“Believing is Seeing”!

 

Text:  John 9:1-41 (Jesus heals the blind man):  vs 1: And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth:  vs 7: And said unto him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam:  (which is by interpretation, sent).  He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.  

We live in a society today where many people won’t believe anything until they see it.  We have all heard the cliché “seeing is believing”.   Well that’s all well and good, but our Father wants us as sons to come to the place in Him where “believing is seeing”. 

I know we’ve all met or even know people who will believe anything.  They will believe it even though there are no facts to support it.  Then you have those who won’t or don’t believe even if they see it!  Well throughout scripture Jesus encountered all of these types of people.  And we’re going to read about two of these situations among many where Jesus healed a blind man who was born blind at birth.  People witnessed it but still didn’t believe it.

Let’s look at St. John 9:1.  But before we start reading, up until this point, Jesus was always busy about His Father’s business.  In chapter 8, He had already rescued a woman caught in adultery.  He had told the Pharisees and scribes that He was the “Light of the world”.  Jesus even warned them about unbelief and in the latter part of that chapter, He had controversy with the Jews.  He was in the temple telling them that “Before Abraham was, I am”!  To the Jews that was blasphemy (evil speaking) because to them, He was claiming to be God (John 10:33).  Therefore they took up stones to cast at Him but the bible says, Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them and so passed by.  Now we can read St. John 9:

·         Vs 1: And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

·          Vs 2: And his disciples asked him, saying, “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind”?

·         Vs 3: Jesus answered, “Neither hath this man sinned nor his parents:  but that the works of God should be made manifest in him”.

·         Vs 4: I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day:  the night cometh when no man can work.

·         Vs 5: As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

·         Vs 6: When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.

To the Pharisees healing and making or kneading clay violated the Sabbath Law and since Jesus violated it (in their eyes), that made Him a false prophet.

·         Vs 7: And said unto him, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is by interpretation, sent).  He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

And I know “seeing is believing” but today, we are going to turn that around to “believing is seeing”!!

Here is a man blind from birth.  It never stated his name, which says to me, this blindness can be associated with any of us, whether naturally or spiritually. 

When one is blind whether spiritually or naturally, the darkness is the same degree.  Sure he was begging, yet he never cried out to Jesus to get his attention.  But the Bible says, “As Jesus passed by, he saw him” (John 9:1).  This word saw is ei’do, meaning, to see; to know (by perception) [the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses].  The very same way He saw us.

·         2 Corinthians 4:4: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

·         Ephesians 2:3: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

The word “flesh” in this verse is the root word “sarx” meaning human nature with its frailties [physical or moral] passions; carnal mindedness:  and the word “mind” is “dian’oia” meaning deep thought; the disposition of the mind; the exercise of the mind. 

As stated in Ephesians 2:1, When we were dead in trespasses (parap’toma) [sideslip (lapse or deviation); (unintentional) error or (willful) transgression; fault; offence] and sins (hamarti’a) [offense] (hamartan’o) [to miss the mark; err].  This is when we were carnally and fleshly minded, caring for the things of the “old man” or “old nature” walking in   darkness (ignorance; misery; destruction; wickedness; sorrow; death).  But now instead of exercising our minds in those things in relation to “carnality”, our minds are now positioned in that which is spirituality, because of vs 6: God hath raised us up together, and made us sit together, in heavenly places in Christ Jesus!!

·         Romans 8:6: To be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

We too at one point were blind spiritually, in relation to the things of God, but by His grace and mercy, He removed the religious scales off our eyes, so that we could see as He sees. There are people walking around today that can see with their natural eyes, but the eye of their “mind” is yet blinded.

·         Matthew 6:22: The light (clarity of purpose) of the body (that temple of God that you are) is the eye (vision; discernment); if therefore thine eye be single (clearly folded together with Christ; Alpha), thy whole body shall be full of light (leukos’) [the white light] [the righteousness of God]!

This “light” (photeinos’)  [transparency or illumination; clarity; information; revelation] is knowledge as reaching the mind with clarity of purpose of the vision or discernment as to who we are in God and all we possess now through Jesus Christ in relation to dominion, authority, power, divine health, and eternal life!  These things and more, we can have now!  You don’t have to wait to get to the heaven man has programmed us with off beyond the clouds.  That’s a deception of the enemy!  We are already in heaven, in Christ Jesus, where all He died for us to have is available to us here and now.  Ephesians 2:6: And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

Back to John 9:

Even though this man was blind physically, I believe that deep down within his innermost being he “believed”, because the end result is evident, he “saw”!  He let Jesus put clay on his eyes, knowing that He used spittle to mat it together, and secondly he obeyed His instructions without questioning “Why the pool of Siloam”, nor did he ask, “How washing in that pool will make me see”:  He “believed to see”!!  THIS MAN WAS “BELIEVINGTO SEE”!!!  The “blind man” washed and went home “seeing”.  The people that knew him argued over whether this was the same man.  Some thought it was a case of mistaken identity.  But the blind man himself insisted he was the man and they still couldn’t believe it and was looking at him.

