1 John 4:8
God is Love
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
Mark 4:35-41
Jesus Calms the Storm
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
40 He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
41 They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"
Mark 5:31-34
Jesus Heals the Woman Ill for Twelve Years
31 "You see the people crowding against you," his disciples answered, "and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' "
32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."
Mark 2:5-12
Jesus Heals the Paralyzed Man
5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 "Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?"
8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the paralytic, 11 "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"
Mark 8:1-8
Jesus Feeds Four Thousand
1 During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, 2 “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.”
4 His disciples answered, “But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?”
5 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.
“Seven,” they replied.
6 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people, and they did so. 7 They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. 8 The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
Matthew 14:13-21
13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
John 3:1-15
Nicodemus Acknowledges God is With Jesus and His Miracles
1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”
5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.
10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”
John 10:22-33
Some Pharisees Want to Stone Jesus
22 Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 24 The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
25 Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”
31 Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, 32 but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”
33 “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
John 20:24-29
Thomas Needs One More Miracle from Jesus to Believe in Him
24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
When I have listened to atheists debate believers, or different atheists comments, they often have said, if I could see one modern miracle from God, that would convince me that there is a God and God is God...Personally, I would even like to see a modern miracle from God...That would be so neat...But would a miracle from God convince the non-believer to turn to Him, and would it move out all my doubts that come up in my own faith?...Would one miracle do it?...Miracles are something or things we don't understand...Maybe seeing a miracle or even two might not convince the non-believer that Jesus is our Messiah and a Miracle Worker and Teacher...Miracles are a hard thing to understand...Even Nicodemus the Pharisee Rabbi and Teacher of Israel, had a hard time thinking through the miracles and things that Jesus was doing...Many other Pharisees had seen Jesus do good works and miracles and wanted to stone Him...Jesus was a Good Teacher and helping people, yet there was a group wanting to stone Him...When one thinks about it, if One Man is out helping others, why stone Him?...Why not try to learn from Him?...The Pharisees did not understand Him, and how He was doing these things, and seemed not to concern themselves about where He came from...Unlike Nicodemus, the other Pharisees could not and would not admit that He was a Teacher that had come from God...Jesus had done many healing miracles and feeding four thousand and five thousand, so many people were seeing what He was doing...So the Pharisees had either seen or heard of His many miracles and also His good works...Nicodemus believed in Jesus' miracles, while others he knew did not believe in them...
Miracles are not easy for us to explain, and they are so unusual our minds have difficultly in believing them...And it seems that even after we have seen many miracles, we are completely shocked to see one, two, and three more...And we still have a hard time believing in them, it seems even after we have seem a few or many...And if I, or anyone for that matter, believe in just one miracle, then that must open the door for all miracles to be possible...
The disciples had been with Jesus for quite some time, and they had seen many miracles that He had done...A storm came up one evening and they knew what He had done miracle wise, but could He save them from drowning in the furious squall?...He had done many miracles in their presence, yet they still had little faith in what He could do...When He had calmed the wind and storm, Jesus ask the Twelve, ,"Do you still have no faith?"...They were with Him (probably almost everyday for three years), they had seen Him heal and do many miracles...And through all the time He had spent with them they still had little faith, at this particular time...
Jesus can perform miracles...In the miracles above, Jesus often talks of the faith of the ones He has healed...And some of those He has healed and others watching tell Him and His Disciples, that they have never seen anything like these miracles...And I contend that Jesus and His followers are were blessed by His miracles and in seeing His miracles...And the miracles that He did while on earth are very much a basis of the foundation of our faith in Him...And He never was flashy doing a miracle...It was more natural than flashy...So I see those that those who follow Him, believe in the things that He did, and the most talked about and remembered things He did are His miracles...
There is this faith and miracle connection...Jesus asks His disciples about their faith (or no faith) when He calms the wind, with a miracle...Jesus tells the woman (He healed) it was her faith that had healed her, it was another of His miracles...And Jesus saw the faith (of the ones lowering the paralytic) and the faith of the one paralyzed and another miracle was performed...We must ask about our faith and about believing in miracles...People of faith believe that God and Jesus can do miracles...And faith is not hoping that God and His Son can do miracles, it is believing in them and that they can do miracles...The question, I have, is does one miracle strengthen (my) faith or does two or more?...Especially after the Disciples for three years saw miracle after miracle, and they still did not believe...
Jesus teaches us to have faith...But He does not want our faith to be totaling based on miracles...Even a little faith helps us understand miracles a little better...But eventually, we must accept Him and move toward a stronger, more mature faith...But faith believes in miracles, but it seems to me (and this is only one opinion) that after Jesus left and ascended to heaven, our miracles has been subtle and over time...Over a gradual time period, it is difficult to see how God has transformed us...Look back thirty years in your life, and see if God has delivered you or transformed you in one way or another...Could you have pictured your being this way, thirty years ago?...It seems that the Holy Spirit works quietly and subtly in our lives, and is doing many miracles...
Remember in your prayers, we need faith and ask that you faith get stronger...Always remember, the power of faith...And I believe that people of faith must believe in miracles...The main reason is God and Jesus can do miracles at anytime through the Holy Spirit...The can do subtle natural miracles that we do not even notice...And often I wonder, if how God and His Son are transforming lives are many of His miracles today...And as said earlier, this transformation may be the miracle and work of the Holy Spirit...Also as stated earlier, miracles are a hard thing to understand...So maybe when we realize that we really do not understand everything, that we can better believe in miracles and the Holy Spirit...
People of faith believe in miracles, and this gives us hope...People of faith believe in LOVE...Love to me is a miracle, yet is hard to understand and hard to explain and hard to write down the definition of love on paper...Love is wondrous, excitable, mystery, and yet a marvel....And we cannot see love, in a sense..Love is much like a miracle..Do we need to see everything or something physically to believe in it?...Jesus told Thomas “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”...By seeing, Thomas believed, but even at that particular point in Thomas' life -did he really understand much or all about the divinity of His LORD and His God?...