Sometimes we are puzzled to know what is the most important thing in life. At such times we need help. Where do you turn for help? I turn to God’s Word. Here is a helpful verse for times like that: “I will lift mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2.
To know how to choose the best in life is our problem. One time Mrs. Yoder and I were visiting a shop to buy a Persian rug. We had no idea of the value of Persian rugs. When the shop keeper told us what the price was, we couldn’t buy one. It was too costly. The price was more than we could afford. So we had to leave the Persian rugs. They were beautiful but we could not afford to buy even one.
In life we must take care to measure the values by which we live. Some are too costly. For some the price is too high. For some the price is much too cheap. Are there any ways of MEASURING VALUES in life properly? Yes, there are. We shall see what happens here in John 9:13-23.
13 They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind.
14 And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes.
15 Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see.
16 Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.
17 They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet.
18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight.
19 And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? how then doth he now see?
20 His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind:
21 But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.
22 These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.
23 Therefore said his parents, He is of age; ask him.
In this conversation I find several helpful PROCESSES by which values can be measured, for we must measure the values of life. Let’s look at these processes.
Process number one:
Seek a Clarification.
Don’t be satisfied with just a report. Go right to the source and find out what happened. That’s what these people did. They tried to find out clearly what had taken place. This blind man had been healed by a miracle that Jesus had performed. Jesus had put clay salve on his eyes and had sent him to the pool of Siloam to wash.
So, they came to find out, to get a clarification, and they asked the man. He told them exactly what happened. He said, “He put clay upon my eyes and I washed and I see.” Just as simple as that. No great enlargement, no complex way. Just a very simple answer of exactly what happened.
But do you know that some of these people came to the wrong conclusion? They concluded that since the miracle was performed on the Sabbath day, that whoever performed it could not possibly be a man of God. He must be a sinner. But the man who was healed said that surely a sinner could not do miracles like this.
Well, let’s see. It was not really the man who was healed this time. It was others who were standing around who said a sinner cannot do miracles like this.
To measure the values of life it is appropriate and important to seek for the clarification of the problem. Make sure you understand exactly.
Let’s take Process number two:
Stress the Verification.
Gather more facts. Talk to other people who know. So these people called the parents. Now they certainly should have known. If he was their son then they would know whether or not he had been born blind and surely they ought to know how he received his sight. So they called them in and asked, “Is this your son?” They said, “Yes, this is our son. He was born blind.” But then they went on to say, “We do not know how he received his sight and we do not know who healed him.”
Well, they said part of the truth, but they would not tell all they knew. We are going to see why they wouldn’t. But I have to admire these people for trying to get all the facts together. That is a very important process. Don’t be satisfied until you have all the facts brought together.
To measure values you must stress the verification, make sure that all the facts have been well verified.
The third Process:
Face the Excommunication.
Let me warn you, don’t be afraid. You read in this text that these parents would not tell everything they knew because they were afraid. They had been threatened with excommunication; that means to be put out of the synagogue. If anybody confessed that Jesus was the Messiah, they had already agreed among themselves that such a person could not have fellowship in the synagogue.
That was a very serious threat. But don’t be afraid. If you are going to really come out on the side of truth, then you must measure values and not be scared. Don’t close your mind to the truth. Don’t draw conclusions before the evidence is in.
Be sure that you verify everything, but do not be afraid if someone threatens you. To measure values you must face the threats of excommunication, the threats of others. I suppose these parents were afraid. Therefore they had their problem and could not really come to the measuring of values. They put the wrong weight or the wrong value on the wrong side.
Measuring values in life properly will require these processes: seek a clarification, ask to know; stress the verification, make certain of the facts; face the excommunication, stand on the side of the truth. Don’t draw any conclusion before the evidence is in.