How Can You Believe in Miracles?
How Can You Believe in Miracles?
Aren’t miracles just ancient explanations for things people did not understand? If we live in a world governed by natural laws, can a thoughtful person still believe that God sometimes acts in extraordinary ways?
For many people, miracles are where Christianity stops sounding reasonable.
Loving your neighbor makes sense.
Forgiveness makes sense.
Prayer may even seem understandable.
But walking on water?
Healing the blind?
Feeding thousands from a small amount of food?
Raising the dead?
At that point, some people say:
“How can an educated person believe any of this?”
That is a fair question.
Christians should not answer it by asking people to become less thoughtful.
The real issue is not whether miracles are unusual.
Of course they are.
The real question is whether a miracle is impossible—or simply impossible if there is no God who can act within creation.
What Is a Miracle?
A miracle is not merely something surprising.
Winning the lottery would be extraordinarily unlikely.
That would not automatically make it a miracle.
In Christian thought, a miracle is usually understood as an unusual act of God within the created world that reveals His power, purpose, or presence.
An extraordinary act of God that goes beyond the ordinary operation of nature and carries theological significance.
The key word is extraordinary.
Miracles are not supposed to be ordinary events.
Does Science Disprove Miracles?
Science studies the regular patterns of the natural world.
It asks:
What usually happens under these conditions?
That is precisely why science is so useful.
It depends on regularity.
But a miracle claim is not:
“Natural laws do not exist.”
It is:
“Something happened here that cannot be adequately explained by the ordinary operation of nature alone.”
A Miracle Does Not Mean Nature Suddenly Becomes Chaotic
Imagine dropping a ball.
Gravity causes it to fall.
Now imagine someone reaches out and catches the ball.
Gravity has not stopped existing.
Another agent has acted.
The analogy is imperfect, but it illustrates an important point.
If God created the natural order, would His action within that order necessarily mean the natural order has been disproved?
Miracles Are Impossible Only If God Is Ruled Out Before the Investigation Begins
Some arguments against miracles are not really scientific arguments.
They are philosophical ones.
The reasoning goes:
“Nature is all that exists. Therefore only natural causes are possible. Therefore miracles cannot happen.”
But notice what happened.
The conclusion was built into the starting assumption.
If you begin by assuming no reality exists beyond nature, then every miracle is impossible by definition. But that is a philosophical commitment, not a scientific discovery.
David Hume Argued That Miracles Are Always Less Likely Than Mistake
The philosopher David Hume famously argued that our experience of nature’s regularity gives us overwhelming reason to reject miracle reports.
If someone claims a dead person rose, what is more likely?
That a dead person rose?
Or that someone was mistaken, deceived, confused, exaggerating, or lying?
That is a strong challenge.
But it also raises another question.
Should we reject extraordinary evidence merely because the event being reported is extraordinary?
Extraordinary Claims Need Strong Evidence—Not Automatic Rejection
Christians should agree that miracle claims need careful examination.
People make false claims.
People misinterpret experiences.
Fraud exists.
Wishful thinking exists.
Religious enthusiasm can distort judgment.
Was the event observed by credible witnesses?
Are there ordinary explanations that fit the evidence better?
How close are the reports to the event itself?
Did the witnesses have something obvious to gain?
Does the event fit a broader historical and theological context?
The more extraordinary the claim, the more carefully the evidence should be examined.
People in the Bible Knew Dead People Normally Stay Dead
Sometimes we imagine ancient people believed miracles because they did not understand nature.
But Mary knew virgins do not ordinarily become pregnant.
Martha knew dead people do not ordinarily walk out of tombs.
Thomas knew crucified men do not ordinarily appear alive.
That is why these events were considered miraculous.
“But, Lord… by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
Martha did not expect Lazarus to recover naturally.
Biblical Miracles Are Usually Signs, Not Entertainment
The Bible rarely presents miracles as random displays of supernatural power.
They usually serve a purpose.
They reveal something about God.
They authenticate a messenger.
They demonstrate compassion.
They announce the coming of God’s kingdom.
John’s Gospel repeatedly calls Jesus’ miracles signs.
“Jesus performed many other signs… But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God.”
The miracle is not the destination. It is a sign pointing beyond itself to Jesus.
Jesus’ Miracles Reveal What His Kingdom Is Like
Disease Is Confronted
Jesus heals the sick and restores broken bodies.
The Outcast Is Restored
His healings often return people to family and community.
Nature Responds
Storms are calmed, food is multiplied, and creation becomes a sign of divine authority.
Death Is Challenged
Jesus raises the dead as a preview of resurrection.
Christianity Does Not Teach That Spiritual Techniques Give Us Control Over God
Magic says:
“Perform the right ritual and supernatural power must respond.”
Biblical faith says something very different.
God is personal.
God is sovereign.
God cannot be manipulated.
Prayer is not a formula that forces God to perform.
Miracles belong to God’s freedom, not ours.
If God Can Perform Miracles, Why Doesn’t He Heal Everyone?
This question is often more painful than the philosophical one.
Why does one person recover while another does not?
Why does one prayer appear dramatically answered while another seems unanswered?
Christianity does not provide a formula explaining every case.
Even in the New Testament, miracles were not simply available on demand.
Paul experienced illness.
Timothy experienced illness.
Paul prayed for his own suffering to be removed, and it remained.
Believing God can heal is not the same as claiming we always know when or why He will.
Christians Should Be Open Without Being Gullible
Christians disagree about the frequency and role of miraculous gifts today.
Some expect miraculous healings and other signs to continue regularly.
