Eight Sign Miracles in John - Paper submitted for Bible 323

John used eight specific miracles as signs to reveal the Deity of Christ.  His purpose for including what is referred to as the sign miracles was explained at the end of his Gospel, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.“ (John 20:30-31, ESV)

Three words are key to John’s Gospel – signs, believe, life.  Merrill Tenney explains that the three words give a clue to John’s organization of his Gospel.  He says that the signs point out different areas of Jesus’ power, and that they “collectively bear witness to the central doctrine of the Gospel, His deity.” (Tenney 1961, 190)    Each word builds on the other; the signs were proof of the power of God as demonstrated through Jesus, belief follows the signs and life is then given to those who believe.

The miracles are things that man is powerless to change. Man, by himself, cannot instantly change water into wine, cause a child to be healed with only a word, heal a man who cannot walk, feed a multitude with only five loaves and two small fish, walk on water, heal a man born blind or raise someone from the dead.  Only God can do those things.

The first sign miracle recorded in John is that of turning the water into wine at the marriage in Cana.  The setting of this miracle was a celebration, a wedding.  Jesus was invited to this wedding, along with his family and his friends.  While he was there, a major social faux pas happened; the host had run out of wine.  Mary, possibly because she was in some way involved with hosting responsibilities, approached Jesus and told him the predicament.  He responded to her with the statement that his hour had not yet come.  His response by some is seen as disrespectful, yet as Dr. Constable points out, Jesus was explaining to her that he would handle the situation in his own way at his own time. (Constable 2013, 45)  Mary seemed to understand this, as she told the servants standing nearby to do whatever he directed them to do. 

Jesus directed the servants to fill six jars that were standing nearby to the brim with water.  By filling them to the brim, no one could claim that Jesus had simply added wine to the jars.  He then told them to draw out some of the water and take it to the steward in charge of the wedding.  Either at the point the water was drawn out, or at the point when the steward tasted it, the water had become high quality, very good wine.  When the steward tasted the water, he proclaimed it the best, and commented that the host held back the good wine until last.

This miracle was the first one to show his disciples and those in attendance at the wedding that he was, in fact, God incarnate.  Who else but God has control over nature and could create wine out of water by just speaking?

The second miracle recorded was one that was performed at the request of a father whose son was ill.   Jesus had lived and worked in Galilee for years before his public ministry, yet the people there did not accept him.  Now that word of him had spread, they were seeking him out.  In this case, it was a nobleman who sought him out to heal his son, who lay dying.  The event comes after Jesus had spent time with the woman at the well in Samaria, where he explained that he was the living water.  Because of his conversation with her, he had an opportunity to minister further in Samaria. 

The nobleman heard that Jesus was coming, and asked him to come down to Capernaum and heal his son.  At first, Jesus pointed out that their faith was built on seeing signs and that without them, they would not believe.  The nobleman was persistent though, and Jesus told him that his son lived.  He returned home to find that his son not only had been healed, but had been healed at the same moment that Jesus told him he would live.  Jesus was able to heal the boy over a great distance, proving that space and time meant nothing to him. He has the power to give not only physical life, but spiritual life as well.  All it took was for Jesus to say that he lived for the boy’s life and health to be restored, once again confirming his deity.  As Morris points out it was a simple “word of power” that gave life. (Morris, 1989, 190) As a result of this, not only did the nobleman believe, but his entire household believed also. 

The third sign that John records is the healing of the lame man.  This miracle is considered by Dr. Towns to be part of the key chapter of the Gospel of John in that it records the beginning of the hostilities towards Jesus on the part of the Jewish leadership. (Towns 2002, 47)  It is after this miracle that Jesus makes his strongest claim to deity. 

In Jerusalem there was a pool that was a gathering place for those who sought healing of various ailments.  It was believed by the people to have curative powers, and the first one to enter the pool when it was disturbed would be healed of whatever ailed him.  As this was a feast time, there were more people present than would normally have been there. 

Jesus was walking by and saw a man who had not walked for 38 years.  The first question he had for the man was “Do you wish to get well?” (John 5:6b, NASB).  The handicapped man, apparently not knowing who Jesus was, explained that he had no one to help him down to the water.  At this point, Jesus told him to stand up, take up his mat, and walk.  Without hesitation, the man stood up, picked up his mat, and walked. 

The Jewish leadership encountered him, and promptly told him that it was not legal for him to be carrying his mat on the Sabbath.  He countered by telling them that he had been directed to by the man who had healed him.  When pressed further, he could not say who that was.  Later, he went to the temple, where Jesus found him, pronouncing him whole, and telling him to sin no more so nothing worse would happen to him.  The man went and told the Pharisees that it was Jesus who had healed him. 

