The Way to Jesus

As we approach the end of the Lenten season this year we focus on two of the miracle stories within the Gospel of St. John.  On the Fourth Sunday of Lent we hear the miracle of the healing of the man born blind and on the Fifth Sunday of Lent (Passion Sunday) we hear the Gospel of the raising of Lazarus.  First we note that within these Gospel passages, John never actually uses the word ‘miracle,’ rather he always refers to these actions of Jesus as ‘signs.’  In fact oftentimes this entire section of the Gospel of St. John is referred to as the ‘Book of Signs,’ since Jesus does many works of power throughout this entire portion of the Gospel from chapter 2 until chapter 11.

Now as we reflect on the concept of a sign, we know that the purpose of a sign is always to point us to something else or to give us information.  When we are driving, the road signs point us to where we need to go or they give us information about the conditions of the journey ahead.  The same is true whenever we encounter signs within our daily lives.  These ‘signs’ within the Gospel of John are always acts of power which point the way to Jesus and give us information regarding the works and action of our Lord in the world and among His people.

In the first ‘sign’ of the healing of the man born blind, Jesus helps us to make this connection Himself in what He says.  At the end of the Gospel passage Jesus addresses those around Him, especially the Pharisees, when He says: “‘I came into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who do see might become blind.  Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard this and said to Him, ‘Surely we are not blind, are we?’  Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, we see, so your sin remains.’” (John 9:39-41)  Jesus shows here that the issue is not the physical blindness of this man, who He healed, but more importantly the spiritual blindness that afflicts many more, and also has much higher stakes. 

In particular within this entire Gospel passage, we see the man born blind, once he is healed from his physical blindness begin to grasp in an ever fuller way the reality of Who Jesus really is.  Following the physical ‘sign’ of restoring sight, the spiritual blindness is then removed.

We see this progression throughout the passage in the comments of the man who was healed.  His statements begin in a rather plain way, “The man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’” (John 9:11a)  But his confession grows when the Pharisees ask the man, “What do you have to say about Him, since He opened your eyes?”  The healed man says: “He is a prophet.” (John 9:17)  As the interaction continues, the confession grows when the healed man confronts the Pharisees, saying, “It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind.  If this man were not from God, He would not be able to do anything.” (John 9:33)  And lastly when the healed man encounters Jesus face to face the Gospel of John gives an extremely powerful confession.  Jesus asks, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”  and the healed man answers, “‘I do believe, Lord,’ and he worshipped Him.” (John 9:35b, 38)

A similar thing happens in the miracle or ‘sign’ of the raising of Lazarus from the dead.  While it is easy to focus all of our attention on Lazarus himself as the recipient of this miracle, we must also take account of Mary and Martha as they grow in faith and belief in our Lord Jesus Christ.  After Lazarus had died, both Mary and Martha say to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:21, 32).  They know that Jesus is a miracle worker, but assume that there are also some limitations.

This confession increases when Jesus speaks to Martha concerning the resurrection, saying, “Your brother will rise,” and Martha responds, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.”  (John 11:24)  Finally, the confession of faith in Christ comes to its fullest when Jesus proclaims, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in Me, even if he die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.” (John 11:25-26)  It is Martha’s answer to the question, “Do you believe this?” that shows us that this ‘sign’ is given for the increase of faith.  Martha responds, “Yes, Lord, I have come to believe that You are the Messiah, the Son of God, the One Who is coming into the world.” (John 11:27)

While it is important for us to realize the acts of power that Jesus can perform in the passages about these ‘signs,’ it is also vital for us to see and contemplate the effects of these ‘signs’ and especially that they point us to a growing faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  In the Gospel passage about the man born blind, it is the same person who receives the healing, who then grows in faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.  The Gospel uses strong words here when it states that the healed man, not only acknowledged Jesus, but in fact, “worshiped Him.” (John 9:38b)

In the Gospel passage concerning the raising of Lazarus from the dead, it is another, Martha, who comes to a fullness of faith when she states, “You are the Messiah, the Son of God.” (John 11:27)  We can also imagine that following this confession, when many others witnessed the miracle or ‘sign’ of Jesus actually raising Lazarus from the dead, they too would come to believe that Jesus is the Son of God.  We even hear this concern in the Pharisees who quickly report to the Sanhedrin, saying, “This Man performs many signs.  If we leave Him alone, all will believe in Him.” (John 11:47b-48a)

My brothers and sisters, as we will soon come to Holy Week where we will enter ever more strongly into the retelling of the suffering, Passion and Death of Jesus Christ, let us remember these ‘signs’ and take to heart their message.  They are given to us to help us grow in faith and trust in Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God.  Let us also realize that as we liturgically walk with our Lord in Holy Week, these events, too, within His life are ‘signs’ pointing to how we can more fully integrate our own life into the life of our Lord.  Within the P.N.C.C. Prayer Book we pray in the “Prayer Before Holy Mass”: “May the Sacraments I will receive, the prayers I will say and the hymns I will sing bring me closer to Jesus and help me to be more like Him in all that I say and do.”

May the remainder of this Lenten season, with its disciplines of prayer, fasting and giving, allow us to more fully focus on our Lord.  May the Gospel passages we encounter, and especially the liturgies of the upcoming Holy Week, allow us to fully unite with our Lord prayerfully and sacramentally.  Let all of the ‘signs’ of this Lenten season allow us to acknowledge that we believe in Jesus and confess that He is the Messiah, the Son of God.  And allow this confession to help us to be more like Him in all that we say and do.