Thursday, March 23
Darlene Miscovic
Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
“Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.
Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.
Today’s verses are about the man born blind’s second encounter with Christ. On the first encounter, Christ gave him physical eyesight, but the man and the healing faced rejection by the church establishment. When Jesus hears about this, He seeks the man out.
Then Christ offers him an even greater gift — salvation. Christ asks the man born blind, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” Despite being able to physically see him and wanting to believe, the man doesn’t recognize Christ as the Messiah. The lyrics of a contemporary praise song capture his desire with the phrase, “Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, I want to see you.” When Christ says he is the Son of Man, the man immediately understands he is the Messiah, professes his belief and worships him.
The question Christ asked is the key question for us as well: Do we believe in the Son of Man? A recent study reported that about three-quarters of Americans agree that Jesus was a real person, but more than half think he is only human and not divine. They are seeing but not believing.
Thanks to being raised in a Christian home, I don’t remember a time when I didn’t know about Christ or believe in him as my personal Savior. But there is a point in the service each week when I have the opportunity to reconfirm that belief. It’s when we say the Creed—
I believe in God, the Father almighty . . .
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord . . .
I believe in the Holy Spirit . . .
Too often I find myself simply reciting these statements and not remembering their profound meaning. It is for us as it was for the man born blind. Our salvation depends not on knowing the Son of Man but in our belief in Him.
Dear Christ, open the eyes of our hearts, so that we see you as our Messiah and Savior. Help us to follow the example of the man born blind, truly believing and worshiping you. Amen.
Encounters With Christ 