During his ministry Jesus also performed many "mighty works" or miracles. Here we must pause, since these same miracles are a real stumbling block for many people.
We must be clear about one thing: The miracles are not "late additions" to the accounts about Jesus. They are present in the very earliest material we have. To omit them is to do unwarranted violence to the accounts. They are central to the whole purpose of the Gospel writers. For example, Jesus comes with the message of the Kingdom of God, a Kingdom that is now a reality in the lives of men. He tells people what the Kingdom of God is like, by stories and teachings. But he not only describes it; he enacts or dramatizes what life in the Kingdom of God is like. In this sense, some of the miracles are "enacted parables." In those days sickness was interpreted
as a result of human sin. Jesus cures a sick man by touching him and taking the defilement upon himself. By his action, Jesus is dramatically representing himself as the "sin bearer," the one who takes upon himself the sins of others. This is one of the characteristics of life in the Kingdom of God, that sins are forgiven. (This gives special meaning to the significance of Jesus' death, as we shall see in the next chapter.) On another occasion Jesus says, "If it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" ( Luke 11: 20). He says this after he has in fact "cast out the demon," that is, cured a man. So this action also dramatizes what the Kingdom of God is like. In it, evil is subdued and overcome by the power of God. Such miracles as these are demonstrations of God's forgiveness in action, and of God's conquest of the forces of evil.In addition to this approach to the miracles, think for two or three minutes about each of the following points, and see if together they can bring you to a fuller understanding of Jesus' miracles:
1. The fundamerftal miracle (as we saw in the last chapter) is Jesus himself. That God should be concerned enough about us to send his Son to effect his forgiving love is, if you please, the most "incredible" thing imaginable. This miracle of forgiving love is basic to the New Testament. If it is a false conception, everything else in the New Testament falls to pieces. If it is a true conception, there is nothing else quite so amazing in the rest of the New Testament.
2. If this is truly God's world, and Jesus is truly God's Son, there is no reason why Jesus might not be empowered by God to do certain things that seem highly unusual to us but would be enactments of God's power and the reality of his Kingdom.
3. Jesus does not claim "credit" for the miracles. They are a manifestation of God's power. The early Christians likewise recognized this fact, and refer to the "mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through him" ( Acts 2: 22). God is not letting Jesus "break the rules"; he is rather manifesting through Jesus the reality of his Kingdom.
4. Jesus does not, in the Synoptic Gospels at least, perform miracles to "win" adherents. He specifically repudiates this notion during his temptation. He tells people again and again not to talk about the miracles he has performed. In one place, even, he can do no miracles because of their lack of faith ( Mark 6: 5). Those who do believe can see in the miracles a demonstration of what life in the Kingdom of God is like, and can see the Kingdom of God already in operation, in the activity of Jesus.
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