This action, healing a man on the Sabbath and violating their narrow interpretation of the law, angered the Jews and they began to persecute Jesus.  Jesus countered their accusation with “My Father is working until now, and I myself am working.” (John 5:17, NASB).  They understood exactly what he meant by that – he was making himself equal with God.  Charles R. Erdman says that it was “not sufficient to say that Jesus was claiming merely to imitate the beneficent work of God, he was asserting that his work was identical with that of God, and that he sustained an absolutely unique relation to God, whom he declared to be “his own Father.”” (Erdman 1966, 58) Jesus proved that he had the power to restore life to limbs that had not worked in many, many years.  The giver and Creator of life would not be bound by man’s rules, including healing on the Sabbath.

The fourth miracle benefited a large number of people, as Jesus revealed himself to a large crowd.  As it was the Passover, a multitude had gathered, and many of them had been following Jesus because they had seen and heard of his many miracles.  Jesus had compassion on them and asked Philip about providing a meal for the people.  Philip responded with a comment about how much money it would take to feed them just a little bit. Andrew spoke up and mentioned that there was a small boy present who had five small barley loaves and two fish. 

Jesus then directed the disciples to instruct the people to sit down in organized groups, took the bread and the fish, and after thanking God for providing, had the disciples distribute it to the people.  The loaves and the fish multiplied themselves in such a way that there were twelve baskets of food left over; one for each disciple. 

Jesus proved once again that he was the master of the elements.  Who but God could turn five loaves and two fish into a meal that would serve thousands?   An interesting observation by John MacArthur points out that Jesus performed this miracle and the first miracle at Cana using the elements that he would later use to institute Communion.  (MacArthur 2005, Location 46957)

This miracle segues to the fifth miracle.  The people were so impressed by Jesus that they sought to make him their king.  It wasn’t a genuine faith in Jesus that drove this; rather it was because they had been physically fed.  They were seeking a political Messiah to release them from Rome, and they thought they had found one.  Knowing that this would interfere with God’s ultimate plan and purpose, Jesus slipped away to the mountains to be alone and pray.   The disciples waited until dark down by the seashore, and when Jesus did not join them, they set off towards Capernaum. 

While they were on their way, a storm blew in.  When they had gone a ways, they saw Jesus walking on the water, and not realizing it was he, were afraid.  Jesus identified himself, reassured them, got into the boat, and immediately the boat was at their destination. 

The miracle was two-fold. First, Jesus was able to walk on the water in the midst of a storm.  The Son of God, who was present at the creation of the world, was able to control and master the storm tossed sea.  The second part of the miracle was that the boat immediately was at their destination.  The master of the universe can control time and space; natural laws do not apply to him. The next morning the crowd followed him to the other side of the sea, wondering how Jesus had gotten there.  What follows is his discourse on the bread of life. 

The sixth miracle shows once again his power to heal, showing that he has power over the physical being.  It is the miracle of healing the man who was born blind.  This miracle is significant because it addresses the question of sin and its connection to suffering.  Jesus and the disciples came upon a man who had been born blind. They questioned who had sinned that the man should be born blind, the man himself or his parents?  Jesus answered by telling them that neither had sinned, but the man had been born blind so that God would be revealed.   

Jesus used the occasion to identify himself as the light of the world.   He informed them of the need to do the Father’s work when the opportunities arise and not wait.  He then reached down and scooped up a handful of dirt, mixes it with spit, applied it to the man’s eyes and instructed him to go was in the pool of Siloam. Thomas Constable points out that Jesus used different methods in healing people, if for no other reason than for the people to recognize that it wasn’t the method, but the man who was facilitating the healing. (Constable 2013, 161) The blind man, trusting Jesus, obeyed the command and went to the pool. He washed, and came back, seeing for the first time in his life. 

The change that came over the blind man was incredible.  Those who knew him as the “beggar at the gate” did not even recognize him.  He had to insist that it was he, telling them that the man who was called Jesus had healed him.  It was the Sabbath, so some of the people took him to the Pharisees. Jesus had once again broken their Sabbath rules.  They wondered, does this mean that those rules no longer apply?

The Pharisees then interrogated the man, questioning him how he had received his sight, and his answers caused a breach among the Pharisees, with some calling him a sinner, and some questioning how a sinner could do such signs.  They even questioned his parents, badgering them about their son, to the point that they tell the Pharisees to ask him; after all he’s an adult.  The man moves in his faith from calling Jesus a man, to a prophet, finally to one who is to be worshipped, even at the cost of excommunication from the temple.

