“His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue” (John 9:22).
The Jews believed that sickness and suffering were caused by a life of sin, and that each sin brought a specific punishment. They even tried to determine the guilt of a man by the nature of his suffering. “—SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 999, and see John 9:2. Thar is why they asked about the man who was born blind, ‘Who sinned, this man or his parents*” (John 9:2). “One upon whom some great addiction or calamity had fallen had the additional burden of being regarded as a great sinner.”— The Desire of Ages, ch. 51, p. 471. Jesus did not explain the reasons for the man’s suffering, just as He doesn’t explain why so many good people suffer. If God answered every prayer immediately, many would follow Him for their own selfish interests. then tragedy or sickness strike your life, don’t ask why you are suffering, or what you are guilty of—pray for strength to overcome the trial, and for faith to endure the circumstances.
Jesus broke with the rabbinical tradition when He made some mud with His hands and put it on the eyes of the blind man on a Sabbath, and this miracle became a motive for His persecution. The Pharisees confirmed that the miracle was true, but they insinuated that it had been done by a malignant power, because according to them, it dishonored the Sabbath. The Jews were ignorant of the law that they were referring to. The One who had healed the blind man was the Creator of the Sabbath, and of course He knew best how to keep it holy.
When the Pharisees went to interrogate the man’s parents, they asked, Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” (john 9:19). The parents did not answer with the truth because they were afraid of being expelled from the synagogue. Excommunication meant a thirty-day suspension from the synagogue, the loss of the right of circumcision or of funerals, and social shame. For fear of the leaders, the blind man’s parents did not celebrate the miracle that was worked in their son. They knew the circumstances of the healing, but fear made them keep silent.
Fear takes away the joy of celebration. It robs us of the right to thank and praise God. It leaves only an intense desire to protect ourselves and to hide. It leads to irrational conduct and keeps us from thinking clearly. What did a temporary expulsion matter when they had a son who was happy and healthy? The burden they had carried for so many years had been removed; no one would consider them to be punished by God any longer. They were free of the weight of guilt that they had carried.
Free yourself of fears, and celebrate the miracles in your life.
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Taken from: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2023
“DAUGHTER OF MINE” Do Not Be Afraid
From: Arsenia Fernandez-Uckele
Collaborators: Xiomara Perdomo & Esteban Cortes
