"Jesus opens your blind eyes to see Him" Quinquagesima 2025

2. March 2025

Quinquagesima

Luke 18:31-43

 Then it happened, as He was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the road begging […]And he cried out, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” […] And when he had come near, [Jesus] asked him, saying, “What do you want Me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, that I may receive my sight.” Then Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. (Lk 18:35–43)

This is the Word of the Lord that came to me, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you may have life in His + Name. AMEN.

No one sees the truth about the blind man. No one sees the truth about Jesus for the same reason. They cannot see that God has come in the flesh to save them from their blindness, and this blind man is God's clear sign that points to that truth. But, how are they supposed to know that about the blind man or Jesus? They cannot be expected to know what they do not know.

One of the tragic consequences of sin is that you cannot know what you do not know. You can see so much around you, yet not the eyes through which you see. Your biases obscure your vision, so seeing, you do not see. Instead, you only know what your perceptions reveal, even if that means you must turn a blind eye to what is real. Based on how you perceive the world, you choose to remain unseeing in situations when you could and should know, sometimes on purpose but mostly unconsciously. You do not understand because it makes you feel better not to know.

For example, you do not want to know that so much of the content on television, in movies, and displayed on the black mirror in your pocket is intended to program you to see the world in specific ways. You are programmed to believe that it's normal to dose yourself with pharmaceuticals that cause blood clots, inflammation, miscarriages, and paralysis; that there's nothing harmful about ingesting bioengineered “foods” and artificially flavored anything; that it's healthy to ingest or consume <insert ad here> because nine out of ten doctors agree. And nine out of ten doctors do agree. They agree that a patient cured is a customer lost. And why be skeptical or change when “everybody is doing it?”

Consequently, you do not look at yourself and observe the effects of your lifestyle choices. You do not consider that perhaps making you sick, and getting you addicted to their products, is how companies make a profit and stay in business. You do not consider that you may be squandering the mental, physical, and spiritual gifts God has given to you just so that you can fit into a sick and dying world.

This phenomenon is called "willful blindness." It is a legal term that means: "you could have known, and should have known, but instead you attempted not to see it.” The purpose of willful blindness is to keep yourself in the dark about the truth so that you do not have to accept responsibility for your choices.

That is also why you usually have an alibi. You need a justification for your willful blindness. You have to have an excuse for why you cannot see the truth about yourself. And why not? You like who you are, more or less. You think you know yourself well. It is not strange that you appreciate people similar to you. You are attracted to people that share your interests, values, and beliefs. They feel familiar to you, so you judge that they are safe.

The upside for you is that these feelings of familiarity and security make you like yourself and your choices even more because you are not anxious about life anymore. The risk is worth it to avoid conflict. You belong with other people. Your self-esteem has never been higher. You feel happy most of the time, and why not? Isn't wanting to feel good about yourself and feeling safe the point of life? Isn't being surrounded by what is familiar and similar what life is all about?

Not always. In fact, much of the time, what you consider warm and safe is actually your blind spot. This is why sin uses those closest to you to tempt you, leading to tragic consequences in your life. You cannot know what you do not know or what you do not want to know. You can see so much about what is near you, except for the eyes through which you see. Your biases obscure your vision, and thus, seeing, you do not see. Instead, you only glimpse what your perceptions reveal, even if it means turning a blind eye to what is real.

Most of the time, your blindness grows out of the ordinary, seemingly insignificant choices you make. These choices help you conform to your perception of yourself and how you view your place in the world. But, what is horrifying about this process is that you observe less and less of what is real. One insignificant choice compounds on the next. The more comfortable and confident you feel, the more blind you become. You think you see more and more of what is real even as your vision diminishes and blurs out of focus.

But this does not have to be a fatal diagnosis. Like the blind man who cried out to Jesus for healing (Luke 18:31-43), you too call out to Jesus for mercy.

In an ironic twist, the blind man is the only one who sees that Jesus is the Savior because he calls Him the Son of David. Jesus is concrete, real love that comes in the flesh, who suffers to give you true sight, and is kind to you as He heals your eyes to make you see. He is not blind to reality or the truth about your blindness. That is why the Good Lord sends you a preacher to speak a word that opens your eyes to the truth about God, sin, and your need for a Savior who rescues you from this old, dying world.  

Jesus makes you see through the Gospel and His gifts that you can do nothing to save yourself from the consequences of sin, especially not your blindness. But, through His mercy and compassion for you, you see He is your Savior. Jesus is the Savior of sinners. He died for the sin of this old world that God is putting to death.

Jesus opens your blind eyes to see Him not according to your perception of Him or your selfish, self-serving judgments, but according to His heart of mercy and compassion for you. Therefore, you see Him in this way, through the eyes of faith that He gives to you, so that you may walk with Him to the cross, through death, and into new life eternal.  

This is the Word of the Lord that came to me, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you may have life in His + Name. AMEN.

Rev. Christopher R. Gillespie
St. John Ev. Lutheran Church & School - Sherman Center
Random Lake, Wisconsin