Jesus Healed The Blind- Proof Of The Messiah
The Old Testament predicted that the Messiah would have the ability to heal the blind. Randy Bushey reminds us of the Jesus remarkable ability to heal blindness.
Blindness In the Time Of Christ
“One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!” (John 9:25).
Human eyes are a pair of complex optical organs. When healthy, our eyes detect and convert light into electro-chemical impulses, transmitting these signals to the brain. Vision results.
In the Greco-Roman world of the 1st century, blindness was much more common – everyone knew several people unable to see. Some were blind from birth (like the man Jesus healed in John 9); others lost their sight through disease, injury, inadequate hygiene, or advanced age.
And in the Hebrew legal code, causing someone to lose sight was considered such a serious violation, that the “eye for an eye” maxim was promoted and enforced.
This made me squirm: in western Europe, cataracts have been treated with curved needles piercing the eye from before the time of Christ. However, although historical research demonstrates many interventions for vision correction – albeit many causing more damage than improvement – the Old Testament does not contain a single example of a miraculous healing of permanently blind eyes.
That all changed with the coming of Jesus.
And that ability proved His identity.
Here’s how.
Isaiah Predicted The Messiah Would Heal Blindness
The Hebrew people understood that the coming Messiah, or Christ, would be identified as the One who could restore sight to the blind. In Israel’s history as recorded in the Old Testament, people had been healed of leprosy and other maladies. Three times the dead had been raised to life.
But the restoration of sight was the sole purview of the Messiah, twice predicted by the great Hebrew prophet Isaiah.
Here the prophet describes the future joy of Israel’s redeemed at the coming of the Messiah: “The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom…they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God…your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.” Then will the eyes of the blind be opened…”(Isaiah 35:1-5).
And again as he penned Isaiah 42, the prophet was declaring predictively what came to be recognized as a Messianic passage describing the Servant of the Lord: “I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind…”(v.6,7).
hopestreamradio · Healing Blindness
Jesus Healed Blindness on Many Occasions
Of His more than 25 specific acts of healing (including release from demon possession) recorded in the gospels, Jesus healed blindness more than any other physical infirmity – 6 pairs of eyes on 4 separate occasions.
And we don’t want to miss the part that played in irrefutably identifying Jesus as the Messiah to careful observers.
Including John the Baptist.
John’s meteoric rise to public ministry probably lasted no more than one year. Although faithful to his task, initially hugely popular among the Jewish people as the first prophet from God in 400 years, and very effective as the forerunner to Christ, John’s despondency grew as he rotted in the prison cell of Herod Antipas.
John The Baptist Recognized The Messiah
As the news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and Galilee, John sent 2 disciples to ask Jesus about His identity: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight… (Matthew 11:3-5).
Jesus went on to say that He healed the lame, cured leprosy, restored hearing to the deaf, even raised the dead.
But He need not say more.
Once John heard Jesus had restored sight to blind eyes, his mind would have immediately flashed back to the prophecies of Isaiah. The indisputable Messianic identity was tied to this critical piece of information: the ability to restore sight was a sure indication that this must be the long-expected Christ.
John was satisfied. And he took that knowledge to the grave, because he was beheaded by Herod mere months – or weeks – later.
Takeaway: The multiple predictive threads working their way through the various books and centuries of the Old Testament are fulfilled completely, astonishingly, wonderfully in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah of God.
In the Sermon on the Mount, He warned about the need to absorb the light of His truth with our spiritual eyes: The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! (Matthew 6:22,23).
Do you believe Jesus is the Messiah? Make a comment below or Contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Randy Bushey
After completing a 35 year corporate-management career in the general insurance industry, Randy is dedicated to full-time elder’s work at Bethel Gospel Chapel in North Bay (Ontario).
With a primary pastoral focus in Bible teaching (preaching and leading Bible studies). Randy is also engaged in visitation, church music, and helping develop other men in their roles as Christ-followers, preachers and leaders.
He is married to Pat who is investing her life in working with women and children in the local assembly. They are both energized by their 3 children (2 married) and 6 grandchildren!
You can listen to pod casts from Randy’s show, “The Faith Factor,” by clicking here.
More Podcasts Below
More Blogs
Where Did Jesus Go When He Died?
Things Are Not Always as They Seem
Images:
Woman Eyes – StockSnap
Eye- Marusya21111999
Eye- TobiasD
Peter Green says
Yes Jesus is the messiah .
Ray Marshall says
Hi Peter. I am glad that you enjoyed this blog post. May you be richly blessed in 2023!