Fourth Sunday of Lent
(This homily was written three years back. Due to my ill-health, please understand a repeat homily)
I visited the Montgomery County Jail last week to hear a confession. When somebody makes a life-changing confession, I often remind them that the person who came into the confession is not the person who was going out. In other words, a person comes into the confessional a sinner but leaves a saint. But I could not say that to this man, because he was not going out anywhere. In spite of his confession he would still be in jail. In fact, I would be the one who would be going out. As I left the doors of the jail, I had that weird sense that even though this man was incarcerated, that at this moment he was more liberated than I was. Talk about irony, talk about light and darkness, talk about sin an holiness, talk about blindness and being able to see… it was truly weird.
In my earlier attempts to preach on the fourth Sunday of Lent, I have often taken all the three readings into account. Since the gospel account is about the healing of the blind man, I have often contrasted light and darkness and drawn the practical implications for it. Today, I am choosing to focus almost entirely on John’s story about the healing of the blind man. But let me first make few observations.
First, even though this story seems to be about the blind man, it really is not about the blind man. The way in which John writes his entire gospel, the events are only seemingly about people like the Samaritan woman or the blind man, Nicodemus or Zacchaeus. In reality, the stories are about Jesus. Thus, for example, at the judgment before Pilate, even though it may seem like Pilate was judging Jesus it was Jesus who was judging Pilate. John does not present Jesus as a man to be pitied or without dignity. In today’s story too, even though Jesus seems to be victimized by the Pharisees regarding the healing, Jesus is portrayed as the undisputed Son of God. The faith confession from the blind man is the true purpose of the story.
Second, in each story, salvation is proposed as the stand people take in relation to Jesus. Thus, in today’s story there is the blind man, the Pharisees, the neighbors and the parents of the blind man. As the events of this story unfold, different people will take different stands. The Pharisees are clearly opposed to Jesus, the neighbors are indifferent, the parents are afraid, and the blind man is in various stages of faith in Jesus. Only the blind man, and only toward the end of the story does he come to the realization that Jesus is the messiah. He is the only one saved. That realization is the true purpose of the story of the healing of the blind man.
Third, there John uses the literary tool of irony very effectively throughout the gospel. The one who was blind finally received his sight. But that is not the real story. The real story is not about the physical vision. The blind man sees not because of his physical vision but because of his confession of faith in Christ. Those who have physical vision, on the other hand, particularly the Pharisees, are the real blind people. They see but they really do not see. The person who really sees is one who confesses Christ as the Savior of the world.
What practical implications can we draw from this story?
- From the first observation I made, it may seem with regard to us that there are two stories –our individual story and the story of Jesus. Isn’t it often the case that we think of our lives and then God as being somewhere outside or up there? John is making a point that should make us think of life radically different. There is only one story – that is the story of Jesus. The life of every Christian is the story of Jesus lived out through that person. Some people live that story well and others not so well. Here is the first practical implication, then. If the story of Jesus is the real story, how are you and I living that story? Is Jesus the central character of the story? Salvation is when Jesus’ story and our story become one.
- I said in my second observation that in today’s gospel passage people took differing stands in relation to Jesus. In fact, John is suggesting that when it comes to Jesus, people are compelled to take a stand. We may not appreciate the notion of being compelled to take a stand because we think of ourselves as free people. But our freedom does not give us the choice of avoiding taxes or r trespassing our neighbor’s property. When it comes to Jesus, the whole world must take a stance. John’s purpose of writing the story is to get the reader to take a stand. What is our stance in relation to Jesus? Are we the Pharisee, the parents, the neighbors or the blind man in various stages of his faith? Salvation is dependent on the stance we take in relation to Jesus.
- John’s use of irony is truly fascinating for me. But it is also very intimidating. I said earlier, that even though it seemed that Pilate was judging Jesus, it was Jesus who was judging Pilate. The man in the prison was more liberated than me. As pastor, as parents, as teachers and other professionals we always offer advice to people or make judgments on people’s lives. Is there room for irony in our lives or are we people of integrity? In other words, I hope we realize that every advice we offer our children, every practical implication I offer to my audience, every judgment we make about people and situations is really a judgment we make about our own selves. In this way, John calls us to truly be people who are in the light – like Jesus.
As we stand here before God for worship, we are being invited to be in the light.
- Fr. Satish Joseph