MIRACLES – THE PURPOSE
(Book 6 Lesson 1)
Key Verse: “ Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.” (Mark 16:20)
Human beings may have the intelligence and the imaginations to create a better world to live in, but there are still many aspects of life humans have no control over. There are some phenomenon or miracles that science cannot explain and intellects cannot fathom. These are, what we call, the supernatural, i.e., by the powers of God or the works of Satan. In this lesson, we shall discuss the miracles, signs, and wonders by the Almighty God.
I. Significance of Miracles
1. Nature – A Miracle
Miracle, as described in the dictionary, means a supernatural event or happening. If we see the world around us, the creation of nature, the different species of animals, birds, sea creatures, and the human body, we know that the all of these signify the miracle of creation by God. (Psalm 78:4, 11, Job 38 – 39)
2. Miracle – Its Meaning
Miracles tend to lead man to recognize that there is a God. Today, people think of miracles as events that cannot be accomplished by human beings. But miracles, in the true sense, are those performed by God. There are some supernatural happenings, however, which can be done by sorcerers, but these we do not account them as “miracles”, but merely “copy cat” phenomenon which can lead people astray. (Exodus 7:11-12, 20-22)
II. Types of Miracles
1. The Universe
The universe, which was created by God, operates on a timely and orderly track. That is how we are able to send spaceships to the moon and travel around the galaxies. The bible records many miracles of nature.
a. The Sun and the Moon: 1. When Joshua was warring against the five Amorite kings, God made the sun and the moon stand still about a full day. (Joshua 10:12-14) 2. King Hezekiah was granted 15 extra years to his life and was shown a miraculous sign of the sunlight going back 10 steps. (Isaiah 38:14-17)
b. Sea Divided: 1. The Lord God commanded Moses to raise his staff and stretch out his hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. (Exodus 14) 2. When the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan River and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the sea of the Arabah was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground. (Joshua 3:14-17)
c. The Ten Plagues: Before Pharaoh decided to let the Israelites go, God performed 10 plagues in Egypt. They are the plague of blood, frogs, gnats, flies, livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and the death of the firstborns. (Exodus 7-12)
2. The Children of God
God loves his children so much that he would care for their daily and spiritual needs.
a. Daniel and his three friends were not burned in the fiery furnace. (Daniel 3)
b. The Sick Were Healed: Lord Jesus and his disciples healed many who were lame, blind, feverish, lepers, hunchbacked, shriveled hand, …etc.
c. Evil Spirits Casted Out: Lord Jesus and his disciples casted out many demons and evil spirits.
d. The Dead Resurrected: No doctor can raise a person from the dead, only Lord Jesus has the power.
e. Holy Spirit: When one receives the Holy Spirit and speaks in an unknown tongue, this is a miracle in itself. And by the power of the Holy Spirit, a person is able to rid himself of his bad habits,
curb his fleshly desires, and instead is able to bear spiritual fruits and love others by preaching the gospel and giving to the needy.
III. The Purpose of Miracles
1. It Can Lead Man to God:
Some human beings are stubborn in their erroneous beliefs or immersed in worldly pursuit of riches and pleasures. Sometimes, it takes miracles, signs, and wonders to obey God. (Romans 15:18) More and more men and women believed in the Lord when they see their sick and those tormented by evil spirits were healed. (Acts 5:12-16)
2. It Verifies the Truth:
The disciples preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it, (Mark 16:20) because the word of Truth can bring salvation to man. (James 1:21)
3. It Marks the Apostle:
“The things that mark an apostle – signs, wonders and miracles.” (2Corinthians 12:12) Also, Nicodemus recognized that Jesus is from God because he sees the miraculous signs Jesus was doing. (John 3:2)
4. It Strengthens Our Faith:
When we listen to testimonies from others, our faith is strengthened. When we encounter difficulty in the future, we will remember the love of Christ on others thus seek after our Lord’s mercy ourselves. The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people, and all the believers were in one accord in love and faith. (Acts 5:12)
5. It Gives God Glory:
Lord Jesus changed water to wine thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him. (John 2:11) Jesus healed a paralytic and everyone was amazed and praised God. (Mark 2:12)
6. It Can Bring Justice to the Sinners:
In the Old Testament, God brought flood to destroy the sinful world, fire to annihilate Sodom and Gomorrah, and used the Red Sea to drown the Egyptian soldiers. (Genesis 6, 18:20, 19:23-28, Exodus 14)
Conclusion:
Miracles are from God for the edification of the believers. Miraculous signs testify to God’s magnificent power. The Church is the body of Christ. It must have the Truth, the power of the Holy Spirit, and with it signs and wonders to bring more unbelievers to come to know the all-merciful and righteous Lord Jesus Christ.
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