Others believe certain gifts were especially connected to the apostolic era.
But Christians across these traditions can agree on something important.
Every Claim Is Genuine
Claims should be examined carefully, especially where money, manipulation, or pressure is involved.
Every Claim Is Impossible
If God exists, His unusual action cannot be ruled out merely because it is unusual.
Believing in Miracles Is Not a Reason to Reject Ordinary Means
Christians sometimes create a false choice:
“Either trust God or go to the doctor.”
There is no biblical reason to make that choice.
Medicine, surgery, counseling, technology, and scientific knowledge can all be understood as ordinary means of God’s provision.
Trusting God does not require rejecting the ordinary ways through which healing often comes.
Christians Should Not Call Everything We Cannot Explain a Miracle
Throughout history, people have sometimes attributed unexplained events directly to supernatural intervention.
Later, natural explanations were discovered.
That can create the impression that God exists only in gaps where science has not yet provided an answer.
Christianity does not need that view.
God is not merely the explanation for what science cannot explain.
Christianity says God is responsible for the existence and order of the entire natural world, not merely the parts we have not yet understood.
If God Created the Universe, Miracles Are Not the Biggest Problem
Consider the logic.
If there is no God, miracles are extraordinarily difficult to defend.
But if God exists and created the universe, then the question changes.
Would a God powerful enough to create nature be incapable of acting within nature?
The foundational debate, therefore, is often not really about miracles.
It is about God.
Remove the Miraculous and You Remove Christianity
Christianity cannot simply remove miracles to become more acceptable to modern sensibilities.
Its central claims are miraculous.
God enters creation in Jesus Christ.
Jesus performs signs of God’s kingdom.
Jesus dies for sinners.
Jesus rises bodily from the dead.
God promises the resurrection and renewal of creation.
Christianity Ultimately Stands or Falls on the Resurrection
The Christian faith does not depend on proving every modern miracle report.
It depends most centrally on Jesus.
In particular, on the claim that He rose from the dead.
“If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.”
Paul did not make the resurrection optional.
He made it testable as the central truth claim of Christianity.
The Earliest Christians Appealed to Events They Believed Happened Publicly
The historical case includes several important claims:
Jesus Really Died
His crucifixion under Roman authority is among the strongest historical facts in the story.
The Resurrection Message Appears Early
Paul preserves resurrection teaching that predates his own letters.
People Claimed to See Jesus Alive
The claim was not simply that His spirit lived on in memory.
The Movement Changed Dramatically
Frightened followers became public witnesses proclaiming that Jesus had risen.
None of those facts forces belief.
But they give Christians reasons to treat the resurrection as a historical question, not merely a religious symbol.
Could the Disciples Have Been Mistaken?
Alternatives deserve consideration.
Maybe the body was moved.
Maybe the disciples hallucinated.
Maybe a legend developed.
Maybe the resurrection language was symbolic.
Christians should examine these explanations rather than dismiss them.
The question is not whether alternative explanations exist, but which explanation best accounts for the historical evidence.
If Jesus Rose, the World Is Different Than We Thought
If the resurrection happened, it changes more than one historical detail.
It means death is not ultimate.
Jesus’ claims deserve serious attention.
God’s kingdom has entered history.
The cross was not defeat.
New creation has begun.
The resurrection is not merely one miracle among many. It is the Christian claim that God has begun defeating death itself.
Evidence Can Take Us Far—but Faith Still Requires Trust
Historical arguments can show that belief is reasonable.
They cannot force a person to follow Jesus.
Christianity eventually moves from the question:
“Could this have happened?”
to:
“If Jesus really is risen, what will I do with Him?”
So How Can a Thoughtful Person Believe in Miracles?
By refusing two extremes.
Do not believe every miracle claim merely because someone tells an impressive story.
But do not reject every miracle claim merely because it describes something unusual.
Ask whether God exists.
Examine the evidence.
Look for ordinary explanations.
Study the historical context.
Test the witnesses.
And above all, examine Jesus.
Nature is orderly.
Science studies that order.
Miracles are extraordinary, not ordinary.
Extraordinary claims deserve careful evidence.
God cannot be ruled out by assumption.
The resurrection is the central Christian miracle.
Christianity does not ask us to stop thinking. It asks us to consider whether reality may be larger than the natural world alone.
What Would You Need to See Before You Took Jesus Seriously?
Maybe miracles feel impossible because you have already concluded that God does not exist.
If so, start there.
Ask whether the existence of the universe, moral reality, consciousness, and the historical person of Jesus give you reasons to reconsider that conclusion.
And then examine the resurrection.
If Jesus really rose from the dead, would that change what you believe about God?
Questions Worth Considering
- Do I reject miracles because of evidence, or because I assume beforehand that miracles cannot occur?
- What is the difference between an unexplained event and a miracle?
- Does belief in natural laws logically exclude the possibility of divine action?
- Do I apply the same level of skepticism to claims that support my worldview as I do to claims that challenge it?
- Why are the miracles of Jesus described as signs?
- What alternative explanation of the resurrection do I currently find most convincing?
- If the resurrection were historically true, what difference would it make in my life?
Lord, help me seek truth honestly. Keep me from believing things carelessly, but also keep me from rejecting what is possible simply because it challenges what I already assume. Give me wisdom to examine the claims about Jesus carefully. Help me understand the difference between faith and gullibility, between science and philosophical assumptions, and between unanswered questions and impossibility. Most of all, help me see Jesus clearly and respond faithfully if He truly is risen. Amen.