THE MIRACULOUS – ANALYTICAL STUDIES

© Rosemary Bardsley 2007

IN THE REST OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

Note: The term ‘the rest of the New Testament’ in this study, refers to all the New Testament letters [except 1 Corinthians] and Revelation.

Miracles [dunamis] in the rest of the New Testament

[1] There is no mention of miracles [dunamis] in the Greek text of Romans, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, James, 1 & 2 Peter, 1,2 & 3 John, Jude and Revelation.

[2] Miracles [dunamis] are included with signs and wonders as the things that were the mark [‘sign’] of an apostle and indicated the Lord’s confirmation of the apostolic message:

‘The things that mark an apostle – signs, wonders and miracles – were done among you with great perseverance’ [2 Corinthians 12:12 ] [Greek: ‘the signs of the apostle … signs, wonders and miracles’].

‘This salvation was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.’ [Hebrews 2:3,4]

Both of these references speak of something that happened in the past, not of something that was still currently occurring, nor as something that was expected to continue in the future. The Hebrews reference in particular clearly refers back to the signs and miracles as something that accompanied the preaching of the apostles. If miracles continued as a common thing this original confirmatory significance would be rendered impotent.

[3] Paul refers to God giving his Spirit and working miracles [dunamis] among the Galatians [3:5], drawing their attention to the grace that is behind the miracles. This statement outlaws any suggestion that God’s miracles are given on the basis of human merit or performance.

[4] 2 Thessalonians 2:9 refers to counterfeit miracles [dunamis] done by the ‘lawless one’ and deceiving unbelievers.

Signs and wonders in the rest of the New Testament

The only references to signs and wonders in the rest of the New Testament are:

[1] Signs and wonders are referred to as the things that mark an apostle and confirm the apostolic message in Romans 15:17-19, 2 Corinthians 12:12 and Hebrews 2:3,4. See note [2] above re miracles. The Romans passage indicates that this supernatural confirmation contributed to the work that Christ accomplished through Paul.

[2] Counterfeit signs and wonders are performed by the lawless one [2 Thessalonians 2:9], and signs are performed by ‘the beast’ [Revelation 13:13 -15], ‘spirits of demons’ [Revelation 16:14 ], and ‘the false prophet’ [Revelation 19:20 ]. These counterfeit signs and wonders, done by the power of Satan, deceive and delude the people.

‘Works’ in the rest of the New Testament

As we have seen, Jesus’ miracles were sometimes referred to as ‘works’ [Greek: ergon]. Paul uses the same word in Romans 15:17-19, but it is not clear in the context whether or not he is using the word to refer to miraculous things he did or not.

Spiritual gifts in the rest of the New Testament

[1] There is only one place in the Greek text of the entire New Testament where the word ‘spiritual’ and the word ‘gift’ or ‘gifts’ are put together. This is in Romans 1:11, where Paul says that he longs to see the Roman Christians so that ‘I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong’. He is clearly not talking about ‘spiritual gifts’ in the modern way of understanding the term, but about some spiritual benefit, most likely further instruction in the truth of God. Remember that the word ‘gift’ simply means ‘gift’ – something given to another. It does not refer exclusively to spiritual gifts.

We need also to notice the way Paul speaks here:

• It is he who wants to impart this gift – not the Holy Spirit. Spiritual gifts are given by the Holy Spirit, not by another believer.
• The meaning of the word ‘impart’ [metadidomi] is to share or give something of what one has. One does not give another a ‘share’ of one’s spiritual gift. One does, however, share or give to others, the truth that God has given to one.

[2] The various lists of ‘spiritual gifts’ in the Greek text of the rest of the New Testament simply refer to ‘gifts’. The word ‘spiritual’ does not occur. There are three gift lists in the rest of the New Testament:

About these gift lists the following is evident:

• None of these lists contain any mention of the ‘sign gifts’ – speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues, miracles and healing.
• None of these lists contain any mention of discerning the spirits.
• None of these lists contain any mention of exorcism or ‘deliverance’ ministry.
• Ephesians mentions only those gifts that are speaking or teaching gifts. The purpose of these gifts is clearly stated in 4:12 -16 in a cumulative sequence of outcomes:
  • ‘… to prepare God’s people for works of service,
  • so that the body of Christ may be built up
  • until we all reach unity I the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God
  • and become mature,
  • attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
  • Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by every wind of teaching and by the cunning craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.
  • Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.’
• The purpose of the exercise of the Ephesian gift list is focused on the equipping, strengthening and maturity of the church in the presence of false doctrines by teaching and preaching the true doctrines of the faith.
• The exercise of the gifts in Peter’s list must be with the purpose of serving others. Peter sees the exercise of the gifts as a means of ‘administering God’s grace in its various forms’ [ 4:10 ]. In other words, the gifts are not given to an individual for his/her benefit, but so that through that person God’s grace can be expressed to others.
• In addition, Peter sees the outcome of this other-centred use of the gifts as resulting in God being praised [ 4:11 ]
• Peter also distinguishes between exercising one’s gift in one’s own strength, and exercising one’s gift ‘with the strength God provides’ [ 4:11 ]. This is interesting, as one would assume that spiritual gifts would automatically be done by the power of the Spirit. Obviously this is not the case, or Peter’s command here would be not be needed.
• Similarly, it is apparent in the Romans’ list that God’s gifts can be exercised with a godless attitude. Paul sees it necessary to tell the Romans to exercise their gifts ‘generously’ or ‘diligently’ or ‘cheerfully’ [12:8].
• In both the Romans and 1 Peter gift lists the gifts also involve commands. Whatever gift a person has there is a command to actually use that gift, and to use it appropriately. This gift/command connection is instructive on a number of counts: [1] it assumes that a person can have a gift and not use it; [2] it infers that the use of the God-given gifts is neither spontaneous nor automatic, but is subject to the choice and will of the person with the gift; [3] it infers that a person can have God-given gifts and use them in a way that is neither honouring to God nor edifying or helpful to other believers.
• Some of the ‘gifts’ are actually actions that are elsewhere clear commands. From the Romans list, teaching, serving, giving, encouraging, and showing mercy are all things that every believer is commanded to do; and in the Peter list, every one of the gifts listed are elsewhere commands given to every believer.
• The lists are not consistent. As we saw with the three lists in 1 Corinthians 12 there is no fixed gift list.

[3] Putting all the gift lists side by side:

Do these lists demonstrate anything conclusive about whether the ‘sign gifts’ were never meant to continue beyond the confirmation of the apostles and their message? We can say without fear of contradiction:

• It is only the earliest list [1 Corinthians 12] that contains the sign gifts.
• The sign gifts only appear in the list written nearest to the Council of Jerusalem [AD 48] at which the apostolic gospel was confirmed as relevant for both Jew and Gentile.

Beyond this any conclusion based on these lists can only be an inferred conclusion.

[4] There are two other references to a spiritual ‘gift’ in the rest of the New Testament. Both are in Paul’s letters to Timothy, and in both Paul encourages Timothy to be sure to use his gift, which from the context would appear to be the gift of teaching [1 Timothy 4:14 and 2 Timothy 1:6]. From these verses we understand:

• This particular gift was given to Timothy ‘through a prophetic message’ [Greek text: dia propheteias; refer also to 1 Timothy 1:18 ]. These are the only references to such a thing happening in the New Testament.
• This gift was given to Timothy when a group of elders laid hands on him. Again, this is the only occurrence of its kind in the New Testament. [The only possible exception relative to this and the previous point, is Ananias laying hands on and reporting God’s message to Saul - see Acts 9 and 22. This was not by way of gift, but by way of commission.]
• Timothy is commanded not to neglect his gift.
• Timothy was to apply himself diligently to the exercise of the gift.
• Timothy was to apply himself diligently to the cultivation and improvement of the gift.
• The primary gift [teaching – 1 Timothy 4:13 -16] also included secondary gifts [power, love, self-discipline – 2 Timothy 1:6-7] which were part of and necessary for the exercise of the primary gift.

These references highlight the human responsibility associated with spiritual gifts.

• In Timothy’s case, the church elders were involved at the original reception and recognition of the gift. They obviously neither determined nor gave the gift, but God, in this case, used them – their spiritual insight and their laying on of hands – as the vehicle through which he gave this gift to Timothy.
• There is no evidence that Timothy himself had to either seek a gift or discover what his gift was.
• Timothy’s responsibility was to not neglect the gift but to use the gift diligently and to persevere in the cultivation and improvement of the gift.
• The gift is also the responsibility and the commission [compare the Ananias/Saul references in Acts].

