The Hint of Miracles

What if miracles really do occur?

Describe the image.

Here we see one of the earliest examples of Christian art. The painting reads like a cartoon beginning on the middle right with the paralyzed man lying on his pallet. Moving left to the upper center, we see Jesus telling the man to, “Get up, take your mat...” (Mark 2:1-11). The man obeys Jesus and lifts the mat, as seen on the left. This is a miracle.

What is a miracle?

People often use the word miracle loosely to describe anything that does not seem likely to take place. “It will be a miracle when the COVID virus is under control.” Merriam-Webster defines a miracle as “an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs.” Jesus turning the water into wine is an example of a miracle because the water turned to wine without a natural explanation except for Jesus’s presence and command.

What are some other examples of miracles, both in the technical sense and the loose sense?

How do people experience miracles?

In 2006, The Pew Forum conducted a 10-country survey (US, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Kenya, Nigeria, S. Africa, India, the Philippines, and S. Korea) regarding miracles. The results, detailed in a 231-page report, show the number of personal witnesses to either a healing, miracle, or exorcism to be in the millions (www.pewresearch.org/religion/2006/10/05/spirit-and-power/).

Have you ever seen or experienced something unexplainable by natural or physical causes?

Do you believe that a miracle could happen to other people?

What is an argument against miracles?

Philosopher David Hume (1711-1776) was an influential opponent to the existence of miracles. He argued (www.mytutor.co.uk/answers/6428/A-Level/Philosophy/Explain-Hume-s-Argument-Against-Miracles/):

1. Natural law is a description of a regular occurrence.

2. A miracle, by definition, is a rare occurrence.

3. The evidence for the regular occurrence is greater than that for the rare.

4. A wise man always bases his belief on the greater evidence.

5. A wise man should never believe in miracles.

What do you think is the strength and weakness of this argument?

Some theistic (those who believe in God) responses to Hume’s argument

1. Natural laws may be overcome by intelligent forces. For example, we overcome gravity to propel people into space.

2. Just because an event is a rare occurrence does not mean that it should not be believed. For example, the vast majority of scientists believe in the Big Bang theory. And yet, the Big Bang only happened once. Does that mean it should not be believed?

3. If God is the Creator, then he can overcome natural laws.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of these arguments?

Why miracles?

The apostle John, one of Jesus’s twelve disciples, said that he recorded Jesus’s miracles in order to demonstrate that Jesus was sent from God and could be trusted to give eternal life to those who believe in him (John 20:31). When he was on the earth, he healed the diseased, the blind, and the deaf. He commanded a storm to stop and it did. Several times, he brought back to life those who had died.

What do the miracles of Jesus suggest to you?

Do you think miracles suggest the existence of God? Why or why not?