disability-and-the-sovereign-goodness-of-god-1388566676

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All Things for Good—Even Mess and PainThe implication of this for your life is profound. No matterwhat mess you’re in or what pain you’re in, the causes of thatmess and that pain are not decisive in explaining it. What isdecisive in explaining it is God’s purpose. Yes, there are causes.Some of them your fault, perhaps, and some of them not. Butthose causes are not decisive in determining the meaning ofyour mess or your pain. What is absolutely decisive is God’spurpose. “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, butthat the works of God might be displayed in him” (verse 3).And if you will confess your sins, and hold fast to Jesus asyour Rock and your Redeemer and your Riches, God’s purposefor your mess and your pain will be a good purpose. It will beworth everything you must endure. We know this is true becauseGod says so. Romans 8:28: “And we know that for thosewho love God all things work together for good, for those whoare called according to his purpose.”Disability and the Sovereign Goodness of GodGod Himself: The Greatest TreasureOf course, none of this will make sense, or be helpful, if Godhimself, and the glory of his incomparable works, is not yourgreatest treasure. When Jesus says, the purpose of this blindnessis “that the works of God might be displayed in him,” heassumes the manifestation of the works of God, has a value thatoutweighs years and years of blindness. Both for the man andhis parents.In order to embrace that, we have to value the manifestationof the works of God more than we value seeing. Indeed morethan we value life itself. Psalm 63:3 says, “Your steadfast love is19
etter than life.” And Jesus said to the prisoners in Smyrna, “Befaithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation2:10). Being loved by God, and being with God forever,is better than having eyes and better than being alive in thisworld. If we don’t believe that, then saying that God has wiseand good purposes in all our losses, will not be much comfort.But if we do believe it, not only will God’s purposes comfort usand strengthen us, but they will make us able to patiently, andgently help others through their times of darkness.Jesus: Doing the Works of GodNow here we are at verses 6–7 and the actual healing of theman born blind: “Having said these things, [Jesus] spat on theground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed theman’s eyes with the mud and said to him, ‘Go, wash in the poolof Siloam’ (which means Sent). So he went and washed andcame back seeing.”Here’s an observation that sets the stage for everything elsein this chapter. Jesus said in verse 3 that the man was blind sothat the works of God would be manifest. But then he said inverse 4, “We must work the works of him who sent me.” And inverse 6 Jesus himself made the mud and healed him. So the stageis set for the question: Who is this Jesus? How are we to respondto this Jesus? Who says God’s work is going to be shown here,and then does the work himself?Disability and the Sovereign Goodness of GodControversy Divinely DesignedAnd I’ll tell you ahead of time what’s going to happen so youcan watch it unfold. The controversy that follows is all de-20
Page 1 and 2: Disabilityand theSovereignGoodnesso
Page 4 and 5: Editor’s PrefaceDisabilities brea
Page 6 and 7: ered God’s good design in the lif
Page 8 and 9: and wash.’ So I went and washed a
Page 10 and 11: Why Was This Child Born2Blind? (Joh
Page 12: live the lie that there is anything
Page 15 and 16: Jesus says, in effect, specific sin
Page 17 and 18: 2. Here’s another reason why that
Page 19 and 20: healed, Jesus said, “My grace is
Page 21: The Works of God and the3Worship of
Page 25 and 26: law—and he meant to unleash the c
Page 27 and 28: point where there is no explanation
Page 29 and 30: 3. The Pharisees and the Parents (V
Page 31 and 32: Jesus heard that they had cast him
Page 34 and 35: starts to feel like relief, but the
Page 37 and 38: And I—to my shame, I would sit at
Page 39 and 40: And so we came back to the church w
Page 41 and 42: son. You have devoted a lot of ener
Page 43 and 44: they’ve used the wrong words, and
Page 45 and 46: encourage yourself when, in fact, t
Page 47 and 48: God might be displayed in him.” F
Page 49 and 50: together. Come, let us sit together
Page 51 and 52: I read commentaries. Most commentar
Page 53 and 54: and those who are watching to trust
Page 55 and 56: my son, he sees my wife with her ca
Page 57 and 58: used this particular means to rise
Page 59 and 60: So turn this to those pastors helpf
Page 61 and 62: And so for those pastors, just ask
Page 63 and 64: elittle. This week I will not resis
Page 65 and 66: who receive a prenatal diagnosis of
Page 67 and 68: ageous—a man claiming preexistenc
Page 69 and 70: Mere Physical Healing?Yes, he came
Page 71 and 72: And I don’t mean to say that in t
Page 73 and 74:
Healed for the Sake of6Holiness (Jo
Page 75 and 76:
Jesus at the PoolThree observations
Page 77 and 78:
to him, “Get up, take up your bed
Page 79 and 80:
And they obey “at once.” This i
Page 81 and 82:
intention of walking away from this
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lieve in miracles. But even though
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