Day 160: Guidance

Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.'  Therefore your sin remains."  John 9:41

I find that the use of blindness as a metaphor is quite harsh.

We have other metaphors in the Gospels that are much easier to understand.  We are sheep that are not too good at living on our own, but we can be led in a direction and can be taught.  We are children who are innocent and willing to learn.  We are salt to give good flavor to the bland world.  We are light to illuminate the darkness.  But, are we blind?

I have to wonder, does blind in the New Testament mean not being able to see anything at all, or does that mean to be just visually impaired (nearsighted/farsighted)?  The metaphor would be easier for me to grasp if the latter because I have to wear glasses in order to see well.  At the same time, though, am I just being so prideful that I need to say that I can see?

I interpret Jesus' saying above as being against judgment.  We as humans have no right to take God's place and exercise judgment on the world.  When we judge, we claim to be seeing while we ourselves are blind.  After taking that into account, I can start to understand that blindness in this sense truly is blindness, where we cannot see a single thing no matter how hard we try or how thick of lenses we wear.  This makes Jesus' power that much more glorious, though, for Jesus not only teaches us, but he also transforms us.

As I consider blindness more and more, I think all about our stumbling around in the world without direction or help.  When we wander around, we will find it very difficult to get anywhere.  So, why should we take it upon ourselves to cast judgment on all of those around us?  Can we really lead others without Jesus?  Do we even know where we're going?  We can sure try to get around, but then, what if there's a hole right in front of us that we can't even feel our way out of?  What if there's somebody chasing after us?  A car?  That's what this world is to us.  There are so many unknowns, and we can't just wander around without any direction or guidance.

The most important fact for us to consider is the fact that we are truly blind.  We need Jesus to guide us through all the difficult places.  We need that strong hand to guide us at all times of the day, not just during the daytime.  We need someone who won't abandon us, and that's what Jesus is here for.  When we acknowledge that we need Jesus, Jesus will start walking beside us and in front of us.  With Jesus, we will find ourselves walking in infinite grace.