A ‘sign’, in Biblical language, is a supernatural event or miracle that points people to the truth about God - revealing His power and purpose to those who witness them. For example, God sets a rainbow in the sky as a sign to Noah that He will keep His promise never to destroy the earth by flood again (Genesis 9:12-13); and in Exodus 4, God tells Moses to perform terrible signs as a warning to Pharaoh. John’s Gospel records several signs that Jesus performed which revealed His glory (e.g. John 2:11), and the book of Acts records signs done by the Apostles showing that they were continuing Jesus’ ministry with His authority (Acts 2:22, Acts 2:43). (Signs given through God’s Prophets and Apostles showed that they were authorised by God to speak for Him to the people.) These New Testament signs were given to reassure us that the ministry of the Apostles was authentic. We should note, however, that miraculous signs do not always lead to faith (John 12:37), and looking for them can demonstrate a wicked heart (Matthew 16:4). Not all miraculous events are from God: Satan is described as a worker of signs and wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10), and false prophets may perform them (Mark 13:22). So, although we can expect God to work with miraculous signs from time to time today, and we must rejoice when He does, the Apostle Paul says that Christian ministry should be centred on preaching Christ crucified, not signs and wonders (1 Corinthians 1:22-25).