Isn’t it amazing that even when God cleaned us up and turned us in another (the right) direction, that the same folk that knew us way back then couldn’t believe that we were a changed person and are the changed person they see today.  They “see” but still don’t “believe”! 

This blind man “believed to see”!  We must be “believing to see” and not just “seeing to believe”!

·         Hebrews 11:1: NOW FAITH is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.

I don’t have to see a miracle to believe it:  I believe God works miracles, because I believe He is a miracle worker!

In Matthew 9, Jesus heals two blind men.  Again they are nameless.  You can relate it to the Jew and the Gentile that God caused to become as one seeing Him through the same spiritual lens:

·         Galatians 3:27-28: For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek (Gentile), there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female:  for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

·         Ephesians 2:14-15: For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us:  having abolished in his flesh the enmity (hostility), even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; vs 16: And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.

These two blind men again nameless, yet “believing to see”!  They appealed to Jesus on the basis of the fact that He is the Son of David, clearly relating Him to the Messianic line.  These men showed humility, and persistence, because they “believed to see”! 

Look at the wisdom of Jesus.  Much could have been said to them and about them but all Jesus did was ask them a question:  Matthew 9:28: “Believe ye that I am able to do this”?  And out of their own mouth’s they said, “Yea Lord”!  Vs 29: Then touched he their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it unto you”!  Vs 30: And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them saying, “See that no man know it”.  And like the blind man in John 9, they became witnesses.  I’m sure it was like fire shut up in their bones, they couldn’t keep that miracle to themselves!!  They too were, “believing to see”!!!

It was evident in both cases their faith was genuine and all truly believed that Jesus was able to heal them.  Jesus said in Matthew 9:30: “See that no man know it”.  But they couldn’t contain themselves, they had to tell it!  When Jesus lays His special touch on you, you can’t keep it to yourself!

So brothers and sisters, I know that “seeing is believing”, but I believe that “believing to see” is better!  Habakkuk 2:4b: But the just shall live by his faith!  But again I say, that faith is believing in a thing without seeing it manifest.  Hebrews 10:38: Now the just shall live (walk) by faith!

Faith is having complete trust or confidence in someone or something.  Hebrews 11:1: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen:  vs 6: But without faith it is impossible to please God.  For he that comes to God, must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Faith in this verse is huposta’sis, meaning a setting under (support); essence; assurance; confidence, in a “confident person”!  Believing (pisteu’o) means to accept something as true; feel sure of the truth of; to have faith (in, upon a person or thing); credit; entrust (especially one’s spiritual well-being to Christ); commit to one’s trust.  Pisteu’o, not only mean to “believe”, but it also means to be “persuaded” [prevailed upon; convinced; satisfied; assured].

·         Romans 8:38-39: For I am persuaded (convinced; conciliated; relying by inward certainty) that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I never saw Jesus’ flesh body as the disciples, but because of my faith, I believe that He came as Mary’s baby, I believe the He was crucified for you, me, and all mankind, I believe that He rose with all power and has given it to the sons of God!  “I BELIEVE”!!!

St. John 20, Thomas had seen Jesus, but after His death, burial, and resurrection, he said:  vs 25: The other disciples therefore said unto him, “We have seen the Lord”.  But he said unto them, “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe”.

The Bible says John 20:26, that after eight days and the disciples were within and Thomas with them then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst and said, “Peace be unto you”.  Vs 27: Then said He to Thomas, “Reach hither thy finger and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side:  and be not faithless, but believing”.  Vs 28: And Thomas answered and said unto him, “My Lord and my God”.  Vs 29: Jesus said unto him, “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed:  blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed”.

People of God, “I AM BELIEVING TO SEE”!!!

Just as the man in scripture called Abraham, who was called “the friend of God” (James 2:23), who is known as the “father of faith”.   At first he was called Abram, meaning high father; father of height; lofty; to be high; to rise or raise; lift; hold up, exalt; to promote, and God changed his name to Abraham, meaning, to be populous; father of a multitude.  

