A Brief Thought On Miracles

Supernatural influence on the natural world is a hot topic in both the Christian as well as the secular communities. Making the determination between the miraculous and the coincidental can be difficult for believers and nonbeliever alike, for there is no cookie-cutter, structural blueprint for the supernatural intervening in the natural. Analyzing the aspects of the visible world, an overarching theme pointing toward the existence of God (specifically the God of the Bible) and supernatural influence on the natural world can be practically boiled down to one word: sustained. Throughout every feature of the natural world, whether it be cosmology or anthropology or any of the various science fields, the sustaining hand of God can be attributed to the seemingly maintained conditions of the natural world. In a world plagued by death and leaning toward a inexorable descent into chaos, a reflection on the story woven through history reveals a sustaining influence of life-permitting order only ascribable to the supernatural. Illustrating this from the very beginning of the universe to the present day is the fine-tuned state of universe, which was initiated from the genesis of existence and has been sustained to support the life of mankind with incredible precision. Furthermore, the continued coexistence of people groups throughout the history of mankind as well as the preservation of the people of Israel despite rampant conflicts and persecution build the case for the miraculous sustaining presence of God on the visible world.

These universal observations can be used as apologetic tools to point skeptics toward the realization of the sustained nature of the visible world despite the natural inclination of mankind and nature toward chaos and death. Answering the skeptics claim that there are no such things as miracles today can be done by pointing to these aforementioned universal observations in light of the tendencies of the natural world as well as the application of the sustaining theme in people's personal testimonies. By re-framing the view of the skeptic, their inquiry regarding miracles today can be met by comparing the chaotic natural tendencies of the visible world with the recognizably sustained nature found in the universe and in people's personal lives (like health, etc.) to conclude that this divergence from the expected mechanics of the world are quite miraculous.