[5] Commission as ‘gift’

As an appendix to the above, and particularly to the last dot point, note the following references made by Paul to his commission to preach the Gospel. He sees this commission, this responsibility, as ‘grace’ – charis = a benefit, a free favour, a free gift, a generous gift.

• ‘we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith’ [Romans 1:5]
• ‘For by the grace given me I say to every one of you …’ [Romans 12:3]
• ‘I have written you quite boldly on some points … because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God …’ [Romans 15:15,16]
• ‘By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder …’ [1 Corinthians 3:10 ]
• ‘ … they recognized the grace given to me’ [Galatians 2:9]
• ‘Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you’ [Ephesians 3:2]
• ‘I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power … this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ …’ [Ephesians 3:7,8]

Paul also uses the word ‘grace’ in reference to:

• the teaching gifts in the church: ‘to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it’ [Ephesians 4:7]
• the gift of giving/generosity evident in the Macedonian Christians: ‘the grace God has given the Macedonian churches’, ‘see that you excel in the grace of giving’ [2 Corinthians 8:1,7].

[6] Statistics [all New Testament letters]

Thus we find four different words used to refer to what are commonly spiritual gifts today: charisma [in the lists in 1 Corinthians 12; Romans 12 and 1 Peter 4, and the references to Timothy’s gift]; dorea, doma (and charis) [in the Ephesians 4 passage]; and charis [used at least eight times by Paul to refer to his own teaching/preaching commission, and also to the gift of giving exercised by the Macedonians].

Statistically, in the New Testament letters, what we commonly call ‘spiritual gifts’ today are referred to by:

• charisma – 9 definite references [5 of these in 1 Corinthians 12] plus 2 possible references
• dorea - 1 definite reference; plus 1 further possible reference
• doma - 1 reference
• charis – 11 definite references; plus 2 possible references

Leaving aside the additional possible references, the breakdown of this usage is:

The single most common use of any of these words to refer to spiritual gifts in general, or to a specific gift in particular, is Paul’s use of charis to refer to his preaching/teaching commission as a ‘grace’ or ‘gift’, and in that reference to include the sheer and awesome responsibility involved in having been given that gift .

‘Speaking in tongues’ in the rest of the New Testament

There is no reference to ‘speaking in tongues’ or ‘interpretation of tongues’ in the rest of the New Testament.

From this absence we can come to one of two conclusions:

[1] That speaking in tongues was so common that it was not even worthy of a mention. Against this conclusion is the gross misuse of this gift in the church in Corinth – a clear evidence of what sinful, ego-centric human beings do with this gift. To assume that the use of this gift was common in the New Testament churches, means that we have to also assume that everywhere except Corinth the gift was used so decently and so in order that none of the New Testament writers had any reason to correct its abuse. Such an assumption would be extremely optimistic.

[2] That speaking in tongues was actually as minimal as the New Testament references to it indicate.

Healing in the rest of the New Testament

There is no reference to the gift of healing or miracles of healing in the rest of the New Testament.

The only other references to ‘healing’ are found in:

• Hebrews 12:13 , where it does not refer to physical healing at all, but to a healing a weak spiritual condition;
• James 5:14-16, where elders are to pray for a sick person’s healing, having anointed him with oil;
• 1 Peter 2:24 ‘by his stripes ye were healed’ – where the reference is clearly to spiritual healing. [The verse alludes to Isaiah 53:5, where there are four parallel statements about the impact of the substitutionary death of Christ. The first three statements are obviously about our spiritual condition, the fourth statement ‘by his wounds we are healed’ must therefore, in the context of Hebrew poetry, also be about our spiritual condition. Hebrew parallelism requires that each parallel statement is saying the same thing, but in different words.
• Revelation 13:3 and 12 relate to ‘the beast’ being ‘healed’ – obviously nothing to do with God’s gift of healing, but still miraculous – and an indication that miraculous healing does not necessarily mean that God did it.
• Revelation 22:2 refers to the ‘tree of life’ whose leaves ‘are for the healing of the nations’. This is a reference to the final state, beyond the judgment, and therefore not directly relevant to the question of contemporary healings. It does, however, have some relevance: it refers symbolically to the final removal of the curse [22:3], and indicates that it is by the final victory of Christ and in that final state that all sickness and suffering is removed, rather than by the death of Christ and in this present church age, as taught by those who believe that there is ‘healing in the atonement’. [See also Revelation 21:4].

