(Unfortunately, I don’t have a recording of this sermon; Pastor Taylor preached it locally at the Columbia campus.)

Reading List

One passage per day for a whole week, based on the sermon.

	Jesus’s Statement	Deficit	Passage
1	“I am the Bread of Life”	Hunger	John 6:25-51
2	“I am the Light of the World”	Darkness, blindness	John 8:12, 9:1-7
3	“I am the Door of the Sheep”	Threats from thieves and robbers	John 10:1-10
4	“I am the Good Shepherd”	Wolves	John 10:11-21
5	“I am the Resurrection and the Life”	Death	John 11:17-44
6	“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life”	Being lost	John 14:1-14
7	“I am the Vine”	Inability to produce fruit	John 15:1-17

Pastor Taylor’s message centers around John 9:1-7, especially verse 3:

¹ As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. ² His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

³ “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. ⁴ As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. ⁵ While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

⁶ After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. ⁷ “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

John 9:1-7, NIV

This man’s deficit was on display.

Deficit on Display

During the sermon, Pastor Taylor had us each take selfies and then asked us to take a look at our deficits, not physical deficits, but emotional and spiritual ones:

• Insecurity
• Anxiety
• Finances
• Heredity
• Past

“He is of age; he will speak for himself” (John 9:21) This passage says he was blind from birth (9:1). Coming of age happened around age 13 in this time period. Can you imagine struggling with a deficit for at least 13 years? I don’t have to imagine it… it’s my life.

Deficit Discrimination

Sometimes we think that because we have a deficit, God won’t use us. But the opposite it true: God will use the deficits for his glory.

Pastor Taylor shared about his thick southern accent and how he was told he would never preach with an accent like that… so he took speech classes and God is now using him because of (or in spite of) his deficit.

Deficit Destiny

Does “blind man” have a name? How many people feel like your identity is your deficit?

Pastor Taylor shared what he calls the “Whose Fault?” Formula, (Nick: Perhaps “Fallacy” would be a better word to use here): Bad must have a place of blame.

God is sovereign, but we don’t always understand what he’s up to.

We understand God is in control, but we don’t get to control what we understand.

Your deficit does not define your destiny.

His deficit was not his destiny (the blind man) —> Jesus is in the business of deficit demolition, in this case using mud and saliva.

Sometimes Jesus gives you a physical sign for your spiritual healing. (Nick: Baptism and Lord’s Supper can fit here, that is why we celebrate these things!)

The miracle didn’t happen with Jesus present. Jesus sent the man to the pool of Siloam and the miracle happened there.

Your miracle is waiting on your movement – Sometimes God sends you somewhere to experience a miracle (Nick: This is about faith, trust, and obedience, not “works righteousness”).

“I’m going to offend you: You clap at that, but where’s the action and the obedience?”

Jesus has a miracle for you: but you have to get a little uncomfortable, a little stupid — Jesus sends the blind man to another location to get healed, but he was walking on what Jesus told him to do. He was walking on a Word. We walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Jesus is the Word (John 1:1).

(Nick: He is the light of the world, his light is so bright he opens the eyes of the blind.)

In the NLT (New Living Translation) John 9:3 says “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.” The word “displayed” or “seen” means “to be made manifest,” “to be revealed.”

Your deficit is where God’s power will be displayed.

He goes to the pool to wash and the first thing he sees is his own reflection: He is the first person to see God’s power in his life.

Pastor Taylor shares a story about Nikki’s, his wife’s involvement in an auto accident that involved the death of a motorcyclist. She asked, “Why me?” and Pastor Taylor pointed back to John 9:3, and how their marriage “team” has led Elevation Columbia and the countless baptisms and salvations that this church has experienced.

Change the question of “Why me?” to “Who better?” -Holly Furtick