Signs and Wonders

So, in John 14, Jesus suggests that if humans have trouble believing that He is the Son of God, they could at least believe on the evidence of the miracles.

I gather from this that miracles give evidence of something. Think Elijah on Mt. Carmel. Think Moses before the Pharaoh. Think Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Those Old Covenant guys had some cool evidence, but seems like it was few and far between. Jesus came along and once He got started with the water into wine, it was Evidence like nobody had ever seen before. Healings too numerous to be listed in the gospels. Casting out demons. Feeding crowds with small lunches. Walking on water. Raising Lazarus from the dead. Rising from the dead Himself.

And He said we would do greater things.

Is all of this just hocus pocus? Was it just a special thing at a special time? Can we take Him literally that we will do greater things?

A couple of months ago I felt like God told me how miracles work to bring people to a knowledge of Jesus as Savior. I think it works something like this:

The cultural stuff we live in colors how we view things. In fact, the beliefs and thought systems of a culture can completely blind people to the truth of God. Animists may be blinded by their beliefs and experiences with demons as the ultimate spiritual reality. Muslims may be blinded by a belief system that says Jesus did not die on the cross. People in Western Civilisation may be blinded by remnants of the Enlightenment world view that says the spiritual realm doesn't exist. Yeah, I know, we're all Postmodern now. But not everybody. Enlightenment still rules, even if the foundations of that rule are shakey at best.

Signs and wonders break through the veneer of cultural belief and thrust the person into a space where his fundamental understanding of the universe comes into question. If God can reach into our world and heal this disease, or speak this prophecy, or raise this person from the dead-- then maybe the other things I think are fixed and true could be in question as well. Maybe God does exist, and maybe Jesus is His Son.