know Him. He immediately calls Jesus, Lord: “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” The Lord in tender grace says, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you” (vv. 36-37).
The Person who gave him sight becomes the Person he sees. Seeing is revelation. He also heard the voice of Jesus. Hearing is understanding. Obeying the voice of Christ led to his healing. By hearing His voice the second time, he understood that Jesus the Healer, the Man and the Prophet was the Son of God. The man’s response showed all the simplicity and wonder of faith, “Lord, I believe!” Believing brought Him into all the fullness of life in Christ. And in the midst of a nation which was growing in its rejection of their own Messiah, he worshipped. Worship is responding to the wonder of the God who loves us. He did not have the opportunity to thank the Lord for healing him, but he had shown his gratitude in his defence of the Saviour. And when the Lord reveals who He is, he immediately worships. The cross of Christ lay not that far away in the distance. It must have been a tremendous joy to the heart of Christ to find a man who responded so thoroughly and so gratefully to His love. We don’t even know the man’s name. But he teaches us so much about faith, witness and worship.
Sometimes we can be slow to see, hear, believe and worship. Instead, we hesitate and doubt. May the Lord help us to live in the reality and power of His grace; once, we were blind, but now we see.
