When God Opens Our Eyes: A Sermon on Matthew 9:27-35
The Oops! – Something Has Gone Wrong
Today marks another year since the Great Church of Holy Wisdom—Hagia Sophia—was converted back into a mosque. For over 1,500 years, this cathedral stood as the jewel of Orthodox Christianity. Even as a museum, its sacred integrity remained respected. But now, this conversion feels like deliberate erasure, a message to religious minorities.
As our Archbishop said, Hagia Sophia is “much more than a sacred space. It is the vision and embodiment of the substance of our Orthodox Christian Faith.” When we see such a place given over to alien purposes, something within us cries out that this is wrong.
But I found myself wondering: Has this happened before? Have God’s people ever watched their most sacred space destroyed or desecrated?
The Ugh! – The Problem Deepens
Indeed—and far more devastatingly. When Babylonians destroyed Solomon’s Temple in 587 BC, they didn’t just conquer a city; they destroyed the very dwelling place of God among His people. The holy of holies was violated. The place where generations encountered the Divine became rubble.
But here’s what’s troubling: God Himself orchestrated this destruction. Through Jeremiah, the Lord declared He would tear down what He had built because His people had turned away from Him. They had made the Temple itself an idol, trusting in stones and gold rather than the Living God who dwelt there.
“Do not trust in deceptive words and say, ‘This is the temple of the Lord!'” (Jeremiah 7:4). They thought their magnificent building guaranteed security. They confused the container with the content, the building with the Builder.
Now, reading our Gospel passage, I see two blind men and a mute man—representing, as one of my professors notes, Judeans and Gentiles who cannot see or speak truth about God. But what if we, in our grief over Hagia Sophia, are like them? What if we too are blind?
The Aha! – The Startling Revelation
Perhaps we’re blind to what God is actually doing around us. Instead of trusting in God, we’re trusting in what we can build. “Look what we accomplished!” we say. “Look at magnificent Hagia Sophia!”
When the blind men cried out to Jesus, He asked a penetrating question: “Do you trust that I am able to do this?” The issue wasn’t their need—their blindness was obvious. The issue was whether they truly understood who He was.
The blind men had to confess Jesus not just as Messiah, but as “Lord”—recognizing the universal scope of God’s kingdom. The mute man was given voice to speak in the congregation with equal rights.
What if our attachment to Hagia Sophia has blinded us to a greater truth? What if God is asking us: “Do you trust that I am able to do this?” Do we trust God can accomplish His purposes even when our cherished symbols are taken away?
We built Hagia Sophia for God’s glory, but somewhere it may have become a monument to our own glory, our own identity. When we mourn its loss, are we mourning God’s absence, or our own diminishment?
The Whee! – The Unexpected Good News
But here’s the incredible good news: God had a far greater plan. Yes, He allowed destruction of Jerusalem’s temple, but He was preparing His people for something infinitely better—the true Temple, Jesus Christ Himself, the “Incarnate Temple.”
When Jesus cleansed the Temple, He said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” He wasn’t talking about the building—He meant His body. The ultimate dwelling place of God wasn’t stone and gold; it was flesh and blood.
And now, through the Holy Spirit, we ourselves are temples of the Living God. “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit?” Each one of us carries what all magnificent cathedrals can only point toward—God’s actual presence.
This doesn’t diminish our sacred spaces, but it frees us from desperate attachment that makes us think God’s work depends on our buildings. The apostles didn’t stop preaching when the Temple was destroyed. Early Christians met in homes, catacombs, fields—wherever two or three gathered in Christ’s name.
Hagia Sophia’s loss may seem tragic, but it cannot stop the Church, because the Church isn’t a building—it’s God’s people, carrying His presence wherever they go.
The Yeah! – Living the Truth
So what does this mean practically? If we can idolize even Hagia Sophia, what else might blind us to God’s work?
What are the “temples” in your life that you’ve confused with God Himself? Your reputation, achievements, family, security, comfort? Even your religious identity? These aren’t bad—but they become idols when we trust them more than God.
God may be shaking some of these things in your life, just as He allowed the Temple’s destruction. Not from cruelty, but because He loves you too much to let you settle for substitutes.
The blind men had to let go of preconceptions about the Messiah. They had to trust that this Jesus—who didn’t look like what they expected—could open their eyes. The mute man had to trust this healing would give him the right voice to speak truth.
What is God asking you to release so you can see Him more clearly? What voice is He wanting to give you? What work is He doing that you’ve been too attached to your own plans to notice?
So, instead of mourning over Hagia Sophia, we work for justice and lift up the Gospel message. Instead of allowing grief to blind us to God’s greater work, we become, all of us together, living temples where His glory truly dwells.
The same Jesus who opened blind eyes walks among us today, asking: “Do you trust that I am able to do this?” Let us answer with the trust of those who see beyond stones to the Living Stone who builds us into something far more magnificent than we could construct ourselves.
Amen.