If you grew up hearing Bible stories you have probably accepted the idea that the God of the Bible is a God of miracles. Ingrained in many who had such a childhood is the idea that God can do just about anything. He can create the universe, rain manna from Heaven and even raise His Son from the dead. But what about today? Is God still working miracles in our world? When is it safe to use the miracle label for an unusual or unlikely happening in our world? First, let’s consider the possibility of miracles. Does God intervene in our world? One of the world's best known deniers of miracles, David Hume, (d. 1776) influenced generations of skeptics in rejecting the possibility of miracles in his work, Of Miracles. For Hume, miracles were a violation of natural law, and, as he saw it, natural law is always and unalterably uniform. Therefore, no amount of evidence would convince him that God has intervened. It seems Hume saw no higher law than the law of nature and he firmly closed the door to possibilities that God would or could change nature. Sadly, there are many who have the same close-minded approach to miracles today in spite of evidence to the contrary. Countering Hume's point, Dr. Criag Keener provides a great illustration of how God intervenes in nature by considering the law of gravity. As Lee Strobel records (p.88) a visit he had with Keener in his book,The Case for Miracles, Keener held up a ballpoint pen and said, “If I drop this pen, the law of gravity tells me it will fall to the floor. But if I were to reach in and grab the pen in midair, I wouldn’t be violating the law of gravity; I would be intervening. And certainly if God exists, he would have the ability to intervene in the world he himself created.” Dr. Keener gives us a helpful framework to see the relationship between miracles and nature. As we look at the Bible and beyond we see evidence that God has chosen to interrupt nature to change outcomes, many times for the benefit of humanity. Miracles are essentially God’s intervention in the normal activity of nature. One example of of God's intervention comes from an article Dr. Keener published on miracles on the Catalyst Resources website (catalystresources.org/miracles) where he tells of a lady named Joy Wahnefried who had a classic case of vertical heterophoria. Her case was so well known that her photograph and details of her case were printed on a medical information pamphlet describing the condition. A student from Taylor University prayed for Joy and she was immediately healed. Not only was she delivered from the symptoms, she now had 20/20 vision and no need for eyeglasses. Christians are at times accused of being opposed to science and ignoring the laws of nature when they accept miracles. In reality, Christians should welcome rigorous reviews of science and not deny the realities of the natural world. As C.S. Lewis says in his book Miracles,(p.75) “Nothing can seem extraordinary until you have discovered what is ordinary. Belief in miracles, far from depending on an ignorance of the laws of nature, is only possible in so far as those laws are known.” Our eyes are wide opened to the natural world and to the God Who created nature and Who is Himself supernatural. He can and does work within and beyond nature. Should we believe in the possibility of miracles today? If so, how do we know they are legitimate miracles? Again, Dr. Keener gives some helpful questions for identifying miracles as reported from the earlier interview with Lee Strobel.
Are there eyewitnesses?
Do the witnesses have a reputation for honesty?
Do the witnesses have anything to gain or lose?
Did the witnesses have a good opportunity to observe what occurred?
Is there corroboration?
Are there any medical records?
What were the precise circumstances and timing of the events?
Are there alternative naturalistic explanations for what happened?
As these questions are given satisfactory answers to possible miracles we have more and more reason to believe that God is at work and intervening in our world today.