Once I Was Blind

John 9:1–10:39; Matthew 11:20–30

Jesus heals a man who has been blind from birth, and the healing itself becomes more controversial than the blindness ever was, as the Pharisees interrogate the man, his parents, and finally throw him out of the synagogue. Jesus finds him afterward and tells the Pharisees who are listening that he is the good shepherd, who lays down his life for the sheep — a shepherd the sheep actually know, unlike a hired hand who runs at the first sign of danger. Jesus pronounces judgment on towns that saw his miracles and still wouldn't repent, then offers rest to anyone weary enough to come to him. Months later, at the winter Feast of Dedication, the crowd surrounds him in the temple and demands a straight answer.

We are in a Matthew-John Harmony. Today's episode covers: John 9:1–10:39; Matthew 11:20–30 ("once I was blind, now I see," the Good Shepherd, and the Feast of Dedication).