Reflection: Jesus' Demonstrations of God's Will

WCIU Journal: Social Justice Topic

Beth Snodderly is a past president of William Carey International University and is the editor for both the William Carey International Development Journal and the Ralph D. Winter Research Center. She holds the degree of Doctor of Literature and Philosophy in biblical studies from the University of South Africa.

November 17, 2014

by Beth Snodderly

The following is an excerpt from Beth Snodderly’s dissertation, “A Socio-rhetorical Investigation of the Johannine Understanding of ‘the Works of the Devil’ in 1 John 3:8,” downloadable as a free PDF.

Jesus demonstrated the nature of the life of God, the shalom spoken of by the Old Testament prophets, by overcoming evil with good in his acts of ministry. The appearing of the Son of God resulted in characteristics that are the opposite of those associated with the darkness and hatred of the devil. The ultimate purpose of Jesus’ appearing was to glorify God by bringing life to the children of God, replacing death that is a work of the devil in the present age.

The author of the Gospel of John selected six “signs,” or miracles, that represent the ways in which Jesus demonstrated God’s will for the world:

1. Turning water into wine (John 2:1-11) demonstrated Jesus’ power over nature. This miracle met a social need and revealed Jesus’ glory, with the result that his disciples believed in him.
2. Healing the official’s son who was dying (John 4:43-54) showed God’s will for good health and life. Jesus says as result of this miraculous sign, “your son will live.”
3. Healing the man at the pool who had been an invalid for 38 years (John 5:1-15) showed Jesus’ concern for true righteousness when he did God’s work by healing on the Sabbath and instructing the man to stop sinning. A discourse about life through the Son and the works of God follows this miracle.
4. Feeding the 5000 (John 6:1-15) again demonstrated Jesus’ power over nature and met a physical need. The bread of life discourse follows, including a definition of the work of God in verse 29, “the work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
5. Healing the man born blind (John 9:1-41) illustrated God’s will for physical wholeness. This miracle was accompanied by two statements about the work of God and was followed by a conversation about the spiritual blindness of those who do not believe in Jesus (9:35-41).
6. Raising Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1-43) demonstrated Jesus’ power over death. Jesus claims in 11:25: “I am the resurrection and the life.”

In addition to these generalizations about the six signs, statements in John’s Gospel and in 1 John about the nature of the works of God, reflect the following principles:
• Works done through God are done in the light and can be seen by others (John 3:21; 9:4; 10:25)
• The work of God is to believe in the one he has sent (John 6:29)
• God’s work can be displayed in a person’s life (John 9:3; 14:12)
• Jesus did the works his Father does, demonstrating that he is from the Father (John 10:37, 38; 14:10)
• God’s love is made evident through works that meet human needs (1 John 3:17, 18)