Magic or Miracle, The Blind See
Emails & Questions
Magic, or Miracle?
Q: If the Christ used on the Holy Spirit to heal, how do you expalin Mark 8:23? Looks like magic to me. Hocus Pocus, a little spit, rubbing the hands together, and grabing hold of the supposedly blind guy, a good shake or two and now the guy can see. I have seen this kind of trickery in those fake healing meeting. Look like the same sort of thing. Well?
A: Let's have a look. You may not like the answer, as there is no one so blind as he that will not (refuses) to see.
(Mar 8:23) He took hold of the blind man by the hand, and brought him out of the village. When He had spit on his eyes, and laid His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.(Mar 8:24) He looked up, and said, "I see men; for I see them like trees walking."(Mar 8:25) Then again He laid His hands on his eyes. He looked intently, and was restored, and saw everyone clearly.
This is Mark's account, there are other eye witnesses, and with a little more detail, such as in John's account, chapter 9.
There were certain procedures that the shamans and the healers among the people, eespecially among the gentiles, would go through, as they called on their various gods. Yes, even some among the Jewish population practiced healing techniques, going through motions that seemed strange and exciting, and apparently worked -- YaHshua, detailed example demonstrated, to the public, that He possessed all of the skills, not some, but all of the skill of all of the healers that claimed special abilities from the gods. Understand, each of the healers had their motions and potions, claiming to come from secret knowledge handed to them by their various gods. And yet, here was one, YaHshua, who seemed to command or have command of them all, not just one but all of them. This is very similar to all of the gods, which are really no gods at all, falling at His feet. Even the Blind man whose sight was restored, reasoned with the religious leaders of the day, telling them that the evidence alone should tell them that this Man, YaHshua, must be from THE God, to have such command over somethings, having the ability to restore sight to someone born blind from birth, something never heard of or witnessed before. This a tantamount to all the gods, as mentioned, falling at His feet. But using a technic, tried by others in the arts of medicine, and having failed, YaHshua demonstrates that He can restore the blind to sight. It is like saying, see, your god fails in this, the medicine man (Doctor) who failed, even when trying every trick in the book, even to putting sand on the blind eyes, here is One who can do it. If this method did not work for other, how is it possible that it works now? People would soon understand that it was not the magic sand, but the man, YaHshua, that made it work.(John 9:15) Again therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes, I washed, and I see.
Of course, if you read the full account in the Gospel of John, you will see the no matter what evidence would be produced the majority of the Religious Leaders would not accept what their own eyes and ears had witnessed. Some were totally confused, and this did create a division among the relgious thinkers of the day, but in the end, they tried to figure out ways to kill this man -- They had turned Moses into a God, and worshiped him only, just as they confessed of themselves, not realizing that this would be a rejection of the God of Moses --
John 9:26 They said to him again, "What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?"John 9:27 He answered them, "I told you already, and you didn't listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You don't also want to become His disciples, do you?"John 9:28 They insulted him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.