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What God Can Do

¹ As they rode along, Jesus saw a man who had been blind his whole life. ² "Boss," his cowboys asked, "why is this man blind? Did his daddy commit some kind of sin that made God mad or something?"

³ "Neither of his parents did anything to make this happen," Jesus said as he dismounted. "This happened so God could show y'all what he can do. ⁴ While the sun is shining, the Son will be out shinin': ropin', gatherin', doctorin', and brandin'. It's what my Daddy sent me to do. But it'll be dark soon, and no one will be able to work. ⁵ While I am here, I am the light that lets people see."

⁶ After this, Jesus spat on the ground and made a little mud. He put the mud on that blind fellow's eyes ⁷ and said to him, "Go wash this mud off in Siloam Pond." (Siloam means "sent.") The guy felt his way there and did as he was told. He came back with eyes better'n a bald eagle.

⁸ All his neighbors and those who had known him when he was blind couldn't believe their own eyes. They asked, "Isn't this the beggar who we used to help because he was blind?"

⁹ Some of the folks thought it was him and others thought it must be someone else. But the guy kept telling them, "Yeah, that was me. I am the one."

¹⁰ So they asked him how he got his eyes back to workin' condition.

¹¹ He said, "The cowboy they call Jesus spat in the dirt and made a mud pie to go on my eyes. He then told me to wash it off in Siloam Pond. When I did, I could see."

¹² They asked, "Where is this Jesus fellow?"

The man answered, "I ain't got no idea. I ain't his keeper."

¹³ So some people took the guy to the Pharisees. ¹⁴ Jesus had healed him on the day of rest, ¹⁵ and they asked him about how it was done. Once again, he told the story.

¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees said, "This guy isn't a man of God. If he were, he wouldn't have done work on the day of rest."

Another Pharisee stood up and asked, "If he is not, then how can a sinner perform such a good work as this?" A squabble broke out among these religious know-it-alls.

¹⁷ So they turned back to the man and asked, "What do you say about the man who healed you?"

"I think he's one of God's cowboys. I believe he's a prophet," the man quickly answered.

¹⁸ The discussion then turned to wondering if the guy had been born blind or if someone was trying to pull a fast one. So, they sent for the man's parents and ¹⁹ asked them, "Is this your son? Has he been blind his whole life? How is it that he can now see?"

²⁰ His parents knew they were in a sticky situation and said, "This is our boy, and yes, he was born blind as a bat. ²¹ We have no idea how he can see now. Ask him that question. He's old enough to speak for himself." ²² His parents were evasive because the church leaders had already made it public that if you support Jesus, you would be thrown out of the church. ²³ That's why they said, "Ask him. He's a full-grown man."

²⁴ So the Pharisees called the healed man back in and said, "Give God the credit for your eyes, not this sinner who claims to have cured you. He was just a swindler prayin' on helpless folks."

²⁵ The man said, "Whether Jesus is some kind of swindler, I do not know. But I'll tell you what I do know. I once was blind, but now I see!"

²⁶ They asked him, "Then what did he do? How did you get your sight back?"

²⁷ The guy threw his hands in the air and said, "I might've been blind, but I'm startin' to wonder if y'all are all deaf. I have already told you how it happened. Are y'all tryin' to figure out how to find Jesus so you can ride with him, too?"

²⁸ Then all hell broke loose at the meeting. They yelled at him, "You ride for him! We only follow Moses! ²⁹ We know he was a man of God, but we don't have any idea where this Jesus fellow came from."

³⁰ The man held his ground and said, "Oh, really? You don't know where he's from, but he healed my eyes. ³¹ You may not know him, but this we do know, We know God don't cotton to sinners, nor does he answer their prayers. God answers the prayers of people who ride only for him. ³² There has never been an instance of a blind man being given back his sight, yet here I stand. ³³ If Jesus wasn't from God, he couldn't have done that and y'all know it."

³⁴ The Jews attacked him again and said, "You were blind because of your sin. Who do you think you are that you can teach us anything about God?" Then they threw him out of the church and told him never to come back.

Setting the Record Straight

³⁵ Jesus heard about what happened and went and found the man. He asked him, "Do you believe in the Top Hand?"

³⁶ The man replied, "Tell me who he is and show him to me so that I can ride for him."

³⁷ Jesus said, "You're looking at him, cowboy."

³⁸ The man kneeled and said, "I believe it is you, Lord."

³⁹ Then Jesus put his hand on the man's shoulder and said to everyone watching, "I have come into this world to set the record straight. Those who thought they were blind will now realize they can see. And those who thought they could see everything will now find out they were the ones who were blind."

⁴⁰ Some Pharisees spoke up and said, "We know you're talking about us. Set the record straight, cowboy. Are you calling us blind?"

⁴¹ Jesus replied, "If you were blind, you wouldn't be guilty of leading people astray. But since you claim to see clearly, you will be held responsible for your sins."