Jesus saw a man who had been blind from birth, and His disciples asked, “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” It's an astonishing question – how could a man have sinned before he was even born?
Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God might be revealed in him.” Over the years, I’ve witnessed tens of thousands of miracles. Jesus is still the Healer. I never want people to look at me – they must look to Him. While there are times when sickness can be connected to sin, that is not always the case. The Apostle Paul tells believers to examine themselves before taking communion, warning that receiving it in an unworthy manner can result in weakness and sickness.
The miracles of Jesus were never ends in themselves; they revealed who He is. As Scripture says, He was “a Man approved by God through signs and wonders.”
Jesus spat on the ground, made mud with the saliva, spread it on the blind man’s eyes, and told him, “Go, wash.” The man obeyed, and immediately his sight was restored.
His neighbours were astonished. “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?” they asked. “How were your eyes opened?” The remarkable thing is that the man had never actually seen Jesus. He only knew His name. He didn't know where Jesus had gone. So often, people are blind in the middle of their struggles, yet Jesus is present, even when they cannot see Him.
The people brought the healed man to the Pharisees because the miracle had taken place on the Sabbath. What should have been a celebration quickly became a religious controversy. In the Pharisees' eyes, if Jesus healed on the Sabbath, He must be a sinner.
The Pharisees themselves were divided. They asked the man, “What do you say about Him?” The man answered simply, “He is a prophet.”
Still refusing to believe, the religious leaders questioned whether he had ever been blind at all. That reminds me of my own testimony. I still have the X-rays from when I had lung cancer. The doctors were amazed by what God had done. Sometimes the evidence leaves people with no natural explanation.
The Pharisees called the man's parents. “Is this your son? Was he born blind? How is it that he can now see?” Fearful of the Jewish leaders, they answered cautiously, “He is our son, and he was born blind, but how he now sees we do not know. Ask him; he is of age.”
By this point in Jesus’ ministry, the Jewish authorities had already decided that anyone who confessed Jesus as the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. Yet He is the Messiah.
Questioned again, the man gave one of the greatest testimonies in Scripture: “Whether He is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know: I was blind, but now I see.”
That is the heart of every Christian testimony. As an evangelist, I know what I once was – a sinner – but now I have been set free.
Growing frustrated, the man replied, “I have already told you. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”
The religious leaders answered, “We are disciples of Moses.” But following Moses alone does not bring salvation.
Then the healed man spoke with remarkable courage: “You don’t know where He comes from, yet He opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners; He listens to the godly person who does His will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.”
Unable to answer him, they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth. How dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.
Healing has always been a major part of my ministry because healing points people to something even greater. It demonstrates the power and compassion of Jesus and confirms that He has authority to forgive sins.
The story ends beautifully. Jesus found the man who had been cast out and asked him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” The man replied, “Who is He, sir, that I may believe in Him?”
Jesus said, “You have now seen Him; in fact, He is the One speaking with you.”
The man answered, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshipped Him.
The greatest miracle was not simply that a blind man received his sight, but that he came to see who Jesus truly is and worshipped Him as Lord.