Miracles of Jesus: From Healing the Sick to Turning Water Into Wine
During his earthly ministry, Jesus Christ performed miracles by touching, healing, and transforming countless lives. He overcame the laws of nature and even raised the dead, proving he has power over life and death. Like other events in the life of Jesus, his miracles were documented by eyewitnesses and recorded in biblical history.
Jesus’s Miracles
- The four Gospels record 37 miracles of Jesus, with Mark’s Gospel recording the most.
- Three New Testament words refer to Jesus’s miracles: power, sign, and wonder.
- Every miracle of Jesus served a specific purpose in God’s plan of salvation for humankind.
The accounts of Jesus’s miracles in the Bible represent only a small number of the multitudes of people who were made whole by the savior. The closing verse of John’s Gospel explains:
“Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” (John 21:25, NIV)
The 37 miracles of Jesus Christ that were written down in the New Testament serve a specific purpose. None were performed randomly, for amusement, or for show. Each was accompanied by a message and either met a serious human need or confirmed Christ’s identity and authority as the Son of God. At times Jesus refused to perform miracles because they did not fall into one of these two categories:
When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. (Luke 23:8–9, ESV)
New Testament’s Words for Miracles
In the New Testament, three words refer to miracles:
- Power (dunamis), which means “mighty deed.” Jesus’s miracles were overwhelmingly powerful acts that revealed his omnipotence and authority.
- Sign (sēmeion), which refers to a miracle that figuratively represents something else, such as the kingdom of God. The miracles of Jesus were signs, authenticating his ministry and revealing him to be the Messiah and Son of God.
- Wonder (teras), which indicates something extraordinary. Christ’s miracles were wonderful, compelling, supernatural acts that caused people to marvel and confirmed his divine nature.
Sometimes Jesus called on God the Father when performing miracles, and at other times he acted on his own authority, revealing both the Trinity and his own divinity.
The First Miracle of Jesus
When Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding feast at Cana, he performed his first “miraculous sign,” as the Gospel writer John, called it. This miracle, showing Jesus’ supernatural control over physical elements like water, revealed his glory as the Son of God and marked the beginning of his public ministry.
Some of Jesus’ most astonishing miracles included raising people from the dead, restoring sight to the blind, casting out demons, healing the sick, and walking on water. All of Christ’s miracles provided dramatic and clear evidence that he is the Son of God, validating his claim to the world.
These supernatural acts of love and power drew people to Jesus, revealed his divine nature, opened hearts to the message of salvation, and caused many to glorify God. They also demonstrated Christ’s absolute authority over nature and his limitless compassion. Altogether, they proved that he was, indeed, the promised Messiah.
37 Miracles of Jesus in Chronological Order
These miracles of Jesus Christ are essentially presented in chronological order.
37 Miracles of Jesus | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
# | Miracle | Matthew | Mark | Luke | John |
1 | Jesus turns water into wine at the wedding in Cana | 2:1-11 | |||
2 | Jesus heals an official’s son at Capernaum in Galilee | 4:43-54 | |||
3 | Jesus drives out an evil spirit from a man in Capernaum | 1:21-27 | 4:31-36 | ||
4 | Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law sick with fever | 8:14-15 | 1:29-31 | 4:38-39 | |
5 | Jesus heals many sick and oppressed at evening | 8:16-17 | 1:32-34 | 4:40-41 | |
6 | First miraculous catch of fish on the Lake of Gennesaret | 5:1-11 | |||
7 | Jesus cleanses a man with leprosy | 8:1-4 | 1:40-45 | 5:12-14 | |
8 | Jesus heals a centurion‘s paralyzed servant in Capernaum | 8:5-13 | 7:1-10 | ||
9 | Jesus heals a paralytic who was let down from the roof | 9:1-8 | 2:1-12 | 5:17-26 | |
10 | Jesus heals a man’s withered hand on the Sabbath | 12:9-14 | 3:1-6 | 6:6-11 | |
11 | Jesus raises a widow’s son from the dead in Nain | 7:11-17 | |||
12 | Jesus calms a storm on the sea | 8:23-27 | 4:35-41 | 8:22-25 | |
13 | Jesus casts demons into a herd of pigs | 8:28-33 | 5:1-20 | 8:26-39 | |
14 | Jesus heals a woman in the crowd with an issue of blood | 9:20-22 | 5:25-34 | 8:42-48 | |
15 | Jesus raises Jairus’ daughter back to life | 9:18, 23-26 |
5:21-24, 35-43 |
8:40-42, 49-56 |
|
16 | Jesus heals two blind men | 9:27-31 | |||
17 | Jesus heals a man who was unable to speak | 9:32-34 | |||
18 | Jesus heals an invalid at Bethesda | 5:1-15 | |||
19 | Jesus feeds 5,000 plus women and children | 14:13-21 | 6:30-44 | 9:10-17 | 6:1-15 |
20 | Jesus walks on water | 14:22-33 | 6:45-52 | 6:16-21 | |
21 | Jesus heals many sick in Gennesaret as they touch his garment | 14:34-36 | 6:53-56 | ||
22 | Jesus heals a gentile woman’s demon-possessed daughter | 15:21-28 | 7:24-30 | ||
23 | Jesus heals a deaf and dumb man | 7:31-37 | |||
24 | Jesus feeds 4,000 plus women and children | 15:32-39 | 8:1-13 | ||
25 | Jesus heals a blind man at Bethsaida | 8:22-26 | |||
26 | Jesus heals a man born blind by spitting in his eyes | 9:1-12 | |||
27 | Jesus heals a boy with an unclean spirit | 17:14-20 | 9:14-29 | 9:37-43 | |
28 | Miraculous temple tax in a fish’s mouth | 17:24-27 | |||
29 | Jesus heals a blind, mute demoniac | 12:22-23 | 11:14-23 | ||
30 | Jesus heals a woman who had been crippled for 18 years | 13:10-17 | |||
31 | Jesus heals a man with dropsy on the sabbath | 14:1-6 | |||
32 | Jesus cleanses ten lepers on the way to Jerusalem | 17:11-19 | |||
33 | Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead in Bethany | 11:1-45 | |||
34 | Jesus restores sight to Bartimaeus in Jericho | 20:29-34 | 10:46-52 | 18:35-43 | |
35 | Jesus withers the fig tree on the road from Bethany | 21:18:22 | 11:12-14 | ||
36 | Jesus heals a servant’s severed ear while he is being arrested | 22:50-51 | |||
37 | The second miraculous catch of fish at the Sea of Tiberias | 21:4-11 |
Sources
- Mills, M. S. (1999). The Life of Christ: A Study Guide to the Gospel Record. Dallas, TX: 3E Ministries.
- Roberts, R. D. (2016). Miracle. The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
- Story, D. (1997). Defending your faith (p. 155). Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications.