6th Sign: Spiritual Blindness

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ can't go to the temple. My family will not speak to me again. My friends will not speak to me and I can't do business with other Jews leverage now throughout prison than they used to say excommunicate and what that meant for almost a fear of excommunication is an event going if you're excommunicate drop God is now turned his back and you will decide so that's what they do. These people terrified living a normal Jewish likely find that this is open to change because my son can now see joining us today on this additional fellowship of the word pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana Pastor Bill Gebhardt now again he shows us how God's word meets our work. That's not like he is a product of the Pharisees the man was formally blind.

Now it was the Sabbath day that Jesus made clay and that's why he sees it's a Sabbath day from here one night going to see another main point of this whole miracle religion makes you spiritually blind to the light of the world religion will make you spiritually blind to the light of the world. That's the real reason for this miracle.

It's a Sabbath, by the way they had a lot of Sabbath laws. Hundreds and hundreds begin let me give a couple more. You can't give medical treatment to anybody on a Sabbath is against the law.

Sometimes it puts life and death. You might be able to try, but no medical treatment can be given to anybody on a Sabbath day. Secondly, when a Sabbath day, you're not allowed to take saliva out of your mouth and spread it on anything that's a violation of God's law to the Pharisees. Now you're also not allowed to cut your nails in the pool gray hair. If you are not allowed to do any work like that. That's breaking the Sabbath. That's why Jesus did this, he knew exactly what they thought he did for this confrontation that is having here so then the Pharisees also verse 15 were asking him how he received his sight and he said to them, okay. He applied clay to my eyes. I washed I see can I get outta here and go look at some things in a while I talking to you. I just told you what happened.

Therefore some of the Pharisees were saying this man is not from God because he does not keep the Sabbath while one of the main Jesus failed the test. Jesus cannot be from God.

He failed the test. He violated the Sabbath. No man from God would violate the Sabbath law that serve you. Now remember, they distorted the Sabbath completely. Jesus already told him more than once. I'm the Lord of the Sabbath to see but there like no you violated our law.

You cannot be from God and all but others were saying how can a man who's a sinner perform such signs.

There is a division among now I don't know for sure because John doesn't tell us, but I'm guessing one of the others was Nicodemus who winds up converting. But remember, Nicodemus came to Jesus and what he told Jesus the first time they met.

No one can do what you're doing. Alessi sent from God. He tells Jesus that so I'm sure Nicodemus is there saying wait a minute, there's something else going on here.

Is there something more here so there's a fight among the Pharisees. Some of them are beginning to see a little bit the other supplying and see anything and so then they move on SSO they said the blind man again. What do you say about him since he opened your eyes. Mrs. this is funny to me.

In this sense, the blind man's thinking the whole time his mind got the racing member.

He's blind that those a lot of things. It is obviously illiterate.

He's also ceremonially unclean.

He's never been in a synagogue. He doesn't go to the temple I think you're going to find out that his parents are probably disowned him completely.

The guy get involved in a minute. This man has no training. All he's ever heard people talking going and coming temple, but he says these guys are talking theology. These guys are saying is he from God is not from God. So he said okay all way on this, who's from God is that I know who's from God, and Mary says it is a prophet that's a great line why profits come from God. This guy came and now I see. So I'm saying he's a prophet.

Three go a little bit theological.

The Jews then did not believe it is no profit in any he had been blind and had received site until they called the parents of the very one received a site. This probably is in the guy this whole thing is a sham. So they call the parents know. Please understand, what happens to them and they question and they said to him, is this your son who you say was born blind and tell us how to cease his parents answered and said, we know that this is our son and we know that he was born blind to how he now sees we do not know.

He said or who opened his eyes.

We don't know you ask him.

He said he's of age you speak for himself why they say that it was true or terrified or terrified to see wine just a moment. The terrified these guys whole life going to change because of the people or the religious leaders are going to make it very bad for them, so his parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews is another thing about religion almost always you live in fear. If there's something consistent about religion all over the world is willing to get you you can't disagree with us, you simply can't.

And it's happening all over the Christian religion, no different than others. When you start reading books like Fox's book of martyrs and you start realizing how many thousands upon thousands of believers were executed by the church, not by the Muslims, not by the unbelieving pagans, but by the church itself killed.

But there's another word that they really love the use and you can see it in just a moment here. It said his parents.

It is because they were afraid of the Jews for the Jews it already agreed that if anyone confessed him to be the Christ is put out of the synagogue. We will excommunicate you. That's a religion does we will excommunicate you. Now you see how big a deal is that huge. This is a huge deal in their world. If I'm excommunicated, can never go to the synagogue. I can't go to the temple on never be right with God, I cannot. My family will not speak to me again. My friends will not speak to me and I can't do business with other Jews. So we have the leverage on now throughout Christendom. They used to say, though, excommunicate you, and what that meant for almost everyone there was a fear of excommunication is and you're going to go to hell if you're excommunicated derived God is now turned his back and you know spend forever in hell and will decide this so that's what they do. These people terrified their living a normal Jewish life and they find that this is open to change because my son can now see.

Notice how they pass the buck to him wanted to ask him don't ask us anymore. These questions, we don't want to know these well that's the reason John writes that he is of age, ask, so a second time they called the manual been blind and they said give glory to God. We know that this man's a sinner give glory to God. Now that's an interesting phrase by the way and when you have to think about for just a moment, but that goes all the way back to Aiken and Joshua what it means is Josh was talking about Aiken but he says to him in the Jews understood is you got to give glory to God. Another were to go tell the truth or you have the so the Jews have always used that phrase means tells the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so when I say give glory to God. You can tell us the truth. That's what it means when they say that and so they say it and it's interesting we know that this man's a sinner.

I love his answer what talent he changes. He said that whether he is a sinner.

I don't know one thing I know, I know that I was blind and I know that I see great Christian hymn writers took advantage of those words that he amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me from I once was lost in the home phone.

I was blind, now I see the great great phrase you see when you became a Christian. The moment you accepted Christ you know you received spiritual site for the first time in your life you received spiritual site.

Now I can see that such an important thing is I read early on.

Paul said that the unbeliever has his eyes blinded you see he's been blinded. He also wrote the natural man, the blind man cannot receive the things of the spirit, nor can he understand, so don't ever get frustrated we are witnessing the someone or by Jesus Christ, and are just not getting it.

You see, don't worry about that they can't get it through spiritually blind. They don't see it using they don't see what you're saying until they see what you say see that moment. All of a sudden the miracle is they have spiritual site now it's just the way that it works as I've told you in the passion of the man witnessed me over and over again every time I witness with them. I either argued with him or made fun of. I just did it over and over and over and over and over, and then after long period of time he made the statement that I won't talk to you anymore by Jesus and I asked him why not. He said I was a spiritual hypocrite because you want to know truth. You say, but I have the truth right in front of you so I left his lab and went back to my lab walked in my lab went over to my desk without my knees and prayed to receive Christ. How that wasn't the words that he said is that I'm not getting talking with all the same. You have spiritual site. Now I see. That's exactly yet that's that's what happens when you come to Christ to get spiritual site and that's the way it works well. He said I don't know I just know I was blind and now I see. So they said to him, what did he do to you and how did he open your eyes. Same thing. He says he says I told you already, you did not listen. Why do you want to hear again. You do not want to become his tight disciples to do you may not skin feisty thing about this if you're a blind beggar for 3540 years your life would you feisty on the date the greatest day of your life is the day you're seeing site and these guys are just given him the business instead of glorifying God for what happened there given him the business. So he said to him.maybe you want to follow Jesus. Now is that what you're saying while they got mad at that and typically they reviled him in a said you are his disciple, but we are the disciples of Moses. Good thing is he religious people always use something like member they talk to Jesus and they said we are of our father who Abraham but Jesus told you are of your father the devil see a very different perspective. So they try the Moses card. We know that God is spoken to Moses. But as for this man. We do not know where he is from. Of course by now. He stole many many times, but they're just talking the man answered and said to them, well, here's an amazing thing that you do not know where he is from, and yet he opened my eyes. You gotta love that as of lately the religious leaders I was born blind I been blind all these years. I see now and you don't know where he's from, the leaders I love that the man answered and said, well, here's an amazing thing.

Then he goes on in verse 931 they said we know that God does not hear sinners, but if anyone is God-fearing and does us will leaders with their inference were God fearing where the righteous ones we keep the law. See, and please understand I say this all the time, but we often make the Pharisees out to be the bad guys are not the bad guys in Israel the most respected religious people in the country everybody respects the Pharisees accept Jesus. He doesn't respect them at all because all kinds of names whitewash sepulchers, the blind guides of the blind. He doesn't let up on them but everybody else and I say this in the past. If you are the daughter you would pray she would marry a Pharisee because they're so righteous and that's what they believe because they jump through all the religious hoops so he says since the beginning of time. In verse 32. It is never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. They know it. See, how do you explain a miracle that occurred that no one is never occurred ever with anyone else. How do you explain it as a religious leader of the Jewish people. He said if this man were not from God. He races back to him.

If this man were not from God.

He could do nothing see the logic of this man is so obvious I see if he is not from God. He could've done anything so what's bothering you yet well they answered and said you were born entirely in sins in your teaching us say put them up. That means he's excommunicated is out notice one thing they said is true you born in sins, knowing is not true is so they so are you. So my we are all born spiritually blind. All of us. Everybody is the only person born that wasn't spiritually blind is Jesus Christ is the only one they said what they said was true.

They just can believe it about themselves. Now it's interesting Jesus heard that they had put them out and Jesus went and found him and said do you believe in the Son of Man.

This is beautiful Jesus and interested the rest of his life he can see that the matter of much of Jesus just as he said do you believe in the Son of Man at a favorite phrase of Daniel Jesus usable himself and he answered he said, who is the Lord. He said that I may believe in. I don't know who he is.

Jesus said, you have both seen him and he is the one talking with you this is me. I love this and he said Lord I believe that's exactly what you and I said, the moment of spiritual site. I believe in notice instead of just washing his eyes out. Notice his first response to his belief. It comes right thereafter. He says doing right after he does it he says and he worshiped him, and that what we all did. The moment you became born again Christian.

I hope so. The first act of anybody who came to Christ is worship thank you thank you for doing for me and it's something I can never do for myself.

Thanks for giving me spiritual site's a gift, you see, he just worships the Lord. Here's a guy that was never in the synagogue or the temple and is talking to the son of God and he's worshiping the son of God. God incarnate, right there and he's worshiping him. And Jesus said this for judgment. I came into this world so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind. What a great statement by Jesus. What a paradox, and it is the paradox by the way of grace and religion as of the paradox is notice.

I case so that those who do not see what is the mean, I know I'm spiritually blind. I know I don't see. I know I have no hope what you said what happens to them. They get justified member.

The prayer life in the temple. Jesus talked about the Pharisee went into the temple and mentally prayed out loud and he said thank God I'm not like you guys think God I'm not like other people on a righteous man with the text gathered to pound his chest and said, have mercy on me a sinner who gets justified. See, it's a moment of spiritual insight those of the Pharisees who were with him heard these words and they said we are not blind to our we will by now you know of course they are as blind as a bat there blind. They said that can't be possible. Why were religious, you can say were blind. Jesus said, let me say this way if you were blind, you have no sin, it's a creek line if you were spiritually blind, like this man was physically blind and spiritually blind, and you came to me, you would have no sin, because I'm gonna take care of that for you. You will have no sin, I'm to be a substitute on the cross you're going to experience eternal life because of the grace of God you going to see that. But notice what he says the next part of the phrase he said, but since you say we see your sin remains see spiritual blindness, though one of the great characteristics of spiritual blindness is the constantly say you see because of your religion is you. That's what this whole miracle was about. It reminds me just think about this member. The manna was an invalid for 38 years, and for the first time he teases said in a get up, pick up your pallet and walk, but remember what day did everyone Sabbath why he wants to confront and condemn religion. And that's exactly what he does here were all born spiritually blind. Jesus came to give all of our spiritual site but if we deny our blindness will never be able to see that's what John teaches us spray father. Nothing is really changed. People are incurably religious. They believe that they can invent a system and by adhering to their system. They will impress you so much and you will let them in your presence. The apostle Paul said that that when a Jew is given the gospel he rejects it. Nothing is ever changed with religious people. The initial response is almost always the same. It's too easy I'm going to do things to impress God the father that just reveals spiritual blindness and must confess that all of us at one time in our lives were spiritually blind at the moment we receive site because of Jesus Christ, everything changed. We were blind but now we see.

I pray father that we understand the greatness of the magnitude of that gift and that we worship you joyfully because of what you have done for us. Father give us a sense of great patience when we witness for Jesus Christ, especially to religious people because understanding they cannot understand what were saying they cannot see it but if we persistently, kindly love them and give an account for the hope that is in us.

They truly that's our prayer. Thank you for much of done for us. Use us to have to if you ever miss one of our broadcast or maybe you just like to listen to the message one more time. Remember the little great website called in one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen the fellowship and the word online that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of our previous audio program is not had Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make his broadcast possible. We ask all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help his radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting us monthly with just the one time gift support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word. 4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie, LA 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format that is is a sermon that Pastor Bill delivered during a Sunday morning service at Fellowship Bible church visit our website FVC Nola.org that FVC and of LA.Margie at our website you will find hundreds. Pastor Bill sermon.

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