It was the poet Whittier who wrote, “Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, it might have been.” You find a number of individuals described in John 9 who fit that sad consequence.
Consider the neighbors and those who formerly saw him begging. They questioned whether the healed man was the former blind beggar. Some thought he was. Others said, “No way.” Hearing their discussion, the healed man insisted, “I am the man.”
When asked how his eyes were opened he replied, “The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.” When asked about where Jesus was, he honestly said, “I don’t know.”
Rather than searching for Jesus themselves, they took the blind man to the Pharisees. They immediately had questions. Since the healing took place on the Sabbath some were critical. They concluded Jesus was not from God because He did this on the Sabbath. Others were confused, thinking a sinner couldn’t do such a miracle. The neighbors were left in the dark, confused by the critical cross examination.
The Pharisees had an ulterior motive. They’d already threatened to put out of the synagogue anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ.
These folk all missed their opportunity by getting caught up in religious controversy. Beware of the danger of getting caught up in religious controversy and missing your opportunity to meet Jesus.