Looking at the question of healing from the viewpoint of its absence, we also find the following:

• In 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 Paul refers to his ‘thorn’ in his flesh, which the Lord refused to heal, even though he pleaded three times for healing, and even though he himself was used to heal others.
• Philippians 2:25-30 contains Paul’s report about Epaphroditus who had been so sick he had nearly died, and about whom people had been very concerned. There is no mention that his sickness was caused by sin in his life or lack of faith; indeed he is commended for his Christian commitment. There is also no mention that anyone either healed him or tried to heal him. There is actually clear evidence that Paul and the Philippians had thought he would die. Had ‘healing’ been a common or automatic thing to do, such anguish would not have occurred; Paul and the others would have confidently and automatically expected his healing.
• In 2 Timothy 4:20 Paul reports that ‘I left Trophimus sick in Miletus ’. Had healing been common and expected, if healing was ‘in the atonement’, surely Paul, who had healed others, would have healed this companion, rather than leaving him behind.
• In 1Timothy 5:23 Paul tells Timothy: ‘stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.’ Here is Timothy, the pastor of a church, a co-labourer of Paul, and all Paul does is give him medical advice!

These obvious absences of miraculous healing expose the fallacy of several contemporary teachings. We can conclude from them that the following teachings are not biblical:

• The teaching that there is physical healing in the atonement.
• The teaching that all Christians should enjoy perfect health.
• The teaching that all we have to do to get healing is to demand, name, proclaim, declare, or confess healing, or to speak healing into our bodies.
• The teaching that the presence of sickness or disability means there is hidden or unconfessed sin is our lives.
• The teaching that disability, failure in health, or failure to be healed, is an indication that there is a failure of some sort in one’s faith.

These absences of miraculous healing also expose the fallacy of the perception that miraculous healing was part of normal Christian life in the New Testament era. In none of the above cases of sickness is there any evidence of surprise or dismay at the absence of miraculous healing, as if there were something wrong or unusual in these strong and committed Christians being sick. There is simply no record of anyone trying to heal them or expecting them to be healed miraculously.

Being filled with the Spirit in the rest of the New Testament

The only reference to being filled with or full of the Holy Spirit in the rest of the New Testament is Ephesians 5:18:

‘… be filled with the Spirit’

The verb used in pleroo – the verb used in Acts to refer to a condition of life that is dominated by the Spirit. Here in Ephesians it is present tense and passive voice: it is thus commanding us to continually keep on being filled by the Holy Spirit. It is very definitely neither a momentary, nor an inceptive/initiatory, nor a one-off occurrence. It is a constant condition of life. It is evident, not in the presence of spiritual gifts, but in a life in which we speak to each other about spiritual truths, in which our hearts are full of joy, in which we give thanks to God through Jesus Christ, and in which we consider the others needs before even thinking of fulfilling our own [Ephesians 5:19-21].

Dealing with demons in the rest of the New Testament

The only references to ‘demons’ or ‘spirits’ in the rest of the New Testament are:

• The fact that some people will desert the faith and follow doctrines of demons [1 Timothy 4:1]
• The reference to ‘spirits’ in 1 John 4:1-6
• Various references to demons and spirits in the events referred to Revelation.

Some see 1 John 4:1-3 as a reference to dealing with demon possession and use these verses as a mandate for a certain line of approach in ‘deliverance ministry’, which addresses the spirits believed to be possessing the individual, and challenges them to acknowledge Jesus Christ.

It is far more likely that the reference to ‘spirits’ in these verses is to the spirit(s) behind false teaching and false belief rather than to spirits demonizing humans. From the context we learn:

• In verse 1 ‘the spirits’ are identified or associated with the ‘many false prophets’ who have gone out into the world. From this we can understand that John is talking about ‘the spirits’ as the source of the false messages and the movers behind the false prophets.
• If we understand ‘spirit’ to be speaking of individual spirit beings inhabiting people, then, to be consistent, we must logically understand from verses 2 and 3 that there are individual spirit beings from God that occupy people, in the same way that individual spirit beings from the antichrist that occupy people. Such an idea has no support anywhere in the scripture.
• Note that this spirit is described as being ‘in the world’, not as being in individual people.
• The denial of the incarnate Christ expresses ‘the spirit of the antichrist which … even now is already in the world’. This statement indicates that the ‘spirits’ and the ‘false prophets’ mentioned in verse 1, along with those who believe them, express the same denial of the incarnation as the antichrist does.
• In verses 2 to 6 John contrasts the genuine believers with the people who deny the incarnation: [1] you are from God: they are not from God, but from the antichrist; [2] you are from God: they are from the world and speak the viewpoint of the world; [3] we are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us: they are not from God, and they do not listen to us; [4] our message is from the Spirit of truth: their message is from the spirit of falsehood. In this John is clearly not talking about demonic spirits, but about people – influenced by the Christ-denying spirit of the antichrist, they speak from the viewpoint of the world.

