Lord, I Believe!

John 9:34-38.

They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.

Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?

He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on Him?

And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen Him, and it is He that talketh with thee.

And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped Him.

The Pharisees, angry and frustrated, harshly told the blind man, “You were born completely immersed in sin, and do you dare to teach us?

The Bible says that they cast him out of the synagogue. They were particularly angry with him because he was right, and they knew it at some level in their self-righteous souls. So they “cast him out,” which most of the commentators I’ve checked agree that it means they excommunicated him from the synagogue. This was a very serious matter, as I’ve said before. I’m quite impressed with this man, with his courage and determination not to be moved by the powerful religious leaders who rejected Jesus completely.

Jesus knew he had been cast out, and He went to speak with him. He asked the man, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”

The blind man’s response indicated just a little bit of confusion. He asked Jesus, “Lord (rabbi), Who is He? I want to believe on Him!”

Jesus said, ” It is He that hath touched you; It is He that you see; it is He with Whom you speak.”

And the man replied instantly, “Lord, I believe!”

Have you ever stopped and thought about how sweet, how wonderful, those words are to Jesus? For every person who comes to Him in faith, saying, “Lord, I believe!” there is one more soul saved from eternal damnation. One more soul that responds to His incredible, amazing grace and love. One more soul who understands the gift of salvation.

We are told that the man then worshiped Jesus. I believe he was kneeling before Jesus, bowing his head in reverence. Many assume that the once-blind man became one of Jesus’ followers in His journey to the Cross. I don’t know that for sure, but it’s certainly possible.

The Pharisees rejected the blind man. Jesus accepted him. The Pharisees castigated him. Jesus went and found him. The Pharisees disallowed the man to continue to worship in the synagogue. Jesus accepted his worship right there on the spot. What a balm to the man’s spirit it must have been to be loved, accepted, and touched by the hand of God.