Craig Keener on CT about “It’s Okay to Expect a Miracle”

Crossway College was blessed to have Prof. Craig Keener (Asbury Theological Seminary) visit both of our campuses earlier this year. Craig spoke about his forthcoming book on miracles which is now out. The title is Miracles: The Credibility of the New Testament Accounts.

I noticed that at Christianity Today, that there is an interview with Craig Keener about his book on miracles which documents much of the evidence for modern miracles.

Here is part of the interview:

What does New Testament scholarship gain from taking miracle stories seriously as historical phenomena?

We have been embarrassed by the miracle stories, and have tended to allegorize them more than other narratives. Accounts from the Temple of Asclepius, the Greek god of healing—nobody allegorizes those.

I agree that the Gospel writers are teaching us broader principles with broader applications. But in much of the majority world, when people read these narratives of healing, they see a God who cares about their suffering, who meets them at their point of need. I think we in the West can learn from the way they hear.

Should the church concern itself with verifying miraculous healings?

It’s valuable for a couple of reasons: first, for limiting fraudulent claims, and second, for providing supporting evidence. If miracles are meant to get people’s attention for the kingdom, we can continue their attention-getting purposes by getting verification. But it’s much easier said than done.