Seeing Jesus

Many have compared our physical eyesight to our spiritual rebirth. In the beloved and famous hymn, “Amazing Grace,” John Newton wrote, “I once was lost, but now am found, / Was blind, but now I see.” When we come to Christ and trust Him for our salvation, our eyes are opened and we are able to see and understand God’s truth. It is truly a miraculous moment!

Jesus heals the blind man in two stages, first separating him from the crowd (v. 23). The crowd might have reacted negatively to Jesus spitting on the man’s eyes, maybe even goading the man to turn away before his sight was restored fully.

Notice that a gradual healing leads to the complete restoration of the man’s sight (vv. 23–26). The second time Jesus places His hands on the man’s eyes, the man sees clearly! Then Jesus sends him home, not to the village, to give others the chance to come to a gradual understanding of what had happened, without the man simply announcing the miracle to the surrounding crowd.

In a similar way, Jesus’ questioning of the disciples about His identity comes in two separate stages—one related to the people’s understanding, and the other related to the disciples’ understanding. Jesus forbids them to share things that the others need to learn for themselves.

Some people come to a gradual seeing of who Jesus is. For some reason, they are not able to see the truth immediately. Jesus shows here that He can be a gradual healer and gradual revealer. Regardless of how quickly you come to truth, it is He who opened your eyes to see clearly, so you are no longer blind.

Pray with Us

We thank you today, Jesus, for opening our eyes to your truth, love, beauty, and grace! Thank you for giving us your freedom and joy. What a miracle! May we have determination and courage to tell others about the miracle of God’s saving love.

BY Dr. Eric C. Redmond

Dr. Eric C. Redmond serves as a professor of Bible at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago and as associate pastor of adult ministries at Calvary Memorial Church in Oak Park, Ill. He is married to Pam and they have five children. He is the author of Say It!  Celebrating Expository Preaching in the African American Tradition (Moody Publishers), Where Are All the Brothers? Straight Answers to Men's’ Questions about the Church (Crossway), a commentary on Jonah in the Christ-Centered Exposition Series (B&H Publishers), and a study guide on Ephesians in the Knowing the Bible series (Crossway).