“As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.” (9:1)
Jesus is concerned about what we see, both physically and spiritually. As he observes a man who has never physically been able to see, he does an odd thing: he mixes dirt with his own spit to make mud which he puts on the man’s afflicted eyes.
There are many theories about the significance of the mud. Some of these include:
1. To signify the life giving creative power of God who created man from clay in the beginning. “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life ... [Genesis 2:7]”. Only the Son of God could do such an amazing, miraculous act of creation.
2. To receive the saving essence of Christ which can purify our flesh. I saw this comment on a blog response (source unknown):The spittle, signifies the Word, the outflow of the very element or essence of the Lord Himself. The clay was mingled with the spittle. This signifies that the Lord mingles His essence with us by and even with His Word.
3. To prove that the healing was an act of faith: Common spit and dirt were used. No magic potions, ointments or medications were used. In other accounts of Jesus healing the blind, he does not always use mud or even touch the one being healed. Ultimately, the source of healing is Jesus because he is the Son of God. When Jesus sent him to go wash the mud off, the man had to perform an act of obedience and faith. Just like he gave the man physical vision, Jesus wants to give us spiritual vision but we have to be willing to trust and obey.
I find it interesting that the blind man didn’t just receive physical sight but he also received amazing spiritual insight. The more he was confronted by the Pharisees who tried to disbelieve the miracle and then discount that it could be the work of God, the more the healed man testified to the obvious: that Jesus healed him miraculously with power that could only come from God!
“The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”” (9:30-33)
I also found it interesting that when Jesus heard the man had been rejected because of the faith he proclaimed, he sought him out. He reassured him that his faith had healed him and he revealed to him that he was the Son of God. Jesus knows when we stand up for our belief and suffer rejection. He is there to comfort and reassure us as well.
A 4th theory for the mud application I found came from Eric Raymond who compared the spit of Jesus to the blood of Jesus. He emphasized that both substances were body fluids that could provide spiritual restoration for our sin stricken flesh via the healing touch of Jesus. He encouraged that Jesus wanted to open our eyes spiritually so that the willing could see with increasing clarity.
“And thanks be to God we see. All who have been graciously, sovereignly, compassionately touched by the Savior and received the healing blood of his cross, we can see. Yes we all, like this guy from Bethsaida, have some blurriness of sight (Mk. 8.24). But, don’t look away discouraged. See the Savior touch again. See him dip his finger in the great ocean of his blood and reapply. We are seeing better. We are loving more. This is due to the Savior’s powerful and gracious compassion. (Mk. 8.25). “
What are your thoughts about this interesting healing using mud and spit? And what about the Pharisees who just couldn’t or wouldn’t let their eyes see the truth no matter how wonderfully it was portrayed and proclaimed. Sadly, many in the world today, think they see truth but Jesus says they are truly “in the dark”.
“Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”” (9:39)