The Pool and a Miracle

If you’ve read this blog (you three people) very often you may remember that last fall and into the early winter, JtM and I taught a class based on the book The Jesus I Never Knew. One of the most difficult chapters for me to “get comfortable” with was the one about Miracles. I had a lot of questions about that chapter and about the class discussion.

I was browsing the internet the other day, and ran across a blog post, which asked, among things, if miracles still happen today. That was one of the questions that the lesson asked. My answer to that question is yes, but it leads to so many other questions:

Why do miracles happen to some people and not to others?

Read this scripture from John 5: 1-9.

Think about the scene for a minute. Jesus walks into the area around the pool and finds a man there. He knows that this man has been there for a long time – 38 years. He’s not the only person there. “In these (porticoes) lay many invalids – blind, lame and paralyzed.” (verse 3a)

Why did Jesus chose this man to heal? Was it the length of his illness? That seems too simple. Was it that this man was “extra good?” No, because later he advises him to stop sinning. Is this the first person Jesus encountered at the pool? No idea.

The same questions occur to us. If a miracle doesn’t happen, then is it because we didn’t pray enough? Not enough people were praying? We aren’t good enough? Maybe there is a purpose in our suffering?

I just don’t think any of these reasons sound like God. I also hesitate to believe that God is haphazard, so I am left with the idea that God is God, and I am not.

I do think that Jesus performed certain miracles for certain purposes – it gave “proof” of his claims and it gave us examples of what God wants for us – wholeness. It gives us a glimpse of what the future kingdom will be like, and it shows us that God cares about our suffering. Jesus, however, did not come to earth to heal every physical illness, but instead to heal all of our spiritual illnesses.

Does he still do miracles. Yes. When? Whenever, wherever, whatever he chooses. Is it a sign of love? Yes, but not a sign that he loves one more than another.

Then how do I answer these questions? I can’t, but God can.