Miracles Galore!

Still on the topic ‘Has God Changed?’ I want us to look at the scriptures to help us reconnect to factors that may have contributed to a drowning of God’s clear voice and miracles following those who believe. This time however I want us to go back even farther than the book of Acts.

Many people tend to think that miracles started with Jesus and died with the disciples, with a spurt here and there so sporadic that they were noted for their spurious nature. We therefore have no way to capturing the key pillars of those movements. On the other hand the recordings of some of them were so partial in the recording of their ‘exploits’ that one may easily be mistaken for thinking that there were no mortals involved. The exploits were more easily attributable to angels as the mortals involved had no foibles or normal human tendencies.

But let me emphasize early enough that the actual focus is the voice of God. I am convinced that once we sort that out miracles will simply flow. Though we are commanded to seek to know God’s will I do not see the same being applied to miracles. From the beginning miracles followed obedience to God’s voice or revelation. We see the same thing in the Gospels.

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; … And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen. (Mark 16: 17, 20)

Permit me to take us for a walk in the Old Testament. I want us to clear the misconception that there is nothing the Old Testament can teach us about living the Christian life. But even more important is to let us know that there were enough miracles there just as there were seriously obedient servants.

Noah’s obedience bordered on insanity. How do you build a big box (it could never have been a ship as most want us to believe) to guard against a flood when there had never been a drop of rain in the history of the world till then?  How do you explain to yourself the fact that you have to look for people to help you build something you do not understand for something you cannot conceive? I wonder how any of us radical Christians would fare were we placed in a situation of that nature. Many times we fear to obey even when the road is clear, the only thing lacking being the view of the panorama of the complete journey. Many times it is the uncertainty of the support that stops us from venturing. And no wonder Noah experienced the breakthrough we have in the Bible.

Abraham’s was plain folly. How does an old man leave all his security to go to a place before he is given the slightest hint of direction? ‘To a land that I will show you’ does not appear as a map for his journey!

What about his offering his only son as a sacrifice? How does one wait for a son for this long yet give him up just because a ‘voice’ said so? No wonder we see the provision of a lamb after that commitment! We love using ‘Jireh’ but do not care to recreate the circumstances for the same.

Joseph remains faithful to God in a godless society and this gives God opportunity to show off.

Moses denounces all his rights and privileges as a prince (maybe a future king) for his faith and disappears into the wilderness for 40 years, no doubt aware that had he chosen he would only need to renounce his ‘hotheaded desire for justice for the oppressed’ to get back into the same privileged position as before. Yet he chose not. And we know he knew pretty little about the God of Israel then because it was what he had heard his family speaking as he was being weaned which may be at most his first 3 years. No wonder he is such a giant!

Caleb son of Jephunneh was another one. He breaks through the collective decision of a team that had surveyed the land, risking stoning to hold on what he knew God would have approved.

Gideon had only heard of miracles. But he is able to reconnect once he establishes who it is who was sending him. We eventually see him chasing his entire army to face an army that had been over 4 times larger than even his original army just because a ‘voice’ said. He was left with about 1% of his original army.

And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude. (Judges 7:12)

Taking 300 characters without weapons is not an easy thing to use to face this throng. No wonder God fought for them. Gideon had taken God serious enough.

Samuel heard God in a season when it was in the history books that God was reported to have spoken to men. But it is from the preparation of a woman who ‘dared’ God to give her a son. We see him calling for a miracle against nature when he called for a stormy weather in the driest month.

David, though he was just a lad, faces a giant who had terrorized the whole army for 40 days because he had blasphemed his God. This even though he was way below the army enlistment age as his brother implies, he was not afraid to put his life on the line in defense of the God he knew. It is no wonder God transforms the pebble he throws into a bullet or something even more lethal. We continually see him asking for and receiving precise directions before making any move, however automatic the move appeared. He is the one person we can use to see a direct relationship between hearing God’s voice with miracles.

We see Jehoshaphat doing the opposite of common sense as he goes to war, also because he heard a ‘voice’. And it is no surprise that God does the fighting for him.

Daniel goes against convention, endangering a few lives because he decided to follow the dictates of his religion even on hostile territory. Eventually we see him, not only interpreting dreams but even being able to recall them. When his colleagues at work decide to fight his religion because they could not get another excuse, we do not even see him trying to intervene. He goes on with his religious duties as if he did not care to live, reasoning like we should when we take God seriously, that a God who can’t hold His own under attack is not worth much like Gideon’s father had argued. We then find the lions that tore families to pieces even before their hitting the floor of the den could not as much as scratch him the whole time he was in the den. We see him receiving a revelation after another, some even of the times we are in.

His three friends decide that they could not bow down to an idol and tell the king that they would rather die. He in rage increases the fury of the fire so that it kills the soldiers who throw them in. But they are untouched by the fire.

Mordecai decides that bowing to a person is contrary to his faith, putting his life on the line due to that. Eventually his whole race becomes targeted. But then God breaks through and reverses the tide dramatically.

We see Elijah almost killing people at will for despising his office. He can prophesy a 3½ year famine, saying that it would not rain until he said so, and that is what happened. He is able to challenge 850 false prophets, alone, even damping the prospects for a miracle by pouring