Now I see

26 March 2017
Fourth Sunday in Lent
Lent 4A (RCL)
1 Samuel 16:1-13
Psalm 23
Ephesians 5:8-14
John 9:1-41

This is the central chapter of John’s Gospel and pulls together many of the themes of the Gospel. And central to the chapter is the encounter between the Jews and the parents of the man born blind. The parents refuse to answer “for fear of the Jews,” because the Jews have already agreed that anyone who confesses the Christ will be thrown out of the synagogue. The chapter takes up the question of the nature of sin. The chapter opens with the disciples asking, “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” and closes with Jesus telling the Pharisees that since they claim to see, their sin remains. The action in this chapter points to the disciples after the resurrection, locked in the room, “for fear of the Jews,” when Jesus appears, breathes on them, and says, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you. The sins of whoever you forgive are forgiven them. The sins of whoever you retain are retained.” Continue reading “Now I see”