Why It’s Imperative We Walk in Signs and Wonders in Our Day

By J. D. King May 25, 2017

The power of the gospel is missing without this.

Throughout the pages of the New Testament, the word “sign” (semeion) refers to miracles functioning as evidence of divine authority. The accompanying term, “wonders” (teras) denotes an unusual occurrence; causing one to marvel.

Whereas a sign appeals to understanding, a wonder appeals to the imagination.

“Signs and wonders” (semeia kai terata) are synonymous with other words such as:

· Acts of power, miracles (dunamis)
· Miraculous works (ergon)
· Wonders (thaumata, thaumasia)
· Energy, power in exercise (energeia)
· Force, violent power (bis)
· Strength, especially physical (ischus)
· Might, manifested power (kratos)

Signs and wonders could be described as heightened spiritual expressions that confirm God’s Word and reveal His purposes within creation.

In Scripture, these amazing displays aren’t distinguished from other aspects of Jesus’ unfolding revelation. In fact, they were central to the Messiah’s self-disclosure and identity.

Jesus often invited people to encounter Him through a direct experience with the miraculous. Consider the following from the Gospel of John:

“If I am not doing the works of My Father, do not believe Me. But if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works” (John 10:37-38a).

“Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me. Or else believe Me on account of the works themselves” (John 14:11).

Elsewhere, Jesus affirms the following to the disciples of John the Baptist.

“”Go and tell John what you hear and see: The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them'” (Matt. 11:4-5).

In each of these passages, individuals were brought into a place of revelation and understanding through a direct supernatural encounter. Jesus demonstrates that it’s not just what’s heard—but also what’s seen—that shapes the life of faith.

Despite the significance of signs and wonders in the Bible, many consider them unnecessary—products of sensationalism and charismatic excess.

However, that is not how the early apostles understood things. They recognized a symbiotic relationship between preaching and miracles. For them, proclamation and demonstration were simply different sides of the same coin.

An example of this line of thinking is found in the book of Hebrews:

“How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation, which was first declared by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him? God also bore them witness with signs and wonders and diverse miracles and with gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to His own will” (Heb. 2:3-4).

Signs and wonders were just as much a testimony to the gospel as the accompanying verbal proclamation.

The apostle Paul understood this truth. He declared the following:

“For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and as far around as Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. (Rom. 15:18-19).

To Paul, the “full proclamation of the gospel” necessitated signs and miracles. Persuasion didn’t just come through speech, but also by what was on display. People need a proclamation and a demonstration of Spirit’s power.

Contrary to popular sentiment, miracles aren’t peripheral. They aren’t distractions or foolish excursions. They are a tangible expression of Christ’s work in the midst of creation.

I want to invite you to embrace a reality of glory and power. God is positioning His family to dynamically confirm the gospel. This outworking of grace is not just an overflow of words. It’s rooted in incredible displays of power. {eoa}

J.D. King is director of the World Revival Network and associate pastor of World Revival Church.