Signs. Signs. Signs

“…Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs…”   Acts 2:22

A sign tells you something. It is not the “something” (an exit sign is not an exit), but it tells you information about the “something.” Also, a sign only works if it is seen, properly understood, and acted on. Imagine a “bridge out” sign that isn’t seen, or seen but not understood, or even seen and understood but didn’t cause someone to stop! This all seems pretty obvious because we are thinking about road signs and “out of order” on the coffee maker at work, but now apply it to the “signs” that Jesus did.

There may be more than one reason that Jesus did miracles, but the primary reason was that He was presenting “signs.” His miracles were called “signs” on many occasions (Mt 12:38; 16:1, 4; Mk 8:11, 12; Lk 11:16, 29, 30; Jn 2:18; 4:48; 6:30; 20:30; Ac 2:22). Like any “sign,” this means that miracles were trying to tell people something. What was that?

Remember, the sign is not the end in itself. The sign is not trying to tell you something about itself. Although this sounds like a weird and obvious point, think about it this way. When Jesus miraculously fed the 5000 with 5 loaves and 2 small fish (Jn 6), He wasn’t giving us a sign or lesson about food or feeding people.

Remember, signs only work if seen and properly understood. “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” (Jn 20:30-31) Signs are to create belief in Jesus and must be understood with that purpose in mind.

Remember, signs were first and last about Who Jesus is. The miracles were God “attesting to” Jesus (Ac 2:22). God was bearing witness – testifying – to the fact that He approved of Jesus, that Jesus was the Christ, that Jesus spoke His words, and that Jesus was His Son (Jn 3:2).

Remember, Jesus didn’t tolerate misunderstood signs. After the feeding of the 5000, Jesus refused to feed the people the next day because they ate but missed the point of the miracle (Jn 6:26-27).

Remember, signs were written down to give us evidence for our faith. Re-read John 20:30-31. Faith isn’t blind. Faith isn’t a guess or desperate attempt at finding hope. Faith is based on evidence. The miracles of Jesus (including His own resurrection from the dead) are signs which speak loudly and clearly as to Who Jesus is. In the words of Peter, who personally saw the signs: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Jn 6:68-69). We can see the signs of Jesus in Scripture, understand and believe!     dd