The God Who Redeems Pain
Text: John 9:1-7
As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth.
2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him.
4 We must do the works of him who sent me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work.
5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
6 After he said these things he spit on the ground, made some mud from the saliva, and spread the mud on his eyes.
7 “Go,” he told him, “wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So he left, washed, and came back seeing.
If you’ve ever been around a young kid, you’ve heard the question. It’s hard-wired into every single one of us from the time we start talking.
“Why?”
“Why is the sky blue?”
“Why are there cars?”
“Why do I need to obey?”
As we grow, we keep asking the why questions – they just get a little more sophisticated:
“Why do bad things happen to good people?”
“Why is there suffering?”
“Why is this happening to me?”
In today’s story, the disciples have a why question of their own.
Jesus and his disciples are travelling when they came across a man who was born blind. The belief of Jesus’ day was that if someone was born with a condition like blindness, it was due to sin. The disciples asked their rabbi for his interpretation on the circumstances of this man’s life; Jesus’ answer was much different than what they expected.
God’s glory would be displayed in Him.
This wasn’t because of this man’s sin.
He hadn’t done something to deserve it.
But God writes stories, and He redeems situations. That’s what He does in the story of the blind man and that’s what He does in ours. The Son of God draws close to this hurting man and gives him the healing he desperately needs. God is transforming brokenness into something profoundly good.
In your life and mine, we all have experiences that make us ask God, “Why?” And on this side of eternity, we may never get an answer that we can understand. People go through unspeakable pain, and there is no easy answer for why things happen the way they happen.
But we have a God who can redeem pain, who wants to draw close, and who will change you to be more like Jesus if you will let Him.
Reflection: What situation do you need to give to God, trusting Him to work things out?
Action: Take your situation and pray: “God in this place of pain, I choose to love You and trust You here. I give it all to You.”