He didn’t have to see the blessing to believe for the blessing.  He took God at His word and obeyed!  As Abram (high father; father of height; lofty; to rise or raise; lift or hold up), his faith was raised or lifted up to the place in God that it promoted (encouraged; elevated; advanced) him into the place of becoming Abraham, the “father of a multitude” (numerousness; multiplicity). 

·         Genesis 12:1: Now the LORD had said unto Abram, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee”:

·         Vs 2: “And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing”:

·         Vs 3: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curses thee:  and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed”.

·         Vs 4: So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him:  and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran

Abram came out of Ur of the Chaldeans and went into Haran.  Ur means flame; the East; region of light; fire; to make luminous; shine; enlighten.  Ur was a place at one time that had the light of God but the people turned to a false light, which was idol worship of the moon as the controlling power of the heavens and the life cycles on earth.  Truth is, God created the heaven and the earth (Genesis 1:1).  The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein (Psalm 24:1).  God is Light and in him is no darkness at all (1John 1:5). 

Abram was a son of God carrying the very light (knowledge; understanding) of God Himself.  When Abram left Haran or chedel (kheh’del), meaning, rest, in relation to the state of the dead; world (the system of that day), there were people then that were amongst the walking dead that didn’t believe God and there are people now that are walking around “breathing” but not “living” because they won’t believe and haven’t yet accepted Christ as Savior.   The word Haran also goes to another root word chadal (khaw-dal’), meaning, to be flabby, in relation to desist; be lacking or idle; unoccupied. God was moving Abram away from a place where the true God was ignored, a place where even his father Terah and grandfather Nachor were worshiping idol gods (Joshua 24:4).  So God told Abram to get out of this country and from his kindred, and from his father’s house (Genesis 12:1), because Abram was a true seed of light, and God moved him out of that darkness as He has done for those of us today that believe in the same God that Abraham believed in!!

Spiritually, one does not have to leave his or her place of residence or occupancy to move to another location!  All one has to do is “repent”.  This doesn’t mean that they have to run down to the altar attempting to get saved all over again, as religion teaches, but repent is the root word metanoe'o which means “to think differently; reconsider”.  Look at the message to the church of Ephesus:

·         Revelation 2:4-5: Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.  Remember wherefore from whence thou are fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent (metanoe’o) [to think differently; reconsider].

What was “the first works”?  The first works was “love”!  Briefly, Genesis 1:1: In the beginning God (love) created the heaven and the earth.  1 John 4:8 states, God is love.  When Adam (male and female) was created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27), He created and made Adam with His “love” in him.  He (male and female) didn’t have to have a law telling them to “love God”.  It was already in them to love God and His creation!  But God had to give the Israelites a law to obey, telling them to love Him in Deuteronomy 6:1-9:

·         Vs 5: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.  Vs 6: And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart.

That’s where Adam fell from, loving God with all his heart, soul, and might!  But when Jesus, who was the love of God walking around on two feet, was manifested, He showed us how to love the Father with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and restored us back to the love of the Father and our brethren!  Mark 12:28-34, is about the “great commandment”:

·         Vs 30: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength:  this is the first commandment.

·         Vs 31: And the second is like, namely this, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor (not the one next door, but the other members of the body of Christ) as thyself.  There is none other commandment greater than these.

·         John 13:34-35: A new commandment I give unto you, “That you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.  By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.

There is only one law now in relation to God, and that is “to love”!!  Romans 13:8: Owe no man anything but to love one another:  for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

So God was saying to Ephesus, as He is saying to His people today, “do the first works” as Adam did before the fall, and that was to love God with all his being, his heart, soul, mind, and strength!  And he loved God’s people, God’s creation! 

·         1 John 4:20: If a man says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar:  for he that loves not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

The revelation in that is this, God is Spirit and you can’t see Spirit except with a spiritual eye!  If someone hates their sister or brother that’s also a part of “the body of Christ”, then they hate God also, because we, the Church are His flesh and bones in the earth (Ephesians 5:30).  So when we love one another, we love God also, because “As he is, so are we, in this world” (1 John 4:17).

John 10:22-42 (the Jews wanted to arrest Jesus and even stone Him when He said that He and His Father were one):

·         Vs 30: I and my Father are one.

·         Vs 31: Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.

·         Vs 32: Jesus answered them, “Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of those works do you stone me”?

·         Vs 33: The Jews answered him, saying, “For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy (evil speaking); and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God”.

·         Vs 34: Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, I said, you are gods”?

