Jesus was not divine because He performed
miracles. He performed miracles because He was divine. The miracles of Jesus
were an integral part of His ministry. He performed miracles to help people and
to glorify God.
The Miracles of Jesus
As a wonder-worker, Jesus was in a class by Himself.
Nobody ever performed signs and wonders like He did. His miracles were unique.
Whereas, the miracles in the Old Testament were external in nature and
demonstrated God’s power over the physical realm, the miracles of Jesus had an
internal dimension and magnified God’s power over the spiritual realm as well.
By performing miracles, Jesus fulfilled the
prophecy of Isaiah who wrote, “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and
the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the
mute tongue shout for joy” (Isaiah 35:5-6). Isaiah wrote a series of “servant
songs” that described the Messiah’s ministry of healings (Isaiah 42:1-7;
49:1-13; 50:4-11; 52:13-15; 53:1-12). When Jesus healed the man with a withered
hand, Matthew said, “This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet
Isaiah” (Matthew 12:17).
John the Baptist sent messengers to ask Jesus
if He was really the Messiah. Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you
hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy
are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to
the poor” (Matthew 11:3-5).
These miracles proved to John that Jesus was
the Messiah who had been predicted by the prophet Isaiah. He was Immanuel,
meaning “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23). He was the divine Miracle Worker.
The Purpose of Jesus’
Miracles
What was the purpose of Christ’s miracles? Was
it to display His supernatural power and to amaze people with startling signs
from heaven? Did Jesus perform miracles to show off? No. Jesus refused to jump
from the pinnacle of the temple when Satan tempted Him to display His divinity
(Matthew 4:5-7). Jesus refused to perform a miracle for King Herod (Luke
23:8-9). Far from calling attention to His miracles, Jesus often asked people
not to tell anyone about them.
The primary purpose of Jesus’ miracles was to
bring glory to God. Jesus never performed a miracle for His own benefit. He
provided food for 5,000 men and their families, yet He refused to turn stones
into bread to satisfy His own hunger (Luke 4:3-4). He never performed a miracle
to convince unbelievers (Matthew 16:1-4). He could have called legions of
angels to deliver Him from the cross, but He did not. That would not have
glorified God.
Luke, a medical doctor, emphasized that Jesus
performed miracles by the power of God. Luke says that “the power of the Lord
was present for him to heal the sick” (Luke 5:17). When a large crowd of people
came to be healed and to hear the teachings of Jesus, “the people all tried to
touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all” (Luke 6:19).
Four Kinds of Miracles
The miracles of Jesus have been classified in
four categories: (1) cures, (2) exorcisms, (3) resurrections, and (4) control
of nature. Let us examine an example or two in each category.
Cures
Twenty of the thirty-six miracles recorded in
the gospels involved cures. Jesus gave sight to the blind, cleansed lepers,
made lame people walk and mutes talk, restored withered limbs, and healed men
and women of various diseases.
Some of the diseases that Jesus cured were like
death sentences in New Testament times. That was especially true of leprosy –a
disease that caused fingers, toes, and other appendages to rot and fall off.
People lived in fear of catching leprosy, so lepers were forced to live in
colonies away from populated areas, to carry bells, and to cry, “Unclean!” when
people approached them.
One time, Jesus healed ten lepers by simply
telling them to go show themselves to the priests (Luke 17:14). Along the way,
they were healed. One of the men saw that he was clean, and he came back
praising God and thanking Jesus with a loud voice. Jesus asked, “Were not all
ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?” (Luke 17:17). With this miracle, Jesus
taught a lesson on gratitude. When God blesses us, we should praise Him.
In Jerusalem, Jesus saw a man who had been
blind from birth. Jesus spat on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put
the mud on the man’s eyes. He said to him, “Go...wash in the Pool of Siloam”
(John 9:6-7). So the man went and washed, and when he came back, he could see.
Prior to giving sight to this blind man, Jesus
had said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in
darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12; John 9:5). As Jesus gave sight to this blind man, He
opens our eyes to spiritual truth. Jesus leads us out of spiritual darkness
into the light of God’s wisdom and love.
