John 9:3 NIV84 and John 11:4 NIV84

There is an obvious connection here between Jesus' word is John 9:3 and John 11:4.

“but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life..."

and

“This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it.”

The Disciples, Mary and Martha all thought that their natural senses were sufficient to interpret the meaning of events and see future outcomes. The Disciples, in particular, seemed to view the blind man as a test case for their theological questions rathe then as a man in need of mercy. Jesus, on the other hand, sits uniquely in a place that He alone is able to offer accurate interpretation and prediction yet isn't interested in getting caught up in a theological debate, but instead chooses to focus on the present needs of the hurting.

In John 9:3-4 Jesus says, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, ... but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work."

I understand the statement, "as long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me..." to be a call to the disciples to get off their theological high horses and to focus on the hurting world that surrounds them.

When verse four provides context to verse three, I understand the, "but this happened..." statement to not so much mean, "God caused this man to be born blind so that I could do a miracle at this moment", as it means, "the point of the matter is not how the blind man got here, the point is that God is present in this moment and is interested in this man".