Sermon – Looking for Monsters
1 Samuel 16:7; John 9:1-25
Farmville Presbyterian Church
7/13/25
Have you ever seen a monster?
Now, before you answer that, let me clarify what I am asking: this question has nothing to do with that creature that lurks under your bed or in your closet; I am not talking about the boogey man or anything that we use to scare children; I am not referring to anything that frightens us on the silver screen or on Halloween. I am not even talking about your second cousin’s out-of-control little children who can be quite terrifying. None of those things are on my mind for this.
Nevertheless, chances are that you have seen a monster among us. Have you ever seen someone who had a cleft palate or was born deaf or had Down syndrome? Have you ever seen anyone who was born with crooked legs or any other congenital disorder? Have you ever seen anyone who was born with any physical deformities or defects? Considering someone is born with a birth defect every 4 and ½ minute, the odds are good, even right here.
If you have ever seen anyone like that, then you have seen a monster – let me explain. Some time ago, I was listening to a man tell the story of his grandmother and the birth of his aunt. His grandmother, being a good, old-country Italian woman, had the tendency to bite her knuckles when she was shocked or overcome with emotion. This was not an everyday occurrence, but she did remember doing that while she was pregnant with her second child. When the baby was born, the newborn was missing the fingers on her left hand, the same hand that her mother had bit, so the mother was convinced that her daughter’s deformity was the result of her habit. In the mother’s mind, the birth defect was an indicator of something else that went wrong, even if made no sense in a rational way.
These birth abnormalities in generations past were medically called “monstrosities,” not because people really looked like monsters, but scientifically the word “monster” comes from the Latin word that means “to show” – as in our word demonstrate. When people were born with these defects, the uninformed, common thinking was that the deformity was a sign of something else. Like the stars not being aligned or the mother having eaten something she should not have or something else bad about women (it is easy to blame the mother). The point is that there was a clue to the reason for the deformity right there – something was being shown, even if these poor reasons were old wives’ tales. People have always looked for answers, especially if they don’t like the truth.
This story in John is no different. Jesus and his disciples were traveling and discover a man who was born blind. His blindness makes the man a monster in this special sense because his blindness shows something – back then the common assumption was that this birth defect was the evidence of sin. Naturally, his parents must have sinned because he was born blind. Only sinners would have children with such a condition. His blindness showed the world around him the sin that brought this beggar into the world. And *** because he was without sight, he was worth less as a human being. This was as obvious to them as the blindness itself. Nobody argued this; nobody disputed it; it was accepted fact. It is easy to assign blame when others are suffering. It is easy to judge when we are on the outside.
That’s when Jesus enters the story. Notice that the question goes right to the heart of the story. Why is this man born blind? Why is this man a monster? What does his infirmity show us? John really wants us to hear the answer – no delaying or parables or lengthy conversations – Jesus answers, except Jesus gives us more than they are asking.
Jesus’ response, however, is both good and troubling. First, there is a reason that this man has suffered his whole life, been ostracized, and forced to rely on the goodwill of others. That reason is to provide a way for God to show his glory and love. That is a great reason for anything. If something in your life invites God’s glory, that must be a good thing, right?
BUT, if you follow that thought logically, that same idea also sounds like God intentionally blinded this man in the womb so that one day Jesus might come across his path and heal him before people who largely did not believe him anyway. That seems a little sadistic. That is more than a little troubling. And that is not our hope for God. I honestly don’t believe God tortured this man’s existence for this one glimpse of glory and a few years left of sighted life. Of course, I am not God, but I don’t think God toys with us like that. Thankfully, there is still another way of looking at this.
Instead of thinking that the one and only person who was ever born to show God’s glory was this one blind beggar, what if everyone who happens to be born with a problem or defect or deficiency is meant to be an opportunity for God’s glory to shine? All who enter this world as something other than “normal” are meant to point us to God’s glory somehow. This makes a whole lot more sense and relates to people then and today, as we continue to have those around us who are holding difference in body, mind, and spirit. It is so easy to consider others monstrous if they are too different, but this is the point. All of our lives are supposed to show us something about God.
Maybe, just maybe, what’s different in this world can be helpful, not that pain and suffering are good, but in the presence of such an obvious physical need we are invited to see the difference with love. Rather than diminish the value of those who might be lacking in some way, we are to highlight their value as vessels of God’s grace – opportunities to share in something good. Where good is missing in an obvious way – we reply with love and compassion and appreciation.
After all, in the presence of what is generally bad, it is easier to notice and appreciate the good. You appreciate love because you also have felt less than loved at some point in your life. You know the gift of warmth and light because you have also known cold and dark. Some know what it is like to be hungry and know the value of good, regular food. If you have ever faced what is wrong in this world, you should be more aware and thankful for what is right when it comes.
Take the story from John. Who is the only person who seems to appreciate what happened? Everyone else dodges and tries to explain away and turn blessing into curse. The man who now sees has received the light of God. It is no accident that in the chapter before, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.”
The light exposes what is in the darkness. It shines and makes clearer what we can see. We have to be able to see each other as children of God, made in God’s image, each and every one of us. We are all the same precious gift born into this world. Some are born into luxury, others into poverty; some into freedom, others into oppression; some into security, others into conflict; some into health, others into disease and illness; some into some abilities, others into other abilities; some into one skin, others into another. Each life is just as precious, but the moment we are identified as “something other,” once we have been judged acceptable or monstrous, our life’s value begins to change and the value God puts on our lives is distorted in our human thinking.
It was not very long ago that the governor’s office was embroiled in a blackface scandal. Taking someone’s appearance and making a joke about it hardly constitutes a godly heart. What was originally meant as innocent fun is in reality something that denigrates God-given humanity. Here the color of one’s skin was made a costume, something to laugh at. I would love to believe that human beings can do better, but without God’s grace, we will continue to struggle as we see each other differently and with different values.
We are left with a world that continues to know brokenness, where we continue to judge each other and value life on a sliding scale. And yet, this story from John should give us hope that where God is at work, we may see God’s abundance come where we are lacking. This brings to my mind impoverished neighborhood development, racial reconciliation movements, community food sharing, and missions that give the disabled folk better abled and appreciated lives. God’s Kingdom is about building these works and showing the value in people through community. Some of you have never suffered a monstrosity yourself, but God has put us on this world to show our sister and brother that deep down we are all children of God. To God be the glory. Amen.