LENT 4 A 2014 Our readings today contain 2 powerful stories, and important teaching about light and about how we see things. In the story from 1 Samuel we see Samuel, at God’s direction involved in an incredibly subversive action. Whilst Saul is still King, Samuel is to go to Bethlehem and anoint one of Jesse’s sons as the next king of Israel. Early in the story we read: “When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed is now before the Lord.’ 7But 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.’” No doubt those words remind you of the proverb: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” We live in an age when appearance has taken on such an extraordinary importance: such that some mother’s even want their daughters at a very young age to have cosmetic surgery. With some so called beauties you don’t know what is real and what is Botox! The Lord reminds Samuel as He reminds us, that we need to look on the “inside” looking for purity of heart, integrity of purpose and simplicity of motive. Such was the young shepherd boy, David, who would become Israel’s greatest king. And now, moving on to the man born blind, and the disciples ask the question as to the cause of his blindness: is it punishment for the parents’ sin or the man’s? But how could a child born blind have sinned? Wrong question. During Jesus’ ministry we see the ongoing conflict between Jesus, who is the light of the world, and the religious establishment who want to destroy Jesus. This establishment stands for a system that is closed and complete: it has coped with all problems including God. They have answered every question. The law provides them with solutions and the Temple gives them religious satisfaction and fulfilment. They religious establishment doesn’t need God, they have it all worked out! And now the healing of the man born blind threatens them, he has to be shown to be a charlatan and Jesus as a law breaker and therefore can be discounted as nothing but a religious nutter who should be ignored. The battle lines are well and truly drawn and will meet their climax on Good Friday: when Jesus will proclaim: “It is finished!” – and the victory is his!
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Throughout his Gospel John strives to show that unbelief will go to any length to destroy faith. The Jewish religious establishment of Jesus’ day strives to prevent people from believing in God. But, as history shows, faith will keep on breaking out. Here, in the 9th chapter, Jesus acts out another “sign”, Jesus who is the “light of the world” heals the man born blind – bringing him from darkness to light. The man’s congenital blindness stands for both the ignorance of the leaders of religious institutions, but more generally for the inadequacy of life as it is lived here and now, we are all born blind! (Fenton) We need a miracle to see things as they really are, and we need a miracle to believe in God. We discover that miracle in what happened on Good Friday and Easter Day. The healing of the blind man acts as a criticism of contemporary Judaism, and any other religion that claims to have all the answers to life’s questions; the miracle provides hope because the gift of Jesus enables us to have faith in the God who really is. As John goes on to reveal: Jesus is the door by which we come to God, and as the shepherd who protects his sheep and gives them life. An underlying theme in the narrative revolves around the question: is illness a punishment for sin? Jesus directs the disciples away from the theoretical question to the practical issue: the man who had been born blind is an opportunity for revealing God’s works, that is, Jesus power to overcome darkness and ignorance and unbelief by the gift of faith and understanding. John rejects theory in favour of practice and seeks to move us from doctrine to a personal relationship with Jesus. We have seen a sad example of this in the Royal Commission into Child abuse. Churches in the past sought to protect the institution, rather than deal with victims and their relationship with God: a relationship betrayed and abused. And the original abuse was continued by the abusive use of the legal system, that should have given the victims redress and put them on the road to healing. St Paul picks up the meaning of this miracle when he writes to the Ephesians: “ 8For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light.” And Paul makes very clear the difference between the Darkness and the light: “ 9for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.” 11Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. AS Christians we are to live as people of the light: showing the love and mercy of God for all people; and exposing “the unfruitful works of darkness” which destroy life for so many 2
people. Again we come back to Jesus’ call: ”let your light so shine before all people that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. There are so many things we need to shine the light of Christ on: The state of the mental health system in our country, The plight of the homeless, Domestic violence, the insidious evil of gambling, Manus Island’s and Nauru’s detention centres, The plight of young people in Resi Care Just to name a few obvious ones. Here, at the Eucharist, we are nourished and fed with the very life of God: In order that we may; Go in peace to love and serve the Lord - in the world with all its darkness.
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