I am the Man
‘I am the man’. St John tells us in Chapt 9 that the man born blind repeatedly said these words in response to the queries - if he is the man born blind who now has his sight. The entire Gospel narrative has an underlying theme of following the growth in his personal identity. The man is never given a name, even his parents refer to him as - the son who was born blind.
Unlike the apostles Peter and Paul who have spectacular name changes, our hero struggles to assert himself in a world that doesn’t even give him a name. Yet with the help of Jesus he gradually gains self-confidence and as the story progresses he stands up to the authorities even challenging their perspective. He is the everday person who refuses to be defeated. With the help of grace he overcomes his challenges and rises above the corrupt leaders.
This is our story. We are the everyday people, who despite the odds, have a conversion experience, when Jesus breaks into our lives, initiating a growing transformation that leads us to increasing self-confidence, to believe we can change the world.
Our hero, whose eyes have been opened by the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ gains the courage to tell the authorities - ‘I have told you already and you would not listen!’ and again later on - ‘Here is an astonishing thing…’ and he goes on to give the spiritual leaders a lesson in theology.
We the everyday people embrace our conversion experiences, when Jesus disrupts our regular routine, sending us along paths that we would rather not thread. But when we do, it leads us to adventure and the fulfilment of Jesus words in John 10:10 - I came that you may have life and have it abundantly.
I am an avid fan of Tolkein’s The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, and in both stories, both Bilbo Baggins and Frodo are those everyday people, who rise to the challenge and achieve what the Wizards, Elves, Men and Dwarfs could not.
Today, wherever we are in life, let us embrace Jesus’ grace and accept our adventure and say to the world - ‘I am the Man/Woman’.