SEVEN MIRACLES IN JOHN, PT. 1 by Larry W Peebles May 1, 2020 20.15
A miracle is defined as “a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws, and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine Being.” Anything that occurs outside the laws of nature is supernatural (Gr.-supra– “above” the natural). I believe in miracles. Years ago, I received a miracle healing in my back that propelled me into a life-changing relationship with the Living God, the God who created me, loves me, and takes a personal interest in my life. My wife and I have seen countless miracles in our ministry even in these days as we preach the Word of God and pray for His children. The age of miracles has not ceased, and the realm of miracles is closer than we think.
The Apostle John, the only one of the twelve original disciples believed to have lived a full life and died of old age, wrote of seven miracles in the Gospel of John. It is interesting he also wrote seven “I AM” statements of Jesus in his Gospel, although he also wrote other “I AM” statements in the Book of Revelation. I have written previously on the “I AM” statements, but here are the seven from the Gospel of John.
I AM the bread of life. John 6:35
I AM the light of the world. John 8:12
I AM the gate [door]. John 10:9
I AM the good shepherd. John 10:11
I AM the resurrection and the life. John 11:25-26
I AM the way and the truth and the life. John 14:6
I AM the true vine. John 15:1
These are all bold declarations Jesus made about Himself, in order that we may know who He is. For instance, He did not say I will give you life, tell you the truth, and show you the way. He said I AM life, truth, and the way. There is much to be learned about Him from these statements, but that is not the purpose of this article.
Rather, this article will now focus on the seven miracles John wrote about in his Gospel. He makes two interesting statements regarding the miracles of Jesus. First, John 20:30- “Jesus did many other signs [miracles] in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book.” Second, John 20:31- “These [seven miracles] are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you may have life in His name.” It is obvious that out of all the many miracles he saw while following Jesus, John purposefully selected these seven to prove the case that Jesus is the Son of God. These miracles are therefore worthy of closer examination. We will cover the first three in this article, and the other four in Part 2 which will follow.
Miracle 1: Water Into Wine (John 2:1-11). Jesus and His disciples attended a wedding feast in Cana. The wine ran low before the feast was concluded. Jesus’ mother Mary pointed out the problem. Jesus ordered six stone water pots filled with water, twenty to thirty gallons apiece. Then He ordered the servants to draw some and take it to the master of the feast for tasting. The master of the feast immediately called the bridegroom. He publicly acknowledged before the bridegroom and his guests it was usual to serve the best wine first, and after much had been drunk, to serve the lesser quality wine last. However, for this occasion the master of the feast told the bridegroom, “you have kept the good wine until now” (v.10). Then in verse 11 John wrote- “This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.”
John 1:3 says- “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” This makes it clear that Jesus was the Creator of everything. This miracle established His mastery over His creation. He made the waters, and He can turn them into wine.
The symbolism here is rich. The master of the feast noted the good wine had been saved for now. Jesus stepped out of eternity into the natural world at the appointed time to serve His blood as a sacrifice that would reconcile all humanity back to God. The Passover wine would forever symbolize that blood. Mankind would never be the same. The water used for ceremonial cleansing under the Old Covenant was now replaced with the wine of the New Covenant, and it was the very best. Not everyone at the wedding feast knew how this happened. The servants had strong suspicions. The disciples knew, and they believed. Jesus’ glory was manifest, and His ministry had begun. All believers one day would be invited by the Bridegroom to the wedding feast of the Lamb. Jesus is the Bridegroom, the Church is the bride, and the wedding feast is prophesied in Revelation 19:7.
Moses was the first savior of the children of Israel, appointed by God to save the Israelites from the bondage of Egyptian slavery. Jesus came as the final Savior to save and redeem the whole world from the bondage of sin. Moses brought the first plague on Egypt by turning the waters of the Nile into blood. Jesus announced the manifest presence of His glory, and that His kingdom had come to earth by turning the water into wine.
Jesus said “I AM the true vine.” As the true vine, He is the source of the New Wine of the Spirit. If we are connected to the vine, we will produce the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23, which are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Miracle 2: Healing the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54). On a subsequent trip to Cana, Jesus met a nobleman who came from Capernaum to say his son was sick to the point of death. Jesus told him to go back to Capernaum, his son was healed. The nobleman believed him, and started the return journey. The next day on the way back home, he was intercepted by his servants who came to tell him his son was healed. Through discussion, it was revealed the hour in which he was healed was the same hour Jesus had spoken the words of healing.
