Seeing Clearly

I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

– John Newton, 1779

Several years ago, after having worn glasses since the sixth grade, I had cataract surgery. Laser-implanted lenses permanently corrected my decades-old near-sightedness. Before this surgery, sometimes after hiking up a steep mountain grade, I would have to wait for my humidity-fogged glasses to clear before I could look through my camera’s viewfinder – somewhat like trying to see through the fog in the photograph below:

After the short healing process, I could see clearly. It was like a miracle!

John 9:1-41 relates the story of a man, blind since birth, receiving his sight through a true miracle by Jesus. Other folks in this event included Jewish religious leaders as well as the man’s parents. These people, unlike the man who was healed, had been able to see for their entire lives and thought they had 20/20 vision. But Jesus pointed out that their spiritual blindness was even more problematic than being without the physical sense of sight.

Being able to see is a blessing. Being able to see without glasses is a blessing on top of a blessing. However, in this passage of Scripture, Jesus points out that spiritual sight – being able to clearly see myself, sin, other people, and opportunities as God does – is even more important.

Jesus then said, “I came into the world to bring
everything into the clear light of day,
making all the distinctions clear,
so that those who have never seen will see,
and those who have made a great pretense
of seeing will be exposed as blind.”

– John 9:39 (The Message)