I Once Was Blind But Now I See John 9:1-7 The Miracle part 1.

Okay, follow these two sentences:
Here is the second installment on John 9.  It comes after "The Miracle part 2," which is really the third installment, because I published that first but this is really the first part of the second section I'm writing on John 9.  Got it?

In an earlier blog I said that the Gospels are made up, primarily, of narratives (talking about something someone said or did) and discourses (someone talking, usually Jesus.)

This little section, vss 1-7 is both.  It is a narrative/discourse.  By including the short discourse between Jesus and the disciples about sin and grace (see "The Miracle part 2 for this) St. John sets the scene for what will follow this healing miracle.

The miracle itself is pretty standard Gospel fare, it seems to me.  I don't put down the miracles of Jesus in the least.  Healing people, stilling storms, raising dead people in the least are . . . miraculous!

But in most of the Gospels the miracles stand by themselves as acts of mercy and grace.  That's what you would see with this miracle if John would not have included "the rest of the story" about what happens to the man after he is healed.  I THINK this is the only instance in which the life of the healed person is followed after the fact.  If I'm in error about this, please respond to this blog so we can all learn a little more.  Oops, I think you could argue that the healing of the cripple on the Sabbath (John 5, see below) might fit this description.  But this story is the academy award winner.

Jesus comes to die and rise to save the world from sin, death, and the power of the devil.  But he is also a man who existed in his time and lived with what went on around him as he made his way to the cross and empty tomb.  I'd go a step further and say that the miracles he does are consistent, tangible signs of the graciousness of God.  As Jesus saves us all from evil, he also saves individuals along the way from the evil that specifically inflicts their lives.

Lepers, doomed to a life of exile and decline, are restored to community and to their families.  Parents who have lost a child see him and her raised from death.  A mad man who terrifies a whole community is found sitting peacefully at Jesus' feet.  These, it seems to me, are all visible signs of the realm of God among us.

Nothing else in John 9 can occur unless a poor, blind-from-birth beggar has his sight restored.  That is an actual event that becomes a living metaphor for spiritual blindness that can either be healed or not healed, depending on how one accepts what Jesus is willing to do.

So, here is the base line of the story.  Jesus sees a blind beggar.  In this miracle Jesus doesn't even ask the fellow if he wants to be healed.  He makes a solution from his spit and dirt, and tells the man to wash at the pool of Siloam.  The man does as he is told and goes home . . . seeing.

A few points about the miracle.

1.  I understand that healers (Jesus is not the only one with this charismatic grace) often used a solution of their saliva and dirt, applying it to the body part to be healed.  I've heard some pretty wild theories that seem to be based on Jesus doing things that had never been done before.  This does not seem to be the case.  If you follow the story, HOW Jesus healed the man seems not to be a question for this fellow.  THAT he was healed is his source of joy.  See Mark 7:31-37 and Mark 8:22-26 for other instances where Jesus uses his spit in healing.
2. The Pool of Siloam may be mentioned in other healing miracles.  John 5:1-17 tells of a cripple by a pool of Bethesda.  This pool is identified as being outside Jerusalem.  Those who search for such sites puts the Pool of Siloam as being outside the city walls.  It may be that these are the same pool.  You can see a map of Jerusalem and a photo of the Pool following this blog.  Whatever the case, there is a connection between washing and healing in both of these miracles.
3. We should point out that in the John 9 miracle the man has a part.  He is given instructions that will lead to a new life.  Jesus tells him, "Do this and you will live -- go wash in the pool."  I suggest that it is no different for our spiritual well-being.  We believe baptism is given as a physical sign that God, by the power of the Holy Spirit, has washed us and made us well.  At the very end of Matthew Jesus commands the church (including parents and families) to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Jesus sees this as an important, physical act between those who believe in him and God for the healing of the soul.  We come to Communion to receive a physical manifestation of the body and blood of Jesus -- we obey and receive the full grace and forgiveness of God in the process.

Dear readers, I don't know when I will move into the story section of John 9.  I'm leaving to build houses in Southern Louisiana soon and don't know if I'll have the time or energy to write Bible investigations.  But I will do my best to get back to this.  John 9 is a great section of Scripture, and I look forward to walking through it with you.   Here is a map of Jerusalem that identifies the Pool of Siloam and a picture of the excavation.  The photo was taken in 1937.