Sunday: Signs, Works, and Wonders

Daily Lesson for Sunday 17th of November 2024

In addition to the specific miracles that John used to point to Jesus as the Messiah, he also recorded the broader discussion about the signs, works, and wonders that Jesus did.

The signs and wonders, in and of themselves, were not proof of His Messiahship because many prophets, sometimes false ones, also performed miracles. John did not record the signs because they pointed to a great miracle worker only. The signs that John wrote about had the unique character of pointing to Jesus as the Messiah and to show that He, indeed, came from God the Father Himself.

Read John 5:17,20,36-38. How do these verses describe the relationship between Jesus and God the Father, especially in the context of the signs?

Image © Kim Justinen from GoodSalt.com

Jesus used the signs to show His close working relationship with the Father. The two were one. The works showed that “ ‘the Father is in Me, and I in Him’ ” (John 10:38, NKJV; see also John 14:10-11.)

The purpose of Jesus’ coming was to do the works of the One who sent Him, in order that these works might be made manifest to the world. That is, He came to do the work that the Father sent Him to do, and the works that He did testified, clearly, that He was from the Father.

And yet, as we have already seen, even despite the powerful signs and the testimonies from many people, people still chose not to believe.

The religious leaders asked Jesus, “ ‘How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.’ Jesus answered them, ‘I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me’ ” (John 10:24-25, NKJV).

If Jesus had come right out and said He was the Messiah, the religious leaders—looking for anything they could find against Him—would have pounced on Him. Knowing this, Jesus instead pointed to the works He had done. If Jesus had said He was the Christ, they could easily seek to deny that. But how could they deny the signs, the works, and the wonders? These were powerful testimonies to who He was and where He had come from.

How can we protect ourselves from having the kind of hard hearts we see among these religious leaders? In what ways might we be fighting against the work of God in our own lives?

<–Sabbath Monday–>