Jesus the Healer
0 comments | Posted by Steven Layson on 20 Feb 2011 in From Steve's Study ::
There are not too many more controversial aspects of the Christian faith than the miracles of Jesus. For the modern reader, it seems ridiculous to suggest that anyone could walk on water or feed 5000 people with just a few sandwiches, let alone heal the sick with just a touch or a word, and definitely not raise the dead. For many today, this is one of the great sticking points of the Christian faith. But does it need to be like this? I don’t think so.
The answer is not for Christians to change their tune and start denying the miracles took place (as some have done), or try to explain them away as mere metaphors or analogies. There is simply too much corroborating evidence (from both Christian sources & those that were hostile to Christianity) that Jesus was a real person who did “extraordinary things”. Some interpreted these works as “sorcery”, but none denied that Jesus did amazing things.
In the end, it comes down to a question of world-view. If you believe that there is no such thing as a “miracle” & that all things have a rational explanation, you will seek to explain away the things Jesus did. However, if you are prepared to accept that there is more to life than what we can see and touch and explain, indeed that there could be a super-natural being behind the universe, then the miracles will not be such a problem.
The question is, what is their significance? Well certainly one of the purposes of the miracles was to give credibility to Jesus’ claims to be the Son of God. These amazing deeds are precisely the kinds of things you would expect to see from someone, if they were the Son of God. Secondly, they demonstrate God’s character of love and compassion. Jesus shows us that he is interested in the outcasts of society – the “damaged goods”. He is prepared to speak with them, touch them and love them in ways that no one else would. Thirdly, they show the people of Israel that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies such as Is 35:5,6, “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy”. And Finally, they give a picture of the joy that awaits us. The promise for those who put their faith in this man is that they will spend eternity in God’s New Creation, where there will be “no more death or mourning or crying or pain”. (Rev 21:4)
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