John’s first letter is an exposure of false teaching. Right through this letter he contrasts true believers and the truth with false believers and error. He does this in terms of how people live and what people believe. He repeatedly points to the origin of our actions and our statements of belief. They are either from God or not from God. Here in 4:1-6 he points out the origin of defective belief regarding the real incarnation of Christ, and affirms that such a denial originates with the antichrist, not with God [indeed in 2:18-10 he identifies those with fake faith as ‘antichrists’.] Thus the basis for determining the rightness of a person’s faith or teaching is: what do they say about the incarnation? Was Jesus Christ both real God and real man?

There are, then, apart from the Revelation verses which have no relevance to the question, only these two references in Timothy and 1 John. Neither of them gives instructions about how to deal with demons; neither of them speaks of demon possession; neither speaks of exorcism or deliverance. Both, on the other hand, warn us to be alert. They point out the inroads false teaching makes in the church and the impact that false teaching has in causing people to defect from the church and from the true Gospel.

Romans

A study of Romans reveals very limited reference to the miraculous:

• There is no mention of ‘miracles’ (dunamis) in this letter.
• Apart from 15:17 -19 there is no mention of ‘signs and wonders’ (semeion and teras) in Romans.
• Romans contains the only reference in the New Testament where the Greek text contains the phrase ‘spiritual gift’. In context is does not refer to ‘spiritual gifts’ in the modern sense, but simply to some spiritual benefit that Paul wishes to give them to encourage them.
• There is no mention of ‘speaking in tongues’.
• There is no mention of healing.
• There is no use of the phrase ‘spiritual gifts’; there is no command to seek ‘spiritual gifts’ or even to find out what our ‘spiritual gift’ is; rather there is a command to humbly and diligently use whatever God-given ability we have for the good of our fellow believers.
• There is no mention of being filled with the Spirit or receiving the Spirit. There is no direct reference to being baptised with the Spirit, although this is probably what is referred to in the Romans 6 references to the baptism by which the believer is united to Christ in his death and resurrection.
• Given that Romans is considered to be a comprehensive statement of the Christian faith these omissions are instructive.
• What is clearly taught is being the indwelt by the Spirit.
• Romans 12:3-8 refers to a list of gifts, which modern Christianity understands to be spiritual gifts. Their use is clearly neither automatic nor automatically appropriate. Paul gives instructions about their appropriate use. He also stresses, in this context, the corporate function of these gifts and the mutual interdependence of believers.
• In Romans 15:17-19 Paul refers to the signs and wonders, and the power of the Spirit, that accompanied his preaching.

2 Corinthians

• Significant references to the indwelling Holy Spirit
• References to poverty, suffering and weakness, with no expectation of health and wealth.
• The only mention of miracles is a significant statement about signs, miracles and wonders as ‘the things that mark an apostle’.
• No mention of speaking in languages
• No mention of spiritual gifts

 

Galatians

• Reference to the indwelling Holy Spirit
• No reference to speaking in languages
• No reference to spiritual gifts
• Only one reference to miracles

Ephesians

• Significant references to the gift of the Holy Spirit and the fullness of the Spirit
• No mention of speaking in languages
• No mention of miracles
• No mention of sign gifts
• Significant mention of teaching gifts

Letters to Thessalonians and Timothy

• Only reference to miracles is to those done by the power of Satan
• No references to speaking in languages
• Only possible reference to spiritual gifts is to the gift of teaching and/or pasturing; this may, however, be a reference to Timothy’s commission rather than specifically to his gifting.

Hebrews to Revelation

• No reference to speaking in languages
• No reference to sign gifts
• Reference to teaching and service gifts
• One significant reference to miracles, signs and wonders as God’s confirmation of the apostolic message
• All other references to miracles [‘signs’] are to those done by Satan and his servants.