What those Jews didn’t know was this.  They were in reality talking to “GOD”, but He was in flesh form, they just didn’t know it. And it wasn’t that Jesus was trying to make Himself God, it was that “God” had chosen to make Himself “man” in Jesus!!  Those Jews that were talking to Jesus really didn’t know who they themselves were.  Like many today don’t know who they are!  But Jesus actually told them who they really were but they didn’t catch the revelation.  As he is, so are we, in this world (1 John 4:17)!!  We know not to self-exalt!  We know to stay in our place as “elohiym’s”, because God is “Elyown”, the Supreme Most High God!!!

Back to Abraham:

Spiritually, one does not have to leave his or her residence to move to another location!  All we have to do is “repent”, “think differently”, and “be transformed by the renewing of our minds” (Romans 12:2), and this doesn’t mean that one has to run down to the altar “getting saved all over again” as some believe.  But “repent” is from the root word metanoe’o, meaning, to think differently, or reconsider.  We need to rethink or reconsider much of what’s been taught us over the years and much of what’s still being preached and taught by religious leaders in relation to Jesus coming back, when He’s already here!  He came back at Pentecost and gave Himself as a universal gift to all that will accept Him and still is and always will!  1John 4:4: Greater is he that is IN YOU, than he that is in the world.  Jesus is not one man any more He is a many-membered body!  1 Corinthians 12:12: As the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body:  so also is CHRIST!

Let’s take a brief look at (Acts 9:1-19) [Paul’s conversion and what Jesus said to him]:

·         Vs 3: And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus:  and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:

·         Vs 4: And he fell to the earth, and hear a voice saying unto him, “Saul, Saul, why persecutes thou me”?

·         Vs 5: And he said, “who art thou, Lord”?  And the Lord said, “I am JESUS WHOM THOU PERSECUTEST”:  it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

Who was Paul persecuting?  He was persecuting Christians, the Church, who was and is Jesus or the Body of Christ!

·         Romans 12:5: So we, being many, ARE ONE BODY IN CHRIST, and every one, members one of another.

·         1 Corinthians 12:12: For as the body is one and hath many members, an all the members of that one body being may are one body:  so also is CHRIST.

·         Ephesians 5:30: We are members (mel’os) [a limb or part of the body] of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones!

We need to “rethink” the “judgment day”.  It is not a coming event.   It is a continuous purification process of the fire of God burning within us to purge and cleanse us of all that is not like Him.  Hebrews 12:29, “Our God is a consuming fire”!  He dwells in us!  So to make us like Him He has to purify us with the fire that He Himself is!  And the fire is not to consume us, unless we fight against Him.  But if we receive His Word in love and obedience to Him, that same Word will purify and cleanse us and bring us to the place He has ordained us to be and that’s to walk in His image after His likeness here, in and on this earth with the same degree of anointing Jesus had when He was in the flesh body He had.

·         2 Corinthians 5:17: If therefore, any man be IN CHRIST, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

·         Colossians 3:9-10: Lie not one to another, seeing that you have put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him!

This is the same God that Abraham believed in!  I believe in this same God because we know that He is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8).  And I will add, and He will continue “forever”!!

Like Abraham, we must “believe it” even before we “see it”!  He saw God’s promises as “Abram” and the promises were fulfilled in “Abraham”!!

God covenanted with Abram in Genesis 15:1-12:  vs 6: And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness!

God tests Abraham in Genesis 22:1-24 with the sacrificing of his son Isaac:

·         Vs 10: And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

·         Vs 11: And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham”:  and he said, “Here am I”.

·         Vs 12: And he said, “Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him:  for now I know that thou fear God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me”.

·         Vs 15: And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,

·         Vs 16: And said, “By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: 

·         Vs 17: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore:  and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

·         Vs 18: And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed:  because thou hast obeyed my voice.

Hebrews 6:13: For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself:   vs 14: Saying, “Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee”.  Vs 15: And so after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise!

Hebrews 11:8: By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.  Vs 9: By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise.

Thank God we are heirs of that same promise because when God made promise to Abraham, the “seed” He spoke of was “CHRIST”!

·         Galatians 3:16: Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made.  He said not, and to seeds as of many; but as of one, and to “thy seed”, which is “CHRIST”!

So being that promise was made to CHRIST, that includes “US”, thank you JESUS!!

·         Romans 8:16-17: The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children (sons) of God:  and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with CHRIST; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together! (That happens here now not out in the great blue yonder)!

For all the promises of God in him (CHRIST) are yea, and in him amen, unto the glory of God by us 2 Corinthians 1:20).  And the good news is, we can have the promises now through Christ Jesus!

·         Hebrews 11:1: NOW FAITH is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

As sons of God, we don’t have to “see” the blessing to “believe” it, because we already “believe it” even before we “see it”!!

“I AM BELIEVING, TO SEE”!!

Evangelist Mary Perry