A Devotional Life

John 9:18-41

"'If this man were not from God, he could do nothing' 34They answered him, 'You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?' And they drove him out." (John 9:33-34)

            This man born blind was presumed sinful - or the child of sinful parents - because in Jesus' time, sickness was always equated with sin. I don't say this in a theological sense, as in all sickness is the by-product of living in a broken world. Rather, Jews in Jesus' time believed in a direct, causal relationship between personal sin and personal affliction. As such, the Jewish leadership - healthy as they were - would not allow themselves to be "taught" by this sinful, formerly-blind man. In their frustration, they let their prejudice shine forth. They even did so contrary to their own theology. Because within their theological system, if one were no longer afflicted, then it was a sign that they were no longer on God's naughty list. However, their theology was clearly never about pursuing truth and was always about maintaining power.

            We are still tempted to allow our theology to do this. We still are tempted to let our understanding of orthodoxy become a dogma that is used as a hammer against other people's souls. And so what this story reminds us so clearly is that the only way to avoid these temptations is to actually humble ourselves and sit at the feet of "sinners." We, too, must avoid becoming Pharisees and, instead, listen to the Good News, no matter from whence it comes. Indeed, a large part of why we engage in missions with the hungry, the homeless, the discriminated against is because they force us to put away our dogmas-turned-hammers and actually listen.

            I was reminded of this recently when I read Linda Tirado's Hand to Mouth: Living in Bootstrap America. Tirado details - sometimes vulgarly (you've been so warned) the nuances of the hardships of living poor in a country with increasing economic disparity. She pulls no punches in the matter and when reading her - from the comforts of a nice home, with a decent credit score, and a little nest egg in the bank - it is tempting to start arguing with her. But to do so is to side with the Pharisees. To do so is to resort to just plain, vulgar, mean insults ("You were born entirely in sins!") instead of listening. To do so is to prefer demeaning another human rather than worshipping the Son of God. And clearly, this passage reminds us that any voice that calls us back to worshipping Jesus Christ is a voice worth trusting. Amen.