One of the things I do regularly in my church life is interact with the children. This year, in fact, I have taken up the task of teaching the young ones on Wednesday evenings. These are some of the most fun times of the week, and I love seeing the joy that they have as they hear the Bible stories, and as we do related activities to what we hear from the pages of God's story.
Tonight, we talked a little bit about Jesus' miracle of healing the man born blind, from John 9. One of the things that I enjoy seeing in the kids is how they can easily be engaged with thinking about things from the perspective of the people in the Bible. Tonight, we thought for a bit about what it means to be able to see. We tried different things, like walking without being able to see, being directed by others, and talked about the challenges of doing such things. We also talked about how it would be to receive such a miracle from the hand of Jesus, just like this man did.
While the kids may not fully appreciate the miracle actions of Jesus (or any of the rest of us, as I think about it), the reality that Jesus did miracles still strikes me sometimes. The best way I have heard it described is by one of my former professors. He said that the miracles of Jesus are kind of like a sampler pack of chocolates that you might buy if you wanted to see what the store had to offer. It's not the full selection, but gives you an idea of what is there. In a way, the miracles that we read about in the Bible are kind of like: samples of the great things that lie ahead.
I know that there are many different thoughts on the miracles of the Bible, and even the ongoing miracles that still happen. The thing I always come back to is a simple one. What is the point of God doing a miracle? Is it to show people that He is powerful? I hardly think God needs to flex His muscles for others to admire. Is it to simply show that He can? Well, Jesus Himself said that people wouldn't believe, even if someone came back from the dead, and we see that this is really the case.
So what would the purpose of a miracle be, then? That's where I go back to thinking about the specific time and place where a majority of the miracles take place. Jesus did many, but typically, they were misunderstood. Even in the case of the man born blind, the miracle proved the hardness of men's hearts more than convinced them about God's grace. The miracles freeing God's people from Egypt served to harden Pharoah's heart, rather than open it to the God of grace.
What if God actually does miracles, not to draw people to Himself, but rather, to show people where their heart really is? If people have to see the miraculous, maybe they aren't ready for the ordinariness of God, which is so prevalent in the Bible. If they see a miracle, perhaps it will harden their heart even more, and thus reveal more about their heart rather than the heart of God.
The one thing I can say for sure is that miracles point us, like the sample pack, to the fullness of new life that God will unveil at the new creation. If a miracle is an outstanding event, how much better will be the new life that is revealed when Jesus reappears? That, my friends, will truly be miraculous!
Tonight, we talked a little bit about Jesus' miracle of healing the man born blind, from John 9. One of the things that I enjoy seeing in the kids is how they can easily be engaged with thinking about things from the perspective of the people in the Bible. Tonight, we thought for a bit about what it means to be able to see. We tried different things, like walking without being able to see, being directed by others, and talked about the challenges of doing such things. We also talked about how it would be to receive such a miracle from the hand of Jesus, just like this man did.
While the kids may not fully appreciate the miracle actions of Jesus (or any of the rest of us, as I think about it), the reality that Jesus did miracles still strikes me sometimes. The best way I have heard it described is by one of my former professors. He said that the miracles of Jesus are kind of like a sampler pack of chocolates that you might buy if you wanted to see what the store had to offer. It's not the full selection, but gives you an idea of what is there. In a way, the miracles that we read about in the Bible are kind of like: samples of the great things that lie ahead.
I know that there are many different thoughts on the miracles of the Bible, and even the ongoing miracles that still happen. The thing I always come back to is a simple one. What is the point of God doing a miracle? Is it to show people that He is powerful? I hardly think God needs to flex His muscles for others to admire. Is it to simply show that He can? Well, Jesus Himself said that people wouldn't believe, even if someone came back from the dead, and we see that this is really the case.
So what would the purpose of a miracle be, then? That's where I go back to thinking about the specific time and place where a majority of the miracles take place. Jesus did many, but typically, they were misunderstood. Even in the case of the man born blind, the miracle proved the hardness of men's hearts more than convinced them about God's grace. The miracles freeing God's people from Egypt served to harden Pharoah's heart, rather than open it to the God of grace.
What if God actually does miracles, not to draw people to Himself, but rather, to show people where their heart really is? If people have to see the miraculous, maybe they aren't ready for the ordinariness of God, which is so prevalent in the Bible. If they see a miracle, perhaps it will harden their heart even more, and thus reveal more about their heart rather than the heart of God.
The one thing I can say for sure is that miracles point us, like the sample pack, to the fullness of new life that God will unveil at the new creation. If a miracle is an outstanding event, how much better will be the new life that is revealed when Jesus reappears? That, my friends, will truly be miraculous!
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