Signs and Wonders

Author: Joseph

Date: April 18, 2021

Sadly, even mentioning this topic polarizes many within the community of believers, yet its controversy does not diminish its importance. Why is there controversy? Because too often when it comes to the topic of signs and wonders we are ignorant of how to discern which ones are genuinely from God and which ones are either well-conceived lies or misinterpretations of truth. Consequentially, there is wrongly a stigma against being aware of signs and wonders because of the multitude of false teachings and the obsessive reactions of some people to them. The biblical way of seeing signs and wonders is this: God has revealed to us the kinds of signs and wonders He uses in the Scripture and as we walk intimately with Him, He will reveal to us which ones are from Him. Anything outside the bounds of what God Himself wants to reveal is rooted in evil and deception (ex. Matthew 16:1-4). Let’s look at a few examples throughout the Scripture when God used signs and wonders.

Exodus. God used signs and wonders to glorify Himself before the Egyptians and the people of Israel who were enslaved to them. Moses was told beforehand and even witnessed two signs himself before going before Pharaoh (Exodus 4:1-9). The signs happened just as God demonstrated to him and just as God had foretold would happen (Exodus 7:14-20). The signs were to demonstrate God’s power before all who witnessed them and caused Him to be glorified. Pharaoh was not satisfied with any of the signs that were shown to him and only let the people of Israel go after suffering great personal loss. The first purpose of signs then, is to glorify God, not to satisfy the desires of mankind nor glorify the messenger that brings them. Moses was in fact dishonored before the Israelites many times as they continually grumbled about their hardships even after being freed from Egypt.

Daniel. God used signs and wonders to show that He is faithful. The second purpose of signs then, is to show God’s faithfulness towards His people. Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah refused to worship the idol King Nebuchadnezzar had created and were thrown alive into a furnace, yet they remained untouched. This caused the king to recognize God’s faithfulness to them for their obedience (Daniel 3:28). Daniel was steadfast to only pray to God and not worship the gods of Babylon, nor pray to King Darius, so he was cast into the lion’s den, yet he remained untouched and unharmed since God shut the mouths of the lions. This caused King Darius to witness God’s faithfulness to Daniel as He delivered him from harm (Daniel 6:19-20, 27). Daniel also later received awesome visions from God about the future of His people for the purpose of encouraging their faithfulness to Him and showing that He Himself is faithful to them (Daniel 12:1-4, 8-9).

Gospels. Like in Exodus, Yeshua used signs and wonders to glorify the Father (ex. John 11:38-45). Yeshua also performed signs and wonders to show God’s faithfulness to His people (ex. Matthew 9:27-31; counter-example: Matthew 13:58). Thirdly, Yeshua prophesied about signs and wonders to come in order to encourage steadfast and attentive faith in God. The third purpose of signs and wonders is to encourage steadfast and attentive faith in God. People need steadfastness of faith because as times become more evil, there is more pressure to fall away. Therefore, Yeshua prophesied of signs to come so that when they are fulfilled and recognized, they will cause God’s people to remember His words and endure for Him. People also need faith that is attentive because as times become more evil, there is much more to distract us from God’s Truth and His will. Therefore, Yeshua prophesied of signs to come so that God’s people would be not be ignorant (rather, be aware and awake) of what to expect from God and therefore be focused on His Truth and His will.

"...be awake, sober, and ready..."

So, how do we respond to all this information? We know that God’s signs and wonder glorify Him and show His faithfulness. We also know about some of them beforehand so that when we see them, we will be encouraged to endure for Him and be focused on His will. Therefore, instead of trying to predict the future as many false prophets and deceptive teachers do, we should learn about God’s signs and wonders so that we are not ignorant to the things He has told us. His signs and wonders are given for our benefit and we do not want to miss out on them because we didn’t take the time to learn about them. Our adversary, the evil one, Satan, would love if we remained ignorant to God’s signs to come, which is why I believe we now have such a repulsion for even trying to recognize them. Satan and the evil powers of this world have made it undesirable for us to understand God’s signs and wonders because they are aware of how God uses them to encourage us and demonstrate His glory and faithfulness. We are to be awake, sober, and ready for when God fulfills the signs and wonders He spoke of for us to know beforehand (1 Thessalonians 5:1-6). [I highly encourage you to read this Scripture passage].

Let us not remain ignorant of God’s signs and wonders to come, recognizing the purpose that they serve and thanking God that He has graciously provided us with this foreknowledge through His Word.