Eyes That See – How spiritual blindness spreads…and how Yeshua heals it

 

Spiritual blindness, in its most subtle form, is something that affects not just individuals, but entire communities and nations. It’s a blindness that doesn’t necessarily mean someone is willfully blind, but rather that they are unaware of the reality around them, especially when it comes to the truth of God’s Word and the light of His presence. Like a person walking through fog, they might feel the wind or hear the birds, but they can’t quite make out the shapes around them. They’re lost, not because they’re unwilling to see, but because their vision is obscured. Matthew 6:22-23 tells us, “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!”

This isn’t just a physical observation; it’s a spiritual truth. The state of our eyes—whether we see the truth or are blind to it—affects every aspect of our lives. Spiritual blindness doesn’t just impact how we understand the world, it affects our entire perception of God, ourselves, and the people around us.

From the moment of the fall in the Garden of Eden, blindness entered into the world. Genesis 3:6 tells us that when Eve saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, she took it and ate. Her physical eyes saw the fruit, but her spiritual eyes were clouded. She didn’t see the disobedience, the danger, the consequences of her actions. Adam, standing by, was equally blind to the full weight of their decision. The moment they disobeyed God, their eyes were opened, but not in the way they expected. Genesis 3:7 says, “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.” They could see their nakedness, but their spiritual clarity—seeing the world the way God created it—was lost. They became spiritually blind, separated from the presence of God.

As the story unfolds in the Old Testament, we see this blindness continue. Isaiah 6:9-10, as we’ve mentioned, calls out the people of Israel for this very thing: “Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.” This wasn’t because they lacked the capacity to understand or see, but because their hearts were hardened. They refused to see the truth because it didn’t fit with their expectations. This spiritual blindness took root, and the people of Israel continued to stumble in their darkness, unable to recognize the light of God even when it shone before them.

Throughout the prophetic books, the call to open eyes and see the truth is repeated. In Jeremiah 5:21, God tells His people, "Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear." They were physically able to see, but their spiritual eyes were shut. This blindness was not just a physical ailment, but a consequence of rejecting God's wisdom and truth.

And so, we come to the Gospels, where the Light of the World—Yeshua—comes to restore sight. The story of the blind man in John 9 is a powerful illustration of both physical and spiritual blindness. The disciples, when they see the blind man, ask a question that reflects a common belief of the time: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2). This question reveals a misunderstanding of suffering and sin, one that Yeshua corrects immediately. He answers, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

In this moment, Yeshua reveals something incredibly important: sometimes blindness—or any form of suffering—is not a punishment, but an opportunity for God’s glory to be revealed. This healing wasn't just about restoring physical sight; it was about unveiling spiritual truths. The man who was born blind didn’t just receive his sight; he received a revelation of Yeshua as the Messiah, the one who came to open the eyes of the spiritually blind.

After Yeshua heals the man by making mud with His saliva (just a spit of holy water) and applying it to the man’s eyes, the man is told to go and wash in the pool of Siloam. John 9:7 says, “So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.” This washing wasn’t just an act of obedience—it was symbolic of spiritual cleansing. The mud, created by Yeshua, represents the work of God, while the act of washing points to the need for spiritual purification. It’s through the Word of God, the presence of Yeshua, that we are washed clean and given new eyes to see the world in a completely different way.

But what follows is even more profound. The Pharisees, who should have recognized the miracle for what it was, questioned the man and even his parents. They were spiritually blind to the truth right in front of them. John 9:16 says, “Some of the Pharisees said, ‘This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.’ But others asked, ‘How can a sinner perform such signs?’ So they were divided.” The very people who prided themselves on their spiritual insight couldn’t see what was plain to the man who had just received his sight. In contrast, the man who had been healed recognized Yeshua and declared, “One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see” (John 9:25).

This healing is a powerful reminder of how spiritual blindness works. The Pharisees, despite their learning and position, were spiritually blind. They couldn’t see the truth, even when it stood right in front of them. But the blind man, who had been a literal outcast, could see Yeshua clearly, and he believed.

In Matthew 13:15, Yeshua says, “For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.” Spiritual blindness is not just a matter of physical sight, but of the heart. The heart that refuses to listen, to see, to turn to God, remains in darkness. But when the heart softens, when the eyes are opened to the truth of Yeshua, healing begins.

Yeshua’s healing of spiritual blindness is a continual process. It’s not just something that happens once; it’s something we need day by day. In Mark 8:24, when a blind man is healed, he initially sees people as “trees walking.” It’s only after a second touch from Yeshua that his sight is fully restored. This shows us that even in our journey with Yeshua, our vision might not always be perfect. We need His continual touch to keep our eyes open to His truth.

The process of spiritual healing, then, is ongoing. We all have moments of spiritual blindness—times when our vision gets clouded by sin, by the cares of the world, or by our own desires. But just as Yeshua touched the blind man more than once, He is willing to touch us again and again, to restore our sight.

In Revelation 3:18, Yeshua speaks to the church in Laodicea, who, though they thought they were rich and self-sufficient, were actually spiritually blind. He says, “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.” The church thought they could see, but they were spiritually blind. The answer to their blindness, and to ours, is found in Yeshua—He alone can heal our sight and lead us into the fullness of His truth.

In the end, the call to open our eyes is a call to recognize Yeshua for who He truly is: the Light of the World, the One who came to give us sight, both physical and spiritual. When our eyes are opened to the truth of who He is, we no longer walk in darkness. We are called to walk in the light, to see with clarity, and to share that light with others who are still stumbling in the fog.

Just as the blind man’s sight was restored, so can ours be. It begins with a willingness to come to Yeshua, to let Him touch our hearts, and to allow Him to open our eyes to the beauty and truth of His Word. And when He touches us, we, too, will say, “Lord, I believe,” and we will worship Him in the light of His truth.