WHY DID JESUS PERFORM MIRACLES, SIGNS and WONDERS?
- ABOUT DEMANDING SIGNS [It was not necessarily wrong.]
- 1 Corinthians 1:22 - Jews demand signs...
- John 2:18 - Example (after Jesus "cleansed" the
temple): "What miraculous sign will you show us, to prove your
authority to do this?"
- [See the Old Testament verses in Part 5, Section B, which explain why it
was not always wrong to demand a sign.]
- ABOUT IGNORING SIGNS AND DEMANDING MORE SPECTACULAR ONES
- Wicked people do that
- Matthew 12:38-40; 16:1-4; Luke 11:16, 29 - A wicked and
adulterous people ask for miraculous signs (having rejected the ones
they were already given).
- Sometimes not given more signs
- Mark 8:11-12 - No sign will be given to this group of people.
[They had demanded "a sign from heaven."]
- John 6:30 - They asked for another sign, but Jesus didn't give
them one. Instead, he told them that they needed to focus on him and
what he said, rather than on the signs!]. The sign he had already
given them was intended to teach them about him ... and they wouldn't listen.
- Sometimes given signs unlike what they wanted
- Matthew 12:38-40; 16:1-4; Luke 11:16, 29-30 - No sign will
be given except for this one: the prophet Jonah.
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- NOT ALWAYS A SPECTACULAR "ON THE SPOT" MIRACLE
- Could be an event from the past: The sign of the prophet Jonah - see
Part 1, Section B3, above.
- Could be a future event, not fully understood at the time the
sign was given: John 2:18-19 - "Destroy this temple
and I will rebuild it in 3 days."
- SOMETIMES INTENDED FOR SPECIFIC GROUPS OF PEOPLE
- 1 Corinthians 14:22 - Tongues were a sign for unbelievers (not for believers)
[It was a sign indicating condemnation: Paul quotes Isaiah 28:11-12 to
demonstrate this:
Even with the sign of tongues, the people would continue to refuse to
believe God.]
- JESUS HIMSELF WAS A SIGN!
- Luke 2:34 - Jesus - destined to be a sign that many people would
speak against.
- Luke 11:30 - Jesus - a sign to the people of his generation, just like Jonah was a
sign to the people of Nineveh.
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- TO SHOW WHO HE WAS [They were "signs" that pointed to
who he was.]
- Acts 2:22 - This was one way that God showed the people his approval
of Jesus.
- John 2:11 - His first miraculous sign... in this way he revealed
his glory (= he gave them a glimpse of his greatness and power).
- John 3:2 - "We know you are from God; no one could perform such
signs unless God were with him."
- John 10:25, 38 - "The miracles I do (in my Father's name) speak
for me (proving that the Father is in me and I'm in the Father)...
Believe them ..."
- John 14:11 - "Believe what I say (that the Father is in me and
I'm in the Father), or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles!"
- TO BRING PEOPLE TO REPENTANCE AND TRUST IN HIM
[It did not always happen, though.]
- Matthew 11:20-24; Luke 10:12-15 - Those who saw the miracles and
refused to repent ... it will be horrible for them at the Day of
Judgment. Some of the worst people in the Old Testament would have repented if
such an opportunity had been given to them! [Implication: The people should
have repented when they saw Jesus' miracles.]
- John 20:30-31 - [The miracles mentioned in the book of John ...]
written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of
God... and so that you may have life because of who he is.
- [See also Part 4, Section A1.]
- NOT A PURPOSE: TO GET ATTENTION!
- John 7:2-5 - Jesus' purpose, according to his unbelieving brothers:
to become a public figure. (He did not follow their suggestions - which
would have resulted in gaining lots of attention - but went to
the feast secretly.)
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- (NOTE: Their response was often less than what it should have been.)
- RESPONSES ASSOCIATED WITH BELIEVING IN HIM (TRUSTING HIM)
- OR NOT
DOING SO
-
People believed / trusted him, when they saw his miracles. [Some
did so only because they saw them...]
- John 2:11 - He revealed his glory... his disciples put their
faith in him.
- John 2:23 - Many believed the signs...
- John 7:31 - Many put their faith in him, because of the signs...
- John 4:48, 54 - "Unless you people see signs and wonders,
you will never believe." [He healed the child...] ... and then
the whole family believed / trusted him.
- But many had a temporary or incomplete (or imperfect) faith.
