Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Jan/70

Contributor - John J. Opmeer

Title - Do We Have To Believe In Miracles?

Topic - Miracles

THERE WAS A TIME WHEN MIRACLES WERE CONSIDERED PROOF OF CHRISTIANITY. BUT IN OUR SCIENTIFIC AGE 11 MAY BE THE OTHER WAY AROUND. PEOPLE STUMBLE OVER THE MIRACLES IN THE BIBLE AS SOMETHING OUTDATED, OR AT BEST SYMBOLIC. THEY OBJECT: "DO I HAVE TO BELIEVE THOSE MIRACLES IN ORDER TO BE A CHRISTIAN?

The answer is yes.

Miracles in the Bible are not some outer shell, which can be thrown away in order to get at the heart of the story.

Miracles are at the heart of the story of salvation. And not just as a symbol. They are for real. Why do you think the disciples were so frightened at times when a miracle took place?

Go up and down the articles of faith.

Turn the pages of Old Testament and New Testament.

What happens when you take the miracles out?

No Exodus

No prophecy

No Christmas story

No Easter

No Pentecost

No church.

The Christian faith is built upon miracles. The miracle of the resurrection is its cornerstone. Says Paul: "If Christ is not raised, your faith is in vain." Its content is miracle. The miracle of the Word become flesh. Says Karl Barth, a modern theologian: "The revelation of God in the flesh does imply miracle." Its result is a miracle. Every born again Christi-an is a living illustration of the miracle of God's love. Jesus healed a man in order to convince the bystanders that he really had the power to forgive his sins. To reject the miracles is to shrink the Gospel down to mere ideas, e.g. the idea of forgiveness, rather than its reality. Therefore:. to reject the miracles is to reject the Gospel.

It is high time now to ask the question:

WHAT IS A MIRACLE ?

First, let us see what it is not, in the Bible. It is not a mere wonder (Dutch: mirakel), without further significance. It is not a mere breaking of the laws of nature, as is so often thought. The Webster dictionary defines miracle rather cautiously, as,- an apparent contradiction of known laws of nature. In this it follows the church father Augustine who already said that miracles are not contrary to nature, but only to what we know of nature. This is much better than the popular idea of miracle, and yet it does not go far enough. In the miracle we go beyond nature. There is more to life 'than can be distilled in laws of nature (C. S. Lewis: Miracles).

This can also be expressed in a different way. Miracles are not so much against nature as against sin (for this thought I am indebted t the Dutch theologian H. Berkhof). Some sincere Christians object to miracles because they seem to introduce disorder in a world of order. But in reality it is sin that is responsible for producing disorder in the world. Whenever a miracle takes place in the Bible, this disorder is revealed and subjected to God's order.

The Bible uses mainly two words for miracle- power and sign.

The Greek word translated as power we find back in our word dynamite, dynamic. The use of this word emphasizes the idea of miracle as the result of the operation of the power of God. Jesus Himself is called the power of God (I Cor. 1 : 24). The Gospel is the power of God for salvation. And, very significantly, Christians are expected to know and manifest the power of God which is in them (Eph. 1 : 19 and 6 : 10) Whenever the word power or mighty act is used in the Bible, we are not asked to dwell upon its marvelous character, but rather to see in it a revelation of God for our salvation, through a concrete act in history.

The other word for miracle is sign. The use of this word emphasizes, the idea of miracle as pointing to a reality which is unseen by the natural eye. It is very important to understand that a sign is not a proof. Proof produces science, not faith. Proof requires no decision or repentance. Proofs are out of the question, for we live by faith, not by sight. Who said prove it?" Right! Satan said ,it. He does not want us to live by faith. Proof - that is what we by nature desire. The Bible says that the Jews desire it (I Cor. l : 1825). Jesus regarded the demand for proof as one of the biggest temptations. And he said to the Jews ' "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah" (Matt. 1239).

A miracle is not necessarily a sign given by God. Satan also performs signs, to lead astray God's elect (Matt. 24:24) or to deceive (Revelation 13 13f).

