The Jewish religious leaders excommunicated a man whose blindness Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. They threw him out because he defended Jesus.
To be “kicked out” of your religious group is serious business indeed. To be expelled from the synagogue, that was bad, bad, bad. (In this case, the man didn’t deserve the treatment he got.)
But the One who matters cared:
“Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?” (John 9:35).
Jesus went looking for this fellow!
Jesus knew the man had suffered abuse, scorn, and injustifice for standing up for Him.
So Jesus went looking for him. That surely does bless my heart!
Jesus found him, showed him the way, and accepted him into His fellowship.
Thus the man went from cast out to taken in.
And that’s just like Jesus!
Hi Mark,
Today’s message really blessed me. I have heard and read that story many many times, and I had never really thought about the wider implications of the fact that Jesus, knowing someone had been mistreated because they stood up for Him, personally sought that person out and comforted and blessed him. What an amazing Saviour! Thanks for the insights.
Iain