Christ's Doctrine of Faith: A Study of "Believing" in John's Gospel (John 9:38)

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The fifty-first time we see the terminology of belief in John’s Gospel is John 9:38, which says: “And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him” (KJV). So, let’s examine the passage’s immediate contexts and insights about faith, shall we?

First, what is the context of John 9:38? Upon learning of the formerly blind man’s expulsion from the synagogue because of his defense of Jesus, the Lord Himself happens upon the man and asks him if he believes on the Son of God. The man answers Christ’s question by asking Him who the Son of God is, so that he can believe on Him. Jesus replies to the formerly blind man that he has seen Him, and that He is the One who is talking to him. Grasping what the Son of God is saying, the formerly blind man addresses Him as Lord and tells Him that he believes, after which he worships Him. This is the context of John 9:38!

Second, what are some facts about faith in John 9:38? I can think of at least two truths. The first is one we covered in the previous post: each person has the choice concerning who or what he will put his trust in, or what he will embrace as truth or the standard of truth. We see this in how the formerly blind man, after being asked if he believes on the Son of God, asks who the Son is so he can believe on Him, and he does believe in Him when Jesus reveals that He is the Son of God. The second fact is that faith leads to the worship of what you trust in, because the formerly blind man worships Jesus after he declares his faith in Him (and this confession of faith is another fruit of faith-Romans 10:6-14 cf. Matthew 12:33-37). These are some truths about faith from John 9:38!