Lent IV, Cycle A
March 10, 2002
The Rev. Dr. David M. Wendel
Lessons: I Samuel
16:1-13; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41
“As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned,
this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?”
I know that one of the greatest sticking points, for some of
us Christians today, is the notion that Christianity offers something uniquely
different; something—alright, let’s
just say it—something above, or superior, or better, than any other world
religion. Few of us Christians would
ever want to stand up, publicly, and say that we believe that Christianity
offers something that no other world religion offers. Few of us would want to state, publicly, for the record, that
Christianity, alone, has something that can not be found in any other world
religion. We are too much the products
of our own society. We are too
sensitive to the bold statements of Christians in times past, that bordered on
arrogance. We want people, in our
culture and world to like us, Christians, and to see us as respectful of other
religions and religious figures and beliefs.
I hope that I always am respectful of other’s beliefs and religions,
whether in preaching, or in teaching, or in living. I believe all people have the right to worship as they choose, to
participate in any religion they wish.
I hope I communicate that respect and tolerance.
At the same time, however, I am compelled by the gospel, and
by my calling to be a servant of the Word of God, TO stand up, publicly, and
affirm, that there is something intrinsically different about
Christianity. There is something, about
Christianity, that is--above, superior, better than what is offered by any
other world religion. And so, a reason
that we should want all in our world, to come to faith in Jesus Christ. And that something—that reason, is laid out
clearly for us in our gospel account for today. In fact, it’s stated right there in the first few verses of the
lesson. Jesus’ disciples asked Him
whose sin caused this man to be born blind—his, or his parents? And Jesus says, “this man was not born
blind, as a result of his, or his parent’s sin. It just happened. Things
like this happen, in our broken, imperfect world; but not, as a judgement upon
personal sin. When they do happen, God
works through them, to manifest His glory.”
If there were nothing else about Christianity that raises it
above other world religions, it would be this.
That Jesus came to affirm for us, that God is not at work, wreaking
tragedy and pain and grief upon us, as judgement for our sin. That God is at work, manifesting His glory
through our tragedy, pain, and grief.
And that is the difference. And
it is a huge difference. Because, just
think about what it would mean, to only know a religion where your mistakes,
disobedience, failings, cause you and your children, pain and suffering.
Consider, for example, the man born blind, whom the Jewish
authorities viewed as less than a man because of his blindness. In Jesus’ time, it was widely believed, and
taught, that fortune and blessing came
to those who were righteous. If you
lived a good, faithful, obedient life, God would bless you, and with God’s
blessing came success, wealth and good health.
Conversely, any physical deformity, any mis-fortune, any loss or
failure, were seen as proof—PROOF, of your sin, or your parent’s sin. And just think about the burden of
that. It would be one thing to suffer
the consequences of your own sin. To
have committed adultery, for example, and then to be jailed, or otherwise
punished, would be, if not welcomed, then at least warranted. But to have your child, born blind, because
you committed adultery; not only would
that be unfair, and unjust, but it would be an unbearable burden you would
carry the rest of your life. To see
your child, blind, because you sinned, would be a curse almost too heavy to
bear!
And yet, that’s what was believed, and taught. When the Pharisees, and the disciples, for
that matter, looked at the man born blind, they saw a man they thought was
suffering the consequences of sin—either his own, or his parents. And as unimaginable as that notion is, it is
a notion that not only persists, today, but that exists in many world
religions. Let’s be honest about
that.
In Buddhism, for example, the third noble truth is that there
is a way to end suffering—and the way is by adhering to the Eight-fold
Path. The Eight-fold Path delivers you
from suffering. To be delivered from
suffering is to reach Nirvana, the cessation of suffering. The path to suffering, or Nirvana, is
directly dependent upon you, and the extent to which you are able to keep the
eight-steps perfectly. Buddhism is
simply cause and effect, known as Karma.
So, it’s all you. And if you are
suffering, then, it’s because you have not followed the right path. If you are not suffering, it’s because you
are following the right path. If you
are blinded, you have brought that upon yourself. That’s at the heart of Buddhism.
What about other world religions? Islam is certainly on our minds these days. Although there are many things Christians
share with Muslims, the one thing that separates us, is this very notion. Muslims believe in following the five
Pillars of Faith. While there are many
different beliefs among Muslims, all emphasize obedience, devotion, and judgement
based on your actions. Muslims believe
that this life is a temporary trial or test—that living without sin is a
possibility—that tragedy and suffering is directly related to your obedience,
or dis-obedience. If you are
suffering, it’s because you are not being obedient. Ultimately, if you are good, you will enjoy paradise. If the bad in your life has outweighed the
good, you will suffer the wrath of hell.
Simply put, the difference between Christianity, and Islam, is this: sin, and it’s consequences; or to put it another way—who pays the price,
for your sin? Simply put, that’s the
difference between all world religions, and Christianity. Christianity teaches, no—Christianity
proclaims, that God is graceful and merciful, and does not bring suffering and
tragedy to bear upon people, because of their sin and disobedience. Sometimes, we bring that upon ourselves, and
all of us will experience suffering and tragedy in life, because of the
broken-ness of creation, and the fact that creation, and humanity, is
imperfect. But, as Jesus teaches in our
Gospel lesson, the truth of it is, God does not strike us blind, because we
sinned. God does not cause us to be in
a car accident, because we failed to be obedient. And certainly, God does not cause our child to be born with a
deformity, or disability, because of something we did, or did not do in
life! In Christianity, God reveals
himself to be loving, and merciful, and graceful. In Christianity, God reveals himself to always be working for
good, for His children, never causing them pain and grief and loss, as
punishment for sin. And that, alone, is
enough, to make Christianity different.
That, alone, is enough to set Christianity on a spiritual level, above
those who teach and preach that their god is like a cosmic policeman—punishing
the bad, rewarding the good. To the contrary,
Jesus has taught, and manifested, in Himself, that God—the one true God, is not
like that at all—that the one, True God, is more than just; more than fair; more than a reward and punishment machine—because the one True
God, loves, unconditionally. The One
True God loves us so much, that He went beyond, what was simply enough—to
providing His only begotten Son, to be the sacrifice for our sins. So that, not only does God NOT dole out
rewards and punishments for our sin—He makes it irrelevant. Because, when salvation is given to us, as a
gift, through the death and resurrection of His Son, as a payment for sin…when
salvation is available, to all, because sin has been forgiven, by the blood of
Jesus, sacrificed on the cross—it is no longer necessary, or reasonable, to
reward or punish people, because of their sin.
And the beauty of that—the wonder of that—the power of that, is that it
sets people free! It sets us free, from
having to carry the burden of sin around with us. It sets us free from having to worry about whether we did
something to cause our children harm.
It sets us free from feeling like we can never measure up. It sets us free from obsessing over other people’s
sins. It sets us free from having to
worry about punishment and wrath, because we have a Savior, who forgives our
sin, and leads us away from sin, and makes our sin, irrelevant, because of His
death on the cross. And that freedom is
what makes the difference, between Christianity, and all other world
religions. That freedom is, in fact,
the light that Jesus is talking about, when He says, “I am the Light of the
world!” That freedom, is the true
sight, that opens the eyes of those who are blinded by their own false belief
that they can save themselves by what they do, or don’t do in life. That freedom, is the true sight that Jesus
offers to all who are living in blindness.
That freedom, is the good news, of Jesus, come into the world to bring
light, and healing, and sight, and forgiveness and wholeness and
salvation, to all who will believe, in
the Son of Man—to all who will believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah,
the Savior.
So let us be people of the Light, and of sight, and of
belief. Let us proclaim the good news
of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. Let us not be ashamed, of the truth, that salvation is of Christ
alone. Let us seek to share with all
people, everywhere, the forgiveness and freedom, that is available, in and
through Jesus Christ. And let us live
that forgiveness and freedom, in all that we think, say and do. Amen.