From his prison cell, John sends a messenger to ask Jesus if He is the One who is to come, or must John wait for another. It’s an important question for John as he is about to, not just die, but to be executed. In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus doesn’t answer the question but points to His works. All who are longing must look at these works and answer the question for themselves. It is more important to grasp the meaning of the works of Jesus than to adorn Him with a title. Titles, as the Gospels make clear, are open to misunderstanding, works are not.
These works of Jesus are works of restoration. Something that was missing was found. Something that was wounded is healed. Sight, mobility, hearing, life and dignity are returned to those who did not have them. Jesus is undoing the effects of Adams fall. He is restoring people’s relationship with God. John must see that this is the way that God answers the deepest desires of the heart. And he does.
Now that John is sorted, Jesus turns his attention to the crowd and asks a three-tiered question about John. This is a time-tested strategy of a spiritual master, to help us be clear about why we went into the desert in the first place. Our longing is to hear once again the clear voice of a Prophet. Our desire is to see a man of God who cannot be bullied or pushed around, who confronts the abuses of those who worship their own power. John calls for repentance and the promise that follows rings the heart like a bell.
John points to Jesus. And if we carefully ponder the works of Jesus, we will see that He is the answer to the deepest desire of our hearts. John clears the path but it is Jesus who walks it. As He does, He says, ‘Come, Follow Me.’ As we follow Him on the pathway to holiness, our sight is restored.
Asher Lev once said that the seeing of God is not like the seeing of people. People see only between the blink of an eye. We do not know what the world is like when we blink. We see our world in fragments. But the master of the universe, sees the world whole and unbroken. That world is good. Our seeing is broken. Can we make ours like the seeing of God? Is it possible?
When Jesus answers John’s question by pointing to the blind seeing, He is moving us beyond fragments and pieces. Giving us the ability to see without blinking. Thus, He opens our hearts to the possibility of holiness for this is what the heart longs for. And when we ask the question John put to Jesus, we realise that The One Who Is To Come, has arrived.
