A FOUR-PART STUDY OF MIRACLES

A FOUR-PART STUDY OF MIRACLES

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

by Bryan Gibson

(Part One)

Who Performed Miracles?

The list of those who performed miracles in the N.T. is probably shorter than most people think. Please notice the Holy Spirit’s role in these miracles. All those in this list performed miracles by the power of the Holy Spirit.

1. Jesus (John 20:30-31; Acts 2:22; 10:38).

a. God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit, enabling Him to perform various miracles (Acts 10:38).

b. “…If I [Jesus] cast out demons by the Spirit of God” (Matt. 12:28).

2. The seventy men Jesus sent out on a preaching trip (Luke 10:1-20).

a. While Jesus was on the earth, He could impart the Holy Spirit to others, giving them the power to perform miracles. He did this for the seventy (Luke 10:17-20).

3. The apostles (Luke 9:1-2; Acts 2:43; 5:12).

a. While Jesus was on the earth, He also empowered the apostles to do miracles (Matt. 10:1; Mk. 3:14-15; 6:7; Lk. 9:1)

b. But what about after Jesus went back to heaven? Before He left, Jesus promised His apostles that He would send the Holy Spirit to them (John 14-16), that they would in fact be “baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-8). This came to pass in Acts 2:1-4. Not only did this give them the power to perform miracles (Rom. 15:18-19), but they could also now impart the Holy Spirit to others.

4. Those on whom the apostles laid their hands (Acts 8:14-18; 19:1-6).

a. In Acts 1-5, only the apostles perform miracles. That changes in Acts 6:8 as we read of Stephen performing signs and wonders. Then in 8:6 we read of Philip performing miracles. How were these men able to perform miracles? The apostles had laid their hands on them, imparting the Holy Spirit to them (Acts 6:1-6; 8:18; 19:6).

b. While those on whom the apostles had laid their hands could perform miracles, they could not impart the Holy Spirit to others. They could not empower others to do miracles. This is clear from Acts 8. Philip was preaching in Samaria, performing miracles (Acts 8:5-8). When some became Christians in Samaria, Philip was not able to impart the Holy Spirit to them. Two apostles, Peter and John, had to come from Jerusalem and lay their hands on these people (Acts 8:14-18).

5. Cornelius and his household (Acts 10:44-48).

a. These were the only people to receive the Holy Spirit without the apostles laying their hands on them. They were baptized with the Holy Spirit, something God did to show that Gentiles could be accepted on the same basis as the Jews (Acts 10:44-48; 11:15-18).

To those who claim to work miracles today, we must ask this question? How did you receive the Holy Spirit? You were not baptized with the Holy Spirit, for this was promised to the apostles (one exception being the household of Cornelius). And you did not have the apostles lay their hands on you. According to the N.T., there is no other way that you could be empowered to do miracles.

A STUDY OF MIRACLES

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

(Part Two)

What Was Their Purpose?

Words used in the New Testament to describe miraculous activity include signs, wonders, miracles, spiritual gifts, mighty works, and in some cases, even the simple term works. Miracles were performed by different individuals by the power of the Holy Spirit (see last week’s article for details). But what purpose did these miracles serve? That’s the question we want to focus on in this article.

In general, the purpose of miracles was to confirm the word. Two passages make that very clear:

“And they [apostles] went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs” (Mark 16:20).

“How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him, God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?” (Hebrews 2:3-4).

When Jesus, the apostles, and others went out to preach, how did people know that what they were saying really came from God, that it was really the truth? By the miracles they performed. This proved to people that God was with them, and that what they were saying was from Him, that it was the truth. After Elijah raised her son from the dead, a widow had this reaction, "Now by this I know…that the word of the Lord in your mouth is the truth” (1 Kings 17:24).

· How did Jesus prove that His words came from God, that He was the Son of God, as He claimed? By the miracles He performed (Acts 2:22; John 20:30-31; 3:2).

· How did the people of Samaria know that the words of Philip were the truth? By the miracles he did (Acts 8:6).

· How did the people of Iconium know that Paul and Barnabas were preaching the truth? Again, by the signs and wonders done by them (Acts 14:3). This was God’s way of confirming that His word was being preached.

Keep in mind that at this time the New Testament had not been completely written. People could not check what they were hearing against what the New Testament said. They needed to see these miracles to know for sure that they were hearing God’s word.