Exorcisms
One day, Jesus and His apostles got into a boat
and crossed the Sea of Galilee. When they landed in the country of the
Gerasenes, a naked man full of demons came to meet them. This man lived in the
tombs and was so wild no one could bind him, not even with chains. When people
tried to bind him, he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his ankles.
Night and day, he cried out in the hills and among the tombs and cut himself
with sharp stones (Mark 5:1-5; Luke 8:26-27).
When the demon-possessed man saw Jesus, he fell
on his knees in front of Him and shouted, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son
of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me” (Mark 5:7). Jesus
asked him, “What is your name?” The man replied, “My name is Legion, for we are
many” (Mark 5:9). Jesus ordered the demons to leave the man, and they entered a
herd of pigs that were feeding on the hillside. The pigs ran down the bank into
the lake and were drowned.
When the townspeople came to investigate, “they
found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet,
dressed and in his right mind” (Luke 8:35). The man wanted to follow Jesus, but
Jesus said, “Return home and tell how much God has done for you” (Luke 8:39).
So the man went away and told people in that region what Jesus had done for
him, and the people were amazed.
There is a lesson for us in this miracle. When
God drives out our spiritual demons and turns our lives around, we should not
hesitate to tell others how much God has done for us.
Raising the Dead
On three occasions, Jesus raised someone from
the dead: (1) the young man at Nain (Luke 7:11-16), (2) Jairus’ daughter (Luke
8:49-56), and (3) Lazarus (John 11:1-46).
Jairus, a synagogue leader in Capernaum, came
to Jesus and begged Him to come to his house and heal his twelve-year-old
daughter who was dying. On their way to the house, a man came up to Jairus and
said, “Your daughter is dead. Don’t bother the teacher anymore” (Luke 8:49).
Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed”
(Luke 8:50).
When they arrived at the house, people were
wailing and mourning. Jesus said to them, “Stop wailing. She is not dead but
asleep” (Luke 8:52). The mourners laughed at Him because they knew she was
dead. Jesus took Peter, James, and John and both parents into the room where
the girl’s body lay. Jesus took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!”
(Luke 8:54). The girl’s spirit returned, and she stood up. Jesus told the
parents to give her something to eat, and they were astonished.
The lesson in this miracle is found in the
words, “Don’t be afraid. Just believe”. When tragedy strikes and things look
hopeless, we should put our trust in God. He will see us through.
Power over Nature
The gospels include nine miracles in which
Jesus demonstrated His power over nature (Matthew 8:23-27; 14:13-21, 22-33;
15:32-39; 17:24-27; 21:18-22; Luke 5:1-11; John 2:1-11; 21:1-14).
After Jesus had fed 5,000 men and their
families with five small barley loaves and two fish (John 6:1-13), He made His
apostles get into their boat and row to the other side of the lake. Then, Jesus
dismissed the crowd and went up on the mountainside to pray.
Meanwhile, the apostles were rowing against a
strong wind, and the waters were rough. At 3 o’clock in the morning, while they
were still in the middle of the lake, they looked up and saw Jesus walking
toward them on the water. They thought He was a ghost, and they were terrified.
Jesus said to them, “Take courage. It is I.
Don’t be afraid” (Matthew 14:27). Peter
replied, “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water”. Jesus said,
“Come” (Matthew 14:28-29). So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water
toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind tossing the waves, he was afraid, and he
began to sink. He cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Matthew 14:30). Jesus reached
out His hand and caught Peter. He said, “You of little faith. Why did you
doubt?” (Matthew14:31). When Jesus and
Peter climbed into the boat, the winds died down, and the apostles worshiped
Jesus saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God” (Matthew 14:33).
The lesson is clear: We must keep our eyes on
Jesus during the storms of life. If we have faith, He will give us spiritual
power. Even when we sink into despair, He will lift us up when we cry out to Him.
Conclusion
The miracles of Jesus were actual historical
events that have been verified by eye-witnesses. Jesus’ hunger, thirst,
weariness, and death are evidences of His humanity. His miracles are evidences
of His divinity.
The thirty-six miracles that are recorded in
the gospels are only a fraction of the miracles Jesus performed in the course
of His ministry (John 20:30; 21:25).
Jesus would ask us, “Why then do you accuse me
of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? Do not believe me unless I do
what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe
the miracles that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I
in the Father” (John10:36-38).
