February 28
Bible Reading: John 9:13-23
John 9:20-22, “His parents answered, ‘We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.’ (His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.).”
It has been said that those who control the narrative control the people. There’s obviously some truth to that, as even the Jews understood. Politically speaking, it was the Romans who held power over the Jews, but in practical terms, as it related to the everyday lives of the Jewish people, it was the religious leaders who exercised control. In their ongoing dispute and conspiracy against Jesus, they worked hard to control the narrative, that they might hold on to power.
Jesus gave sight to the man born blind. An amazing and undeniable miracle took place. The miracle fulfilled ancient prophecies that spoke of the kinds of things that the Messiah would do. The right response of the witnesses would be to believe in Him unto salvation. But that’s not what happened.
The religious leaders, hard-hearted in their unbelief, needed to stop the news about Jesus from spreading. To no avail, the Pharisees interrogated the man born blind, hoping to find some way to discount his account. When that didn’t work, they interviewed his parents, as the parents could easily identify their own son and testify as to what had occurred. The parents confirmed it was indeed their son, but said that they were unaware of how his eyes were opened (John 9:20-21). Odds are that they knew, but they were too afraid to speak the truth. Why? Because the Jews had already agreed to excommunicate from the synagogue anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Christ. The parents weighed their love for their son against the prospect of losing access to the benefits associated with their way of life. Truth lost.
The Jews would continue in their assault against the truth. They plotted to kill Lazarus after he had been raised from the dead; conspired to arrest Jesus; incited the mobs to cry out for his crucifixion; spread the lie, following the resurrection, that the disciples had stolen away his body; demanded that the Apostles not speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. And so on…
The Jews had their own narrative, through which they sought to hold on to power. But they couldn’t keep Jesus in the tomb, and they couldn’t stop His gospel from spreading. This account reminds us of the importance of being cautious to not being swayed by the false narratives we encounter (regardless of who is spreading them), and instead be careful, in our love for truth, to “test everything; (holding) fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Don’t allow those holding power to control your narrative, instead pursue the truth.
“It is well said in the old Proverb, ‘A lie will go round the world while truth is pulling its boots on.’” – Charles Spurgeon
ONCE TO EVERY MAN AND NATION
Once to every man and nation
Comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of truth with falsehood,
For the good or evil side;
Some great cause, God’s new Messiah,
Offering each the bloom or blight,
And the choice goes by forever
Twixt that darkness and that light.
Then to side with truth is noble,
When we share her wretched crust,
Ere her cause bring fame and profit,
And ‘tis prosperous to be just;
Then it is the brave man chooses
While the coward stands aside,
Till the multitude make virtue
Of the faith they had denied.
By the light of burning martyrs,
Christ, Thy bleeding feet we track,
Toiling up new Calvaries ever
With the cross that turns not back;
New occasions teach new duties,
Time makes ancient good uncouth;
They must upward still and onward,
Who would keep abreast of truth.
Though the cause of evil prosper,
Yet ‘tis truth alone is strong;
Though her portion be the scaffold,
And upon the throne be wrong:
Yet that scaffold sways the future,
And, behind the dim unknown,
Standeth God within the shadow
Keeping watch above His own.
