John 9:35-41 (WEL) Jesus heard that they had banished him out. Finding him, he said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” 36 He answered and said, “Who is he, sir, that I can believe in him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and he is the one talking with you.” 38 He spoke out, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” 40 Those Pharisees, who were with him, heard this and said to him, “We aren’t blind, too, are we?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have had no sin, but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore, your sin remains.”
V35 Jesus heard that they had banished him out. Finding him, he said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”
When a Jew was banned from the Temple, it was a serious and potentially dangerous situation.
The Son of God is a Messianic title (Psalm 2:7, Proverbs 30:4, Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:6, Micah 5:2 (Matthew 2:5-6), and Mark 14:61).
AskAndyAI (Andy Woods ministry):
“When John says the healed man was “put out of the synagogue,” that was not merely a spiritual rebuke or a temporary exclusion from a meeting. In first‑century Jewish life, the synagogue was the center of social, economic, religious, and familial life. To be banished meant real, painful consequences:
- Social and economic ostracism — You lost regular contact with friends and neighbors, and many business dealings and social ties were conducted through synagogue networks. Being expelled could leave a person cut off from employment, trade contacts, and communal support.
- Loss of religious fellowship and public worship — The synagogue was where people gathered for teaching, prayer, and communal life. Expulsion removed a person from the ordinary structures of worship and instruction.
- Family and community isolation — Because synagogue membership shaped community identity, being put out often meant strained or broken family relationships and a form of communal shaming.
- Fear and intimidation used by leaders — The Pharisees used the threat of expulsion as a tool to keep people from confessing Christ; many who inwardly believed did not publicly confess for fear of this penalty.
- National/temple symbolism — On a larger scale, John’s narrative links such expulsions and hardening of leadership with the spiritual desolation of Israel’s temple system (the “house left desolate” imagery), signaling judgment on the nation’s leaders for rejecting the Messiah.
“Importantly, being expelled from the synagogue (or temple fellowship) was a temporal, social, and religious penalty imposed by human authorities — not a statement about a person’s standing before God. Salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone; true saving faith is fully effective and eternally secure. Passages about people being fearful to confess Christ or being put out describe consequences for discipleship, public confession, and fellowship, not the genuineness or completeness of someone’s salvation.”
V36 He answered and said, “Who is he, sir, that I can believe in him?”
I imagined the healed man is pretty bummed out, but there is Jesus.
Principle: When you are mocked, injured, slandered, abused because you are a Christian, know that Jesus is there with you. See Hebrews 13:5 and Psalm 23:4.
The healed blind man knew Jesus; he knew His name; he knew that Jesus healed him, but he didn’t know what Jesus looked like for the healed to be thankful and believe.
V37 Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and he is the one talking with you.”
Jesus emphasizes his ability to see, then He states, “You are looking at him, and He is talking to you.”
The man did not know what Jesus looked like but did know His voice. I can’t imagine the joy the healed man had.
V38 He spoke out, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped Him.
No fancy prayer, just “Lord, I believe. Then he worshiped Him, that is, he kneeled recognizing Jesus as Messiah and Lord. See Psalm 95:6.
Salvation has only one condition. The one condition required by God for salvation is faith in Him alone. Compare John 3:15-18.
V39 Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.”
Jesus makes an application. What judgment is this? It is the judgment of whether one’s name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, which is a record of all people who believe in God alone for salvation. Those who do not see refers to the condition of all people, but they admit it. Those who see refers to the condition of those who are lost to hell, because they will not believe even when they know the Gospel is true.
V40 Those Pharisees, who were with Him, heard this and said to Him, “We aren’t blind, too, are we?”
The Pharisees thought since they were blameless and as such are saved, forgiven, and will enter the kingdom of God. Most Jews thought they are automatically saved because they are descendants of Abraham. Jesus clarifies that salvation is not by works but by faith in Him alone.
V41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have had no sin, but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore, your sin remains.”
Jesus has exposed these people that they are sinners and are under God’s wrath. Jesus is blunt and truthful. He is our example in situations like this.
Principle: We must tell the truth, even if that truth is inconvenient and/or offensive.
We learn:
- About spiritual and physical darkness.
- That Jesus is the only one who can heal spiritual darkness.
Questions:
- Are you right with God by what you do?
- Is your name in the Lamb’s Book of Life?