The Miracles of Christ: In General

Our Lord performed many miracles to prove his teaching true, and especially to manifest the leading truth of all his teaching, namely, that he himself is true God as well as true man. Thus he could say to the people (John 10:37, 38): “If I do notthe works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though youwill not believe me, believe the works: that you may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”

The miracles of Christ, like all miracles, are works of divine power. For a miracle is, by definition, a work that surpasses all power of creatures. Christ is God, and can directly exercise the divine power in working miracles; as man, Christ isthe instrument through which the miracles are wrought.

St. John says (2:11) that the changing of water to win eat Cana was the first of the miracles wrought by our Lord. Christ was then about thirty years of age, and was about to enter upon his public ministry. St. John Chrysostom says that it would not havebeen fitting for Christ to work miracles when he was young, before he was ready to begin his public life; for then men would have crucified him before his time.

Our Lord said (John 5:36): “The works which the Father hath given me to perfect … give testimony of me, thatthe Father hath sent me.” The miracles of Christ are a full proof of his divinity: (a) by their very nature as miracles wrought for the purpose; (b) by their manner, as wrought under Christ’sown authority; (c) by the fact that Christ plainly adduced them in proof of his divinity, calling people’s attention to them asirrefutable evidence.