Miraculous Book-Ends

By Ron Thomas

"We must do the works of Him that sent me" (John 9:3-4).

    I am not sure if other Bible students noticed this, but if you look at John 9:3-4, you will see “book-ends” to the miraculous or the days of miracles.

    In John 9:4, rather than beginning the verse with “I”, most modern translations read “we.” Who is the “we”? This refers to Jesus and His apostles. “We must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day.”

    The works that He is speaking about is not general good works that people do, but the miraculous signs He had been doing up to this point, including the one that He was about to do. The words “day” and “night” refers to “when one is alive” and then “when one has died.”

    While it is “day”, Jesus said, “we” (Jesus and apostles) must do those things that were being done, pointing people to Jesus as the Lord’s anointed, Christ, messiah.

    If the works are the miraculous signs done by Jesus (and His apostles), the night comes when no one can do these any longer because they will have ceased to be operative (Jesus, His apostles, and a select few having the capability to bring about these miraculous signs). This has to be the correct interpretation because if the “we” can refer to others (more than Jesus and His apostles), then others (even 21st century Christians) can do what He did, which is not possible based on 1 Corinthians 13:10.

- Ron Thomas preacher for the Sunrush Church of Christ, Chillicothe, OH. He may be contacted through the congregation's website. www.sunrushchurchofchrist.org