{"id":5582,"date":"2020-07-28T13:32:00","date_gmt":"2020-07-28T20:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/blog\/archives\/"},"modified":"2020-07-28T18:52:35","modified_gmt":"2020-07-29T01:52:35","slug":"can-an-uncontrolling-god-do-miracles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thomasjayoord.com\/index.php\/blog\/archives\/can-an-uncontrolling-god-do-miracles","title":{"rendered":"Can an Uncontrolling God Do Miracles?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Readers of my book God Can’t <\/em>appreciate that an uncontrolling God neither causes nor allows evil. But many assume this God cannot do miracles. Not so fast!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my book, Questions and Answers for God Can’t<\/em>, I devote a chapter to answering the question: “If God is uncontrolling, how do we explain miracles?” This blog essay offers a small excerpt from that chapter. I encourage you to get the book, of course. Here’s a link for it.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miracles in the Bible<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In previous books and essays, I\u2019ve discussed various biblical accounts of miracles. I’ve said biblical miracles are good and unusual events that involve God’s action in relation to creatures or creation. I’ve said God acts to do miracles, but creatures and entities must cooperate, or the inanimate conditions of creation must be conducive for those miracles to manifest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Writers of scripture use various words when talking about miracles, and those words are interpreted as wonders, signs, powers, energies, and more.[i]<\/a> Some miracles involve complex or simpler agents, such as healings, exorcisms, resurrections, insights\/revelations, salvation, and more. Others involve inanimate creation, such as Moses parting the Red Sea, Jesus feeding 5,000, walking on water, floating ax heads, and more.[ii]<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of rehearsing all of the arguments and examples of miracles I’ve addressed in various books and essays, let me make an overarching claim\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I know of no biblical passage that contradicts my definition of a miracle. Many support it; others are neutral.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To put it differently, I know of no passage that says miracles require God to control creatures or creation. No story or passage of Scripture explicitly says God singlehandedly brought about some miraculous result.[iii]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Creaturely Cooperation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most biblical miracle stories explicitly mention the actions of God and creatures. They describe creaturely response (e.g., \u201cYour faith has made you well\u201d [Mt 9:22; Mk 5:34. 10:52; Lk 8:48, 17:19, 18:42]) or the conditions of creation (e.g., \u201cwater stirs\u201d [Jn 5:4]). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most miracles involve agents: people, animals, angels, organisms, and cells. My understanding of miracles fits these Bible stories well. Some miracles involve inanimate objects and aggregates. My understanding of miracles fits those too, but those conditions of creation must be conducive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several biblical passages support my claim that creatures can stop miracles from occurring. Particularly interesting are those that say God does not heal everyone or cannot heal at all. Jesus goes to his hometown of Nazareth, for instance, and cannot do miracles. The Nazarenes didn\u2019t cooperate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other passages speak of Jesus healing many, but not everyone. One recounts how Jesus spit on dirt, put it in a blind man\u2019s eye, and the blind man received partial vision. So Jesus tries again. Examples such as these suggest various factors, actors, agents, and forces play a role in miracles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without creaturely cooperation or conducive creaturely conditions, miracles cannot occur.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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God Does Miracles Alone?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Admittedly, a few Bible stories mention only God acting. A miracle occurs, but there\u2019s no mention of creaturely cooperation or the conditions of creation. Sometimes, only God is mentioned as healer. For instance, the writer of Exodus quotes God saying, \u201cI am the Lord who heals\u201d (15:26).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many readers of the Bible encounter miracle passages in which only God is mentioned and assume<\/em> God singlehandedly brought about the miracle. But is this assumption warranted?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we read Scripture, we should ask, \u201cDoes a miracle story that only mentions God explicitly <\/em>say there was no creaturely cooperation or contribution?\u201d As I read the Bible, I can\u2019t find any passages overtly saying God alone brought about some miracle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, I know of no verse — from the creation of the world, to the hardening of Pharaoh\u2019s heart, to the resurrection of Jesus, to other miracles, and to the eschatological end — that explicitly says God alone brought about some result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God Controlled Pharaoh?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Some readers of God Can\u2019t <\/em>ask me specifically about God hardening Pharaoh\u2019s heart. They wonder if in this story God controls others. When we read the story carefully, we may notice biblical writers say God hardened Pharaoh\u2019s heart and <\/em>Pharaoh hardened his own heart (Ex 7:13; 8:11,15,32; 9:34).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I agree with eminent biblical scholar Terence Fretheim when he writes, \u201can act of hardening does not make one totally or permanently impervious to outside influence; it does not turn the heart off and on like a faucet.\u201d \u201cDivine hardening did not override Pharaoh\u2019s decision-making powers,\u201d he adds.[iv]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pharaoh\u2019s heart hardened because he negatively reacted to signs from God. These signs originated in God, so writers rightly portray divine action as playing a role. But God did not control Pharaoh with these signs; Pharaoh decided how he would respond to them. Pharaoh\u2019s responses played a necessary role in the hardening of his heart.[v]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Creatures Do Miracles without God?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I find another set of biblical stories interesting. These stories describe something good and unusual \u2013 some even use the word \u201cmiracle\u201d \u2013 but never mention God. <\/p>\n\n\n\n