CAST OUT, YET FOUND

CAST OUT, YET FOUND

"They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?" (John 9:34-35)

THE BLESSINGS OF THE LORD are not always recognized as blessings. Some hearts are so calloused they see them as a threat to their religion! The healing of an unnamed blind man is a case in point. On one occasion, when the people had taken up stones to stone the Lord, "Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by" (John 9:59). Although the people meant to do Him harm, they were unable to recognize Him as He walked through their midst. As He "passed by," He saw a man who had been "blind from birth." Immediately, His disciples sought a clearer understanding of why maladies were extant among men. They asked if this man was blind due to personal sin or the sin of his parents. Jesus did not say that such postulates were foolish, or that they could never happen. Instead, He declared this man's blindness was in order that "the works of God should be made manifest in him" (9:1-3).

RECOGNIZING THAT THE FATHER was about to work, He declared "I must work the works of Him" that had sent Him. Then "He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam'" (vs 6-7, NKJV). He did not tell the man he would be healed, but the blind man seemed to sense he would be, and thus made his way to the pool, even though he was blind. The Scriptures declare, "So he went and washed, and came back seeing." We then learn that this man was not only blind, but that he was a beggar. Some of the people recognized him and asked, "Is not this he that sat and begged?" Some could not bring themselves to believe this. They said, "He is like him." The blind man himself resolved the difficulty by confessing, "I am he." When asked about the details, he simply said, "A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight" (v 11).

ALL OF THIS CAUSED A GREAT CONTROVERSY among the people, especially those who were opposed to Jesus. They interrogated the former blind man relentlessly, finally saying his word could not be trusted, charging "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" (V 34). The outcome was that they "drove him out" (NRSV) of the temple and the rights thereof. And why was he "cast out?" Simply because he had experienced something none of them had experienced, from One whom they did not approve. Such a procedure is not uncommon in this day of purported enlightenment!

THE DEEDS OF THE ENEMY are certainly not the conclusive ones! Jesus "found" the rejected man and asked him if he believed on the Son of God. The man did not even know who the Son of God was, and confessed to his ignorance. His faith erupted through his mouth, "Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on Him?" The Scriptures then record, "And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen Him, and it is He that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshiped Him" (vs 35-38). What a glad day that was! Cast out, yet found!

JESUS IS STILL FINDING PEOPLE He has delivered, explaining to them more fully what has happened to them, and enlarging upon His own matchless Person. Those who have been touched by Him have the privilege of being taught by Him.

– Given O. Blakely