- John 2:23-25 - Many believed... but Jesus knew their hearts and
did not give himself to them [to be their leader].
- John 6:26 - Example, after feeding over 5000 people: Their real reason
for following him was to get more food! When he told them to pay
attention to the spiritual significance of the miracle, they turned
away from him.
- John 12:37-43 [Many refused to believe] ... others secretly
believed, but were unwilling to publicly admit it. (They loved men's
praise more than God's praise.)
- Some would refuse to repent and believe, even after they did
see miracles. [Sometimes they would even demand more miracles! (See
also Part 1, Sec. B.)]
- Matthew 11:20-24; Luke 10:12-15 - About those who saw the miracles and
refused to repent: a horrible (but deserved) judgment awaits them.
- Matthew 13:54-58; Mark 6:1-6 - They took offense and would not
trust him or give him the honor due him... so Jesus couldn't do many
miracles there (in his hometown).
- John 6:30 (and following verses) - [After miraculously feeding
over 5000 people] they demanded another sign... ("Show us a sign, so
that we can believe you!") When Jesus did not give them another
(because of their evil motives), they became angry and turned away
from him.
- John 7:31-32 - Many believed... but the leaders wanted to arrest
him! [Later, they wanted to kill him.]
- John 7:31-32+ [Context: The formerly-blind man put his trust in Jesus.] The
leaders opposed Jesus; and they also expelled the formerly-blind man
from the synagogue.
- John 12:18-19 - After Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead... the
leaders were upset, because people were going after him.
- John 12:37-43 - After all the miracles Jesus had done, many still
refused to believe... this was in fulfillment of prophetic Scripture.
-
OTHER TYPES OF RESPONSES
(In addition to believing / trusting)
- Following him; wanting to see him
- John 6:2 - Many followed him, because they saw the miraculous
signs... [But see v. 26: It was for the wrong reason.]
- John 12:18-19 - Many people went out to meet / see him, because
of his miracle (raising Lazarus from the dead). [For some, this desire to
see him may have been nothing but mere curiosity.]
- Praising God
- Luke 19:37 - The people praised God for all the miracles they had
seen. [But where were they later, when Jesus was about to be crucified?]
- An awareness that Jesus was from God
- John 3:2 - "We know you are from God; no one could perform such
signs unless God were with him."
- Considering him a prophet / leader
- John 6:14 - When they saw the miraculous sign of feeding more than
5000 people: "This is surely the Prophet..." [But see v. 26: They
weren't interested in what he said. They just liked getting free meals.]
- John 7:31-32 - "How can a sinner do such miracles? Surely he is a prophet!"
- Some hated him and would want to kill him; they were guilty of
sin because they rejected the evidence of the miracles.
- John 10:32 - "I showed you many great miracles from the
Father. For which of them do you want to stone me?" [Verses 25
and 38: they should have believed the miracles...]
- John 15:22-25 - "They saw the miracles... and hated me and my
Father. They are guilty of sin."
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- OTHER VERSES IN THE BIBLE ABOUT MIRACLES
- There are approximately 125 verses in the Old Testament and 100
verses in the New Testament, which contain these words (sign,
miracle, wonder, etc.). [Note this study is based on the New International Version. Other words and phrases could also be included, such as
"powerful works," but they were not examined in this study.]
- TWO PASSAGES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, WHICH NEED TO BE CONSIDERED. (God gave
directions for distinguishing between true and false prophets.)
- Deuteronomy 18:21-22 - If what a prophet says does not come true, he is a
false prophet.
- Deuteronomy 13:1 - Even when a prophet's miraculous signs and wonders
do come true, if he attempts to turn you away from the true God, he
is a false prophet.
- A FEW COMMENTS ABOUT NEW TESTAMENT PASSAGES NOT INCLUDED IN THE ABOVE STUDY:
- Many verses simply mention Jesus' miracles, without mentioning things
specifically applicable to this study.
- Many verses make reference to miracles that the apostles
performed. Performing miracles was one of the signs of an apostle. (2
Corinthians 12:12; Hebrews 2:4)
- Some verses make reference to signs that are related to Jesus'
second coming.
- Many verses make reference to the existence of false signs,
wonders, and miracles. (Examples: Matthew 7:22; 24:24; Mark 13:22)
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Dennis Hinks © 1998, 2004
Note: Parts of this study are based on the New International Version, but no
verses are directly quoted from it.
Any verses quoted are either my paraphrase or common among many translations.
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