The man gave the most convincing testimony of Jesus’ deity in his conversation with the Pharisees.  During the interrogation, he made the statement “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” (John 9:25, NASB)  He turned the questioning on them; are they asking because they want to become his disciples also?  He pointed out to them, the learned Pharisees, that never before had a man been healed who had been born blind.  The only way that someone could have accomplished this feat was if he was from God. 

The act of raising a close friend, Lazarus, from the dead is the seventh miracle.   This miracle shows the power that Jesus Christ has over death.  He is revealed as the giver of life. It is in the context of this miracle that Jesus gives the statement “I AM the Resurrection and the Life.”

 Lazarus, Mary and Martha were close friends who Jesus had apparently spent much time with. He had fallen ill, and word was sent to Jesus to that effect.  Jesus made a comment that this sickness would not end in death, but that it would serve to glorify God.  Upon hearing that Lazarus was sick, Jesus lingered two more days.  There was some confusion in the disciples minds over whether he was simple sleeping and would thus recover, but Jesus plainly told them that Lazarus had indeed died.  Jesus told the disciples they were going to go to Bethany, however the disciples questioned the wisdom of this, knowing that there were threats against Jesus’ life.  They agreed to go; Thomas said even if it meant that they would die with him.

When they arrived in Bethany, before they even got to the house, Martha came running out to meet him.  She said to him that if he had come earlier, then Lazarus would not have died.  Jesus then reassures her that he would rise again; Martha did not realize that meant he would rise again that day.   Jesus was also talking about eternal life.  He was assuring her and all believers that if we believe in him we will never die; referring to spiritual death. Despite her grief and misunderstanding what Jesus was saying, she expresses a strong faith in Jesus as the Christ.  She knows and in a very strong statement acknowledges him as the Son of God.

Martha then went and got Mary, who quickly goes to meet Jesus, falling on her knees before him.  Jesus was deeply moved and asked Mary to show him where Lazarus’ body was laid.  They proceeded to the tomb, where Jesus told them to remove the stone covering the entrance to the grave, over the objections of Martha.  Martha was rightfully concerned that the body was decaying, as it had been four days already.  But, they obeyed and removed the stone.  After a prayer of thanksgiving that God had heard him, which was for the benefit of those standing nearby, Jesus called Lazarus out in a loud voice.  When Lazarus appeared, Jesus directed the bystanders to remove the grave clothes from him.

Once again, Jesus proved that he had power over life and death, and that he was indeed the Resurrection and the Life. 

The final sign miracle that John records is a miracle that happened after Christ’s death, burial and resurrection.  For reasons known only to him, Peter proposed a fishing trip.  Six of the disciples joined him, and they set out on the Sea of Tiberius.  After fishing all night and catching nothing, they headed back to shore.  On the shore, they saw a figure who called out to them. Not recognizing him as Jesus, they listened to his direction to throw the nets on the other side of the boat, where they hauled in a great number of fish.  John then recognized it was the Lord, and Peter immediately jumped out of the boat and swam to meet him. 

Dr. Towns points out three possible sources for the fish, all three of which point to the deity of Christ.  First, as Creator, he could have caused fish to suddenly appear in the nets, as he did with the bread and fish when he fed the multitude.  Second, as the omnipotent one, he could have caused the fish to swim to where the nets were.  Third, as the omniscient one, he could have seen the fish congregating on the other side of the boat.  He also indicates that in reality, there could be five miracles; the first being the 153 fish, second the net that did not tear, third the fact that the seen disciples could not haul in the net, yet Peter did later on his own, fourth was the fire on the beach, and fifth the fish and bread ready for breakfast.  (Towns 2002, 215) 

William Barclay draws this conclusion about the final miracle:  “It was to demonstrate once and for all the reality of the Resurrection.” (Barclay 1975, 282)  Triumphing over death is the ultimate show of Christ’s deity.  He has the power over life and death, including his own.  There is no denying that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. 

                                                                                                                   

Bibliography

Barclay, William. The Gospel of John, Volume 1. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1975.

Constable, Thomas L. "John." Sonic Light. 2013. http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes/pdf/john.pdf (accessed September 18, 2013).

Erdman, Charles R. The Gospel of John. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1966.

MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Bible Commentary. Kindle Electronic Edition. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2005.

Morris, Leon. Jesus is the Christ, Studies in the Theology of John. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1989.

—. The Gospel According to John, Revised. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1995.

Tenney, Merrill C. New Testament Survey. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdsmans Publishing Company, 1961.

Towns, Elmer. John, Believe and Live. Chattanooga: AMG Publishers, 2002.