Last but, not least: since a sign is -not a proof, it requires spiritual understanding in order to see Who is at work. When you are spiritually blind, you may attribute to the devil what comes from God. ','He casts out devils through Beelzebul, the prince of devils" (Luke 11 : 15). That happened in the time of Jesus. It still happens today.

A miracle is a sign. A sign of what?

A sign of the presence and the reality of the Kingdom of God, which has come in Christ, and will come in fulness with the return of Christ. "If it is by the finger of God that I cast out devils, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you," Jesus said to those who did not believe in Him.

Miracles are signs in that they make visible God's work of deliverance from evil. They are always part of the proclamation of the Kingdom. Faith comes by the hearing of the Word, but the works of God are 'transparencies' of His words. Rightly does Karl Barth state that those who want to refer Jesus' works to the sphere of mythology must ask themselves whether in that case His words do not belong there in the first place.

THE KINGDOM IS PRESENT IN JESUS

Jesus sets free from the kingdom of the devil (Luke 11).

He has power to forgive (Mark 2).

His power is that of the Lord of creation (Mark 4).

He is the Bread of Life (John 6).

He overcomes even death (John

In each case the miracle points to the presence of the Kingdom. This is the way Jesus answers John the Baptist's, question, "are you He Who is to come?": "Go and tell John what you have SEEN and HEARD" (Luke 7 : 18-23). Without the signs, Jesus would not have been crucified. The Jews were too smart to kill one merely preaching about the love of God! And if we will be hated by the world, as Jesus foretold, it will not be because of what we say, but because of the kind of people we are! It was after the raising of Lazarus that the Jewish leaders decided to get rid of Jesus.

THE KINGDOM IS PRESENT IN THE HOLY SPIRIT

This means that the Kingdom is present in the church, in as far as the church is the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. The presence of the Kingdom in the church is a very special one. We are not in the promised land, yet. We pray for the coming of the Kingdom in its fulness. We still live by faith, not by sight. We still need signs of the presence of the Kingdom.

(In this connection the sacraments must be understood). One day the signs will no longer be needed, for then that to which they are pointing will have - come in its fulness. The Holy Spirit is called a pledge or first instalment of the full inheritance waiting for those in Christ (Eph. 1 : 14).

Just as the works of Jesus were 'transparencies' of His words, so the works of the Holy Spirit are 'transparencies' of the Word. We think here of the work of redemption. The Spirit's activity in the church includes miracles as signs. 4'. .1 . . The Lord working with them, and confirming the WORD by the SIGNS that ,accompanied it" (Mark 16 : 20). Although the Reformers considered the miracles to have come to an end with the apostolic period, we must insist that we may expect the Holy Spirit to be just as free now as in the early church to -accompany the word with signs. Paul expected the Lord to work miracles in the church (I Cor. 12 : 10, 28, Gal. 3 : 5), although he seems to imply that these miracles are worked only through certain individuals gifted by the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 12 : 29). This same close connection between miracles and the gifts of the Holy Spirit can be found in Hebrews 2 : 4, "God himself confirmed their witness with signs and marvels and miracles of all kinds, and by freely giving the gifts of the Holy Spirit."

In the beginning of this article I have stated that it is necessary to believe in miracles in order to be a Christian. I did not want to in order to become a Christian. Faith is by the hearing of the word. But once there is faith, there is miracle, and to deny the miracle is to deny faith as the gift of God.

By the grace of God, miracles are performed to lead sinners to repentance and faith and as signs of God's work of deliverance from bondage to evil. Miracles never take :away the need for personal decision. Rather, they demand decision. "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name" (John 20 : 30, 31). Sometimes the response was unbelief. But, praise God, many have responded with repentance and faith: "O Lord, depart from me, a sinner"; "What must we do, to work the works of the Lord"; ',and the Lord added to their number day, by day those who were being saved."

Let us believe in miracles as SIGNS of the presence and reality of the Kingdom of God. And let us be receptive ,to the POWER of the -Lord: "Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might" (Eph. 6 10).

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