Jesus said “I AM the resurrection and the life”, and “I AM the way, and the truth, and the life.” As Creator of everything, He is the source of all life. Life originates in Him, because He is life. As the Master of Life, He must therefore have mastery over death. This miracle demonstrated both—absolute control over life and death. He has the power to bring dead and near dead things back to life.
This miracle also proved His supremacy over time and place. Just as He did at Creation, when He spoke it, it was done. It did not matter if anyone saw it. He did not need to be physically present to heal the boy. The distance between God and man was not too great.
We are not told the father’s nationality or religion. There is no indication of whether he was “worthy”. When Jesus spoke healing, the father believed, though he had not seen. The matter was settled. The entire household was saved through the faith of the father (v.53). Jesus’ power to save was not limited to this life on earth, but extended to life eternal.
A relationship with Jesus as Lord and Savior is a matter as essential as life and death. This miracle demonstrates the purpose of His coming to earth beyond miracles in the natural world. The purpose of His coming was eternal.
Miracle 3: The Healing at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-9)
A man crippled for 38 years consistently waited beside the pool in Jerusalem, as tradition held an angel would come from time to time to “stir the waters” for healing. The first one into the water was healed. The man had tried to get into the waters while they were stirred, but could never make it in time because of his condition. Jesus came along and healed him. The man picked up his mat and went home. Tradition and the water is not the ultimate healer. Jesus is the ultimate Healer.
Isaiah Chapter 35 is a prophetic picture of the coming Messiah, the Savior God would send to rescue Israel and the world. Verse 6 specifically says “then will the lame leap like a deer.” It had been 400 years since any prophet had spoken in Israel (from Malachi until the John the Baptist). Now by this miracle Jesus spoke volumes. The prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled in plain sight.
This miracle establishes Jesus as the Messiah, Son of God, and Savior of the world. Authority over the physical condition of His creation (man), and true life (abundant life) is available only through Him. John 10:10- “The thief [devil] does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I [Jesus] have to come that they may have life, and that more abundantly.” Mankind is hopeless and helpless without the Savior. The crippled man had his life stolen by the devil, but Jesus came to restore his life. As Savior and Redeemer, Jesus rescues each of us from the torment of the devil which has come upon us through sin. He is (“I AM the Resurrection”) our Resurrection into a new life now and into eternity.
Under the Old Covenant, man could not save himself under the Law through works. Jesus brought a New Covenant, whereby man could be saved by faith and repentance. Believers establish a relationship with Jesus as Lord and Savior. They acknowledge His deity as Son of God, and accept His death and resurrection as their redemption from their current condition of sin. His shed blood annihilates the power of sin. Baptism establishes the beginning of a new life as the old man goes into the water, but a new man in Christ comes up out of the water.
This miracle was performed on the Sabbath, a practice forbidden by the Jewish religion. Jesus established Himself as the Lord of the Sabbath. In Matthew 12:8, Jesus said- “For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” As Son of God and Creator, He created the Sabbath. Though He came to earth as a man (Son of Man), He alone had authority over the Sabbath. This did not sit well with the religious leaders who had devised some 38 rules regulating activities on the Sabbath. Jesus did not bring another religion to the world-rather, He offered a relationship with mankind.
These three miracles are recorded exclusively in the Gospel of John. All three are rich in symbolism and deep in meaning. Jesus never did miracles as a show. He was not a magician, whose purpose was to draw and entertain a crowd. Though His miracles drew a crowd of followers, each miracle served a divine and eternal purpose, as we have begun to see in this study. Each miracle is a demonstration of what is possible when a man (Son of Man) is totally and perfectly surrendered to God. Jesus said multiple times that He only did what He saw the Father do.
These miracles also have a way of disrupting and destroying a religious spirit. Religion does not save; Jesus saves. The Jewish religious hierarchy began opposing Jesus after the miracle at the Pool of Bethesda because He did miracles on the Sabbath, and because He said He was the Son of God, which they considered blasphemy. This opposition grew into a murderous rage against the Messiah, as we will see in the next installment.