But what about today? Are miracles needed today to confirm that one is speaking the truth? Today, we do have the completely written New Testament. To know if the truth is being spoken today, we simply compare it to what we read in the New Testament. The message in the New Testament has already been confirmed (Heb. 2:3-4), so when I preach what is recorded there, people can know that the “word of the Lord in my mouth is the truth.” The age of miracles has passed. They served a very important purpose at one time, but that purpose is no longer in effect.

A STUDY OF MIRACLES

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

(Part Three)

Spiritual Gifts

Included among the miraculous activity in the New Testament were “spiritual gifts.” These gifts are listed in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11: wisdom, knowledge, faith, healings, miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, tongues, interpretation. Let’s consider some other important facts about these spiritual gifts.

· These were spiritual, not natural, gifts or abilities. “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills” (1 Cor. 12:11).

· The way the Holy Spirit was imparted to these individuals was through the laying on of the apostles’ hands (Acts 8:14-22; 19:1-6; Rom. 1:11; 2 Tim. 1:6). In other words, individuals could exercise these gifts only after the apostles had laid their hands on them. Doesn’t this suggest something about how long these gifts would last? In other words, when the last apostle died, the means of imparting the Holy Spirit would no longer be present.

· In the distribution of these gifts, no one man was enabled to do all things (read 1 Cor. 12:7-11 carefully; also 1 Cor. 12:29-30).

· The purpose of these gifts was not to bring glory to those exercising them, but to edify the church (1 Cor. 14:12, 26).

· There were certain regulations as to how these gifts should be exercised in the assemblies.

- Only two or three to speak in tongues, and each one in turn. If no interpreter was present, no tongues were to be spoken (1 Cor. 14:26-28).

- Two or three prophets could speak, but they had to do it one by one (1 Cor. 14:29, 31).

- If another received a revelation, the first was to keep silent (1 Cor. 14:30).

- Women were to keep silent (1 Cor. 14:34-35).

- There could be no confusion; all things were to be done decently and in order (1 Cor. 14:33, 40).

· These gifts would not continue indefinitely: “But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they shall cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away” (1 Cor. 13:8-10). What was in part at this time was God’s revelation to man. It was not in its completed form, that is, the New Testament had not yet been completely written. But when that day came, according to this passage, these spiritual gifts would cease. They would no longer be needed.

A STUDY OF MIRACLES

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

(Part Four--Review)

We have studied the miracles of the New Testament in three previous articles. Today we will review the points made in those articles.

1. What words are used to describe miraculous activity in the New Testament?

· Signs (John 2:11; 2:23), wonders (Acts 4:30; 5:12), miracles
(Acts 8:13; 19:11), spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12:1-11), mighty works (Matt. 11:20-23; 13:54), works (John 5:20, 36; 7:3).

2. Who performed miracles in the New Testament?

· Jesus (John 20:30-31; Acts 2:22; Acts 10:38).

· The seventy men Jesus sent on a preaching trip (Luke 10:1-20).

· The apostles (Luke 9:1-2; Acts 2:43; 5:12).

· Those on whom the apostles laid their hands (Acts 8:14-18; 19:1-6; Rom. 1:11; 2 Tim. 1:6).

· Cornelius and his household (Acts 10:44-48; 11:1-18).

3. How were they able to perform miracles?

· By the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38; Rom. 15:18-19;
Gal. 3:5).

· After Jesus returned to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to the apostles, enabling them to perform various miracles. From that time on, the only way that someone could receive the Holy Spirit was through the laying on of the apostles’ hands
(Acts 8:14-22).

· The one and only exception to this was Cornelius and his household. They, like the apostles, were baptized with the Holy Spirit, but this was for a special, one time only purpose
(Acts 10:44-48; 11:15-18).

4. What was the purpose of these miracles?

· In general, to confirm the word of God (Mark 16:20;
Hebrews 2:3-4).

· When those preaching the word performed miracles, the listeners knew that God was with these preachers, and so what they were saying had to come from Him (see also Acts 2:22; 8:6; 14:3).

5. When would miracles cease?

· Remember, when the apostles died, there was no way to impart the Holy Spirit to others (Acts 8:18-19). So when the last person died on whom the apostles laid their hands, miracles would be no more.

· 1 Corinthians 13:10 has this to say about the duration of spiritual gifts: “But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.” When God’s revelation to man was completely written, these miraculous gifts would cease.