"Do You Believe In Miracles? Yes!"

It's a big weekend for ice hockey here in the Philadelphia area.  As I write this post, our beloved Flyers are battling the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.  So, with hockey in mind, I ask you the iconic question that Al Michaels asked and answered during the 1980 Winter Olympics as the clock ticked down to zero in an incredible game that pitted a bunch of college kids on Team USA against the seemingly unbeatable team from the Soviet Union:

"Do you believe in miracles?" I'm not talking about an upset win at an ice rink.  I'm talking about real, honest-to-goodness miracles.  The Christian author and thinker C.S. Lewis defined "the word Miracle to mean an interference with nature by supernatural power."  The New Testament is brimming with miracles, and today our Sunday school class is announcing the Wesley Award winner in the category of Best New Testament Miracle.

First, a word from the Rules Committee:  To make things fair, we have taken the Incarnation and the Resurrection out of the running for this week's award.  The Incarnation (God coming to us as the lowly baby Jesus) and the Resurrection (Jesus rising from the dead on that first Easter morning) form the foundation of our faith.  That's why these two miraculous events are hands-down winners; without them, there is no Christianity.  And you can't really separate them.  Each one of these two miracles takes on even more meaning because of the other:  Christmas means more when we realize that God made this Earthly visit for a purpose -- to redeem humanity from sin and death!  Easter means more when we realize that Jesus, who died and rose again, is more than a noble teacher.  Jesus is God in the flesh -- setting us free to live a new, abundant, eternal life!

     

So, after the Incarnation and Resurrection, what New Testament miracles do the Rolling Hills youth consider to be the greatest?

Nick, apparently having missed breakfast, nominated the Feeding of the Five Thousand. Jesus fed a crowd of five thousand men, plus women and children, from a mere five loaves of bread and two fish.  You can read about it in Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 14, verses 13-21: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2014:13-21&version=TNIV

Paige chose the Raising of Lazarus -- an amazing miracle in which Jesus raised his dead friend Lazarus from the grave, foreshadowing Jesus' own resurrection.  You can read about it at John 11:1-44. This story includes my favorite verse in the King James version of the Bible: "Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days."  - John 11:39 (KJV).  You can watch how the great Franco Zeffirelli envisioned this miracle in the epic made-for-TV miniseries, Jesus of Nazareth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0M7vvX6__M

Jake selected the miracle from Mark 2:1-12, where we read that Jesus heals a paralyzed man.  This miracle is notable not only for the amazing healing that occurred, but also for the determination of the paralyzed man's friends, who got creative when the large crowd prevented them from getting close to Jesus.  They climbed up onto the roof of the building where Jesus was teaching, opened a hole in the roof, and lowered their friend down on his mat into the presence of Jesus!  Read it all here: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%202:1-12&version=TNIV

And that brings us to our winner of the week, nominated by Wes: Jesus Walking on Water.  Read all about it at Matthew 14:22-36 :

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.  After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.

Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.

But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

“Come,” he said.
  
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” 

 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Watch this spoof of the miracle, and see how surprised people act when they see a fake Jesus walking on the water ...

After you've had a little fun with it, just imagine the disciples experiencing the real thing! Imagine their surprise, their reactions, their worship, their realization that Jesus is the Son of God.  Truly, Jesus is the Son of God ... and our Redeemer!  Join us next week for a mystery post.  The following week, on May 6, we will unveil the Wesley Award winner for Best Saying of Jesus.