Miracles

We're back in John 2, looking again at this miracle of Jesus. As I thought about our text, it seemed good to step back and take a look at the larger topic of miracles. So, what I'm going to do is deal with three questions: What is a miracle? Why did Jesus do miracles? Does Jesus still do miracles? Parts of the sermon may seem a little abstract, but I think that you will find that the answers to these questions can be very helpful. Our text is the first twelve verses of John 2. Please listen as I read.

So, what is a miracle? I think that it's fair to say that most people today look at this question from a particular vantage point. And that starts with this idea: the laws of nature. Our world acts in a certain way. If you hold something up and then let it go, one of these laws comes into play. If you mix hydrogen and oxygen in a certain way, another law comes into play. If you smash one atom into another just so, another law comes into play. There are these laws that govern how things function, the laws of nature. There are those who say that these laws cannot be broken. So, for these folk, there are no miracles. Then there are others who say that they can be broken. God can break these laws of nature. When he does, that's a miracle.

Viewing things in this way is actually not so good. It's too easy to fall into the trap of thinking that life goes on in the way that it does, day after day, because of these laws. And thinking in that way affects how you live, day after day. Now the Christian will make clear that God made the laws, but still it is too easy to live as if creation were on automatic pilot with these laws running things. God is there, but all he is doing is watching it all. To be sure, every once in a while God decides to break one of these laws. But normally, the laws of nature run things.

Let me offer something better. Instead of thinking in terms of laws of nature, picture life this way. At every moment of every day God decides what is going to happen. So, if I lift something and then let it go, God decides what will happen. And ordinarily he decides that the object will fall. This gets a bit more interesting when you ask a different question. Instead of asking, 'Why do things fall?', what if you ask, 'Why is my heart still beating?' You could talk about chemistry and electrolytes and all of that - and there is a place for that. Or you might talk about God's eternal decrees. But a more profound answer, one that helps us to understand certain aspects of life better, goes something like this. Your heart is beating because God has decided to make it beat one more time, and then another time, and then another. Oh sure, you can describe this using scientific talk, and that's fine. But it's fine only if you also remember, that all of this works - from the way things fall, to how atoms hold together or fly apart, to why your heart continues to beat - because at each moment God decides that all of those things are to happen. Without that very basic understanding, then all of this is just one big machine run according to some almost unbreakable laws. Maybe God was intimately involved in getting this machine started, but he isn't involved like that now.

And here's my concern. Even for people who don't have a philosophic bone in their body, people who are completely uninterested in such things, when they adopt a 'laws of nature' kind of understanding, there is a certain tone to life, a way of thinking about how life works, and about what we can expect. It can get to feel a little impersonal, a little mechanical. But it's different if you see God intimately involved in every moment and every part of Creation. It feels different. For one thing, you will feel that God is so very near. He is involved intimately involved, personally involved. So, your life is a matter of dealing with this Person and not some laws. There is a different tone to life.

There is another difference. Seeing things this personal way reminds us that our continued, moment-by-moment existence depends on God's moment-by-moment decisions. At any second, we could cease to exist, not just die and go to heaven, but cease to exist. We are, only because God continues to decide that we should be.

This is both so very humbling and so very encouraging. It is humbling because our very existence hangs by a thread. We could be born with good genes, take good care of our health, exercise vigorously and regularly, eat really well, get lots of sleep, but that does not determine what happens in the next moment. What happens in the next moment is God's decision. We determine nothing. He determines everything. Seeing this makes it clear that we are really small and completely without power. We depend completely on him. It is also so very encouraging because this means that every single one of us is known intimately by God. He knows you and has decided, at least up to this point, that you should continue to be. He makes that decision for each of us, personally. You are, because God continues to decide that you should be. This is the difference between living as a machine in a machine and living as a person, known by a Person and loved as a person. This is a personal universe, run by a Person for the sake of persons. That opens up a lot of possibilities. And it also explains miracles. God normally does something one way. In fact, it seems that he always does it that way. But then, one day he decides to do it differently. Normally, water stays water. This time it was changed into wine. God can do that. It's his decision.

Now, do I have a verse for all of this? I actually have two. The first is from Acts 17 where Paul is evangelizing some philosopher types in Athens. 'God is actually not far from each one of us, for "In him we live and move and have our being"'. Living, moving and continuing to exist are all because of what God is doing. The other is from Colossians 1. 'For by him [Jesus] all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.' The only reason that the atoms of Creation (and that includes the atoms that make up your body) don't fly off in ten thousand directions and then disappear into nothingness is that Jesus holds them together, moment by moment.

Now, for our next question: Why did Jesus do miracles? ‘Why?’ questions often have layers of answers, and this is no different. And John helps us out. He tells us about the result of this miracle. 'This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and he manifested his glory.' Jesus did miracles to highlight his glory. It was a way of saying, 'Hey, look at Me!!' And, of course, if you had been there and had seen this miracle, that's exactly what you would have done. Jesus does miracles to draw attention to himself. And this, of course, is something that he does quite a lot. 'On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink."' And there are lots more examples.

Now, a good question to ask here goes something like this. Why can he get away with that and I can't? If I do something like that I'm bragging, drawing attention to how great I am. That's pride. And pride is sin. Does Jesus get a pass on that? Is it okay for Him to sin? Well, it's not sin for him. He's supposed to be the focus of our attention. He is, after all, the God who decides to keep this Creation in existence, moment by moment. So, Jesus isn't bragging about anything. He's simply stating a fact. 'I am the most important Person in all Creation.' And that's the truth. And miracles are one of the ways that he uses to get us to see that.

