The miracle of sight

Christmas morning dawned, and all over Madera new sight had been given to thousands. Those who had once been blind now could see. Some were young; some were old. Some were church goers; some were not. The miracle cut across all ethnicities, genders, and classes; it was no respecter of persons. Thousands of Maderans awoke and repeated what that fellow in the Bible said, “Once I was blind, but now I can see.” He had been born without sight, and now it was as if he had been born all over again.

What had happened in Madera was not unique to our city; it happened all over the world. Scales fell from people’s spiritual eyes, and they could see Yahshua — Jesus of Nazareth.

Actually this miracle is not a modern phenomenon. It started in the second story of a little adobe building in Jerusalem a couple thousand years ago. It was time for the Jewish Passover, and Jesus had gathered his 12 disciples to have one last supper with them before He returned to His Father. It was a bittersweet moment. Winds of hostility were swirling outside while on the inside, Jesus was telling His followers “not to be troubled.”

They shared the cup and the bread that Thursday night, and their eyes were opened as they had never been before. Jesus did as He said He would and returned to His Father. The disciples went to work, and with their Helper spread the word. In the meantime, something powerful was happening back in that upper room.

The table around which they had shared that last supper began to grow. It extended beyond the room and out into the city, and as it grew, strangers came to sit at the table — people whose eyes had been opened and had come to Jesus.

On and on the table stretched, week after week, year after year, until by the end of the first century, thousands had come to the table — people who had once been blind but now could see Jesus. And it didn’t stop there; it went right on growing, century after century adding millions of believers to the table. Now it has reached us in the 21st century, and thousands of Maderans have taken their place at the table.

We share the cup and the bread with the billions who have come to Jesus. We love Him, and we love each other. We still live in a hostile world, but we also live in the certainty that He holds us close and we will be with Him forever.

Merry Christmas.