As I was reading John 9 this morning, I was struck by the interaction between a man healed of his blindness and the Pharisees. What an incredible story with a convicting ending. As the man who had been blind his entire life has to justify his healing, he tells the Pharisees (those with religious power), “If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” (John 9:33 NIV)
What happens next is sad and scary. Verse 34: “To this they [the Pharisees ] replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.”
Instead of trying to see how this could be a move of God, they resorted to personal attacks on the man and then kicked him out. I can’t help but feel a tinge of conviction, wondering how I respond when God begins to challenge my paradigms. Even when a miracle might be before me, am I trying to rationalize it away, so it fits how I want God to be instead of how God truly is?
God, give us discernment to be able to see your work in the world, make us humble to be able to accept it even when it challenges us, and give us boldness to proclaim it even when it is costly. Amen.
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