“Seeing is Believing": How Worldview Affects Everything

We all remember the account in John 9, where a man blind since birth hears Jesus declare Himself as the “light of the world,” and then He makes a mud salve, applies it to the closed eyes, and says, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means “sent”).  The blind man follows these divine directions and is able to see for the first time in his life.

I’ve been to the Pool of Siloam in old Jerusalem. Millions of tourists have seen that sight, but just think… this site is the very first thing that blind man ever saw.  On that miraculous day, he gained a view of the world, but more importantly, he gained a new worldview.

In the next part of the story, after decades in darkness, the man who can now see, ascends the stairs still blinking in the bright light of day. Not yet able to keep his eyes steadily open, his eyes flash briefly like the shutter of a camera every few steps through the crowd, and aided  by “snapshots”  burned into the back of his eyelids, he returns to the place where the small spot of spittled mud has now dried.

By then Jesus was nowhere to be seen, but the news of His miracle was heard by the Pharisees. They were livid that a so-called man of God would violate the Sabbath by healing a blind man in public. “Obviously,” they said to the blind man, “the person you say healed your blindness is actually a sinner.”

The healed man forced his eyes to stay open. The bright sun went behind a cloud, and the glaring Pharisees gradually came into focus as his eyes continued to adjust. For the first time in his life, he saw the power of non-verbal communication. He could see the Pharisaical furrowed brows, the sneering lips, and the pointing finger of  the man who asked threateningly: “Do you agree that the man who did this thing to you is a sinner and not the Christ?”

The reply was candid and classic: “I do not know all the answers yet. All I know is I was blind and now I see.”  He did not stop there, however, because along with his vision he was given a new worldview. “Why do you keep asking these questions? Do you also want to become His disciples? I have been blind all my life. I can see clearly now. If Jesus were not of God, He could not have healed my eyes.”

The angry Pharisees, still blind to the Truth, cast the man from their presence.

Jesus soon found  the outcast and asked,  in so many words, if “seeing is believing.” The man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped Him.

In a matter of minutes, the eyesore of the streets became a “sight for sore eyes” to fellow believers.

Such complete change did not happen with all of Christ’s miracles. We know that some healed lepers never even said “thank you.”  But the blind man gained not only his physical sight  but spiritual sight as well. In his case, along with his first view of the world came a new worldview that lead him to Christ.  Knowing the cost before knowing all the details, he bravely proclaimed the Truth as he saw it.

At the end of John 9, Jesus explains to the Pharisees how the same events can deepen man’s bias or strengthen his belief. It’s all a question of how we choose to view the world. We see this happening more than ever in the world around us. The same evidence is embraced or rejected depending on whether you view God as the Creator or as a "cosmic caricature" of man/s invention--whether you think God is a God of order or that life is just a galactic box of BBs spilled. Take for instance the question: "Is Genesis History?" Your understanding of that question will affect your understanding of the rest of Scripture and its role in your worldview.

This spring, the Lord has provided $50,000 for CCS to purchase  the best-developed K-12 Christian school curriculum on the market.   

   

Starting in the fall, these resources will further empower our long-standing commitment to be fully accredited and academically competitive while also providing a Biblical worldview in our  textbooks, technology upgrades, teacher tools, and every traveled path we share with the open eyes God gives to those who believe.