But he doesn't draw attention to himself merely for his own sake. Remember, he doesn't need us. He doesn't need our worship. He doesn't need us to notice Him. God –  Father, Son and Spirit – was quite happy without us before any of this existed. We are unnecessary. But he still does these miracles. Why? And here is another layer to our answer. He does miracles for our sake. We need to see more and more clearly that he really is that important. We need to see that he really is the focus of all of Creation. We need to see that we have nothing to brag about. But our sin gets in the way. We have things so upside down. So, Jesus comes. And when he gets here he doesn't give a lecture and then leave, expecting us to figure it all out. He teaches, to be sure. But he also does miracles so that we get it. Life works when we understand that he is the center and that we are not. He is God, with all that that means, and we are mere creatures, supremely dependant creatures.

When we are drawn to him and see him for who and what he is, then life works so much better. At that point, life becomes really good. And to convince us of this, there is wine for a wedding. We'll return to this aspect of our text next week, but for now it's enough to see that Jesus wants us to live well. He wants us to flourish. Getting there starts with our understanding. But it doesn't stop there. It affects the whole person, body and soul. As a result, we know that we are not machines that exist as a part of a bigger machine. We are people, and the most profound context for our lives is personal. We know that we are, that we continue to exist, simply because of his kind decision. And we know that he is the focus of it all. And we come to know all of this, in part, because he does miracles. So, why does Jesus do miracles? First, he does them for his own glory. But, he also does them for our good.

Now, for the last question. Does Jesus still do miracles? I have no doubt that all Christians will agree that he can do miracles. He has not lost any power since he returned to heaven. So, the 'can he' question is a non-question. But does he? Or to put that another, more practical way, is it okay for you to ask him to do a miracle? Well, as you know, there are those who have come to the conclusion that the age of miracles is over. Jesus certainly can do miracles but he just doesn't any more. I once thought that way. But as I've thought about it more and more, I can't find a verse that says that. Read the Gospels. How many people asked for a miracle and Jesus granted their request. Asking seemed good and right, and I see no reason to think that has changed.

But we need to be careful. Here's my concern. We live in a very self-centered age. The common opinion is that life is all about me and my comfort. And that attitude has affected the Church today. It has affected us. It is easy for us to forget that what is of first importance is that Jesus' glory be manifested. He is the center of all of this, not us. So, when we consider asking for a miracle that needs to be our first consideration. Will a miracle draw attention to Jesus? Will it make him look good?

A month or two ago I mentioned during our Bible study that I was having problems with my left eye. There was some question about whether I could lose my sight in that eye. My prayer request to the group was about being able to respond well to what Jesus was doing, to respond as a faithful, submissive disciple. I remember someone saying something about how there should be prayer for healing. I had thought about that before I said anything. I knew that to ask for that would have been fine since Jesus still does that sort of thing. But I decided not to pray for healing, whether by miraculous means or not. It seemed to me, based on Scripture and my experience, that I could do a better job of making Jesus look good by having those eye problems and trusting him in the midst of them. It's these kinds of issues that we need to carefully consider as we decide about asking for a miracle.

There is another factor when it comes to the question of asking Jesus for a miracle. Such a request needs to be done in faith. Here I'll mention a bit of Scripture that has stood out to me for years. 'And Jesus could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief.' If we're going to ask Jesus to do to a mighty work, a miracle, we need to do that in faith. Now, believing Jesus for a miracle is not the same as being able to wish for something really, really hard and with complete certainty that it's going to happen. That's not faith in Jesus. That's magic. Faith is not informing Jesus about what he ought to do for us. Faith is responding to him in terms of who he is and what he promises. He sets the agenda. And one way faith show itself is by simply trusting him, regardless of the outcome. A good example comes from Paul's life.

… a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

So, here is Paul with this thorn. I'm guessing that he's thinking that getting rid of this problem would be so good. 'Lord Jesus, if this were gone I could be a much better apostle. I could minister more effectively so that many more would hear about you and grow in faithfulness. So, what do you say? Please get rid of this problem.' Paul prays in faith. He knows that Jesus can do this. That's just obvious. And he shows his faith by trusting Jesus when the answer is a clear, 'No'. 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' So, what does Paul do? Mope? Complain? 'You healed Eutychus and the lame guy in the Temple and a ton of others, but you're not going to heal me!?! That's not fair.' No, that's not how Paul responds. Instead, there is this: 'Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses... For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities.' Do you see what he's saying? 'According to Jesus, my having this problem will actually make it possible for me to do an even better job of making him look good. So, I'm all for it.' And that was Paul's faith. So, when you ask Jesus for a miracle, bear in mind that it needs to be done in faith, and that faith is trusting him, whether he does the miracle or not.

I have one last thought. It comes from one of Paul's doxologies.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

It's hard to miss the note of the glory to God. This is what motivated Paul. He wanted to see the glory of God displayed throughout the world. He wanted to make him look as good as he really is. But then, there is Paul's description of our God. He is 'is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think'. Jesus still does miracles. He can do so much more than we have been expecting. He can do more even when we are expecting more. Though we need to be careful, I think that we need to feel free to ask for miracles, and to do that so that Jesus' glory will be displayed and lots and lots of people would believe in him.