“Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.” – Acts 2:43 (NIV)
In a world riddled with war and ecological collapse, the language of miracles, signs, and wonders can feel far removed from daily struggle. Yet for Charismatic believers, these supernatural acts are not mere spectacles—they are sacred signs pointing toward God’s active love in the world. What if we reimagined miracles not only as healings and manifestations within church walls, but as divine gestures to reinforce our faith?
Signs of the Kingdom
The early church’s miracles were never divorced from its mission. The healing of the lame man at the temple gate (Acts 3) was not just physical—it restored dignity and sanctification. When the Spirit fell at Pentecost, the signs and tongues spoken were not for entertainment—they birthed a multiethnic, Spirit-led movement that challenged empire.
Today, our world still longs for such signs—signs of peace in Gaza and Ukraine, signs of equity in marginalized communities, signs of restoration in our climate-battered earth. These too are wonders when viewed through the lens of the Spirit. A ceasefire, a debt forgiven, a forest protected—are these not also miracles?
The Wonder of Justice
Charismatic Christians have often emphasized personal healing, deliverance, and spiritual gifts. These are beautiful and vital. But we must not neglect the wonder of justice. Jesus’ miracles always pointed to wholeness—physical, social, spiritual. When He touched the leper, he broke a social barrier. When He fed the multitudes, He addressed hunger and inequality.
What might it look like today to seek miracles that do the same? Spirit-empowered action for racial reconciliation, gender equity, and creation care can be signs of the inbreaking Kingdom. These may not always be as dramatic as tongues of fire, but they are no less divine.
A Prophetic Imagination
To pray for signs and wonders is to ask for God’s intervention—but also God’s vision. Full gospel believers are people of prophetic imagination. We believe in what is not yet visible. This includes a future where swords are beaten into plowshares and the poor are lifted up.
May we open ourselves to see the miracle in the protest, the sign in the policy change, the wonder in a reconciled relationship. May our Spirit-filled worship lead us into Spirit-led action.
Come, Holy Spirit
Let us never lose our expectancy for miracles. But let us expand our vision for what those miracles can be. The Spirit still moves. And sometimes the greatest wonder is a people awakened to love their neighbor with power, sacrifice, and joy.
Come, Holy Spirit. Do signs and wonders again—not only in our sanctuaries, but in our streets. Not only in our bodies, but in our systems of government. Not only for us, but for the healing of the world.
If this message stirred something in you, I invite you to explore these themes more deeply in my book, Good People Don’t Go to Heaven: Only Saved People Do. It’s not just a theological statement—it’s a prophetic call to return to the heart of the Gospel, where salvation is not earned by goodness, but received by grace. Learn more and order your copy here: https://www.scapegoatonline.com/order/
May your faith be ignited and your eyes opened to the everyday miracles around you.