Verse for the week:
“the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his
life a ransom for many.” Mt 20.28
Bible reading for the day: John 9.1-41 (In the 8th
chapter, the religious leaders are blind to who Jesus is and cannot bear to
hear his word, 8.43. He tells them “you are of your father the devil,” and they
claim he has a demon. As the 8th chapter concludes, they have picked
up stones to stone him to death. Now in the 9th chapter, those who
think they see are in fact blind; and a blind man has more than his eyes
opened.)
As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And
his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man
or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus
answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that
the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We
must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is
coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in
the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having
said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the
saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud7 and
said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means
Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
8 The neighbors and those
who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who
used to sit and beg?” 9 Some said, “It is he.”
Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10 So
they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He
answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to
me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my
sight.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He
said, “I do not know.”
13 They brought to the
Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.14 Now it
was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 So
the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to
them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16 Some
of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not
keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such
signs?” And there was a division among them. 17 So
they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has
opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”
18 The Jews did not
believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called
the parents of the man who had received his sight19 and
asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now
see?” 20 His parents answered, “We know that this
is our son and that he was born blind. 21 But how
he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is
of age. He will speak for himself.” 22 (His parents
said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had
already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be
Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.)23 Therefore
his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
24 So for the second time
they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to
God. We know that this man is a sinner.”25 He
answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that
though I was blind, now I see.” 26 They said
to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27 He
answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do
you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” 28 And
they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of
Moses.29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as
for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” 30 The
man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where
he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We
know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a
worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.32 Never
since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man
born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he
could do nothing.” 34 They answered him, “You
were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.
35 Jesus heard that they
had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe
in the Son of Man?” 36 He answered, “And
who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” 37 Jesus
said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to
you.” 38 He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he
worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, “For judgment I
came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those
who see may become blind.”40 Some of the Pharisees near
him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” 41 Jesus
said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but
now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.
Prayer (based on TRIP** method): Gracious and almighty Father, thank you
for sending Jesus to us as the true light of the world. You know exactly when we are lost in the
dark…and when we are blinded by our proud sight. When we remain in our sin, open our blind
eyes…and when we are begging in the dark, heal our hearts with the sweet spit
of your word for us…that we too, may confess “Lord Jesus, I believe in
You.” Amen.
Hymn: follow this
link to a beloved classic which gives further voice to today’s conversation
with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogxLNlgKM8c
Benediction: Now
may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through
grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen
them in every good work and word. Amen. II Thess 2.16-17
*There are many patterns
for devotions. This pattern has been followed
by God’s people for centuries.
**The T.R.I.P. approach to
prayer is based on the way Martin Luther prayed and taught others to pray. It was later developed by Walter and Ingrid
Trobisch and then adapted by Mount Carmel Ministries (Alexandria, MN www.dailytext.com). The method is founded on scripture and easy
to remember:
T: thanksgiving
R: regret
(repentance)
I:
intercession (asking God to take a specific action)
P:
plan or purpose
Reading a biblical text and
then applying this method gives one a sound, simple way to form one’s
prayers...not to mention that it helps one learn how to faithfully reflect on
God’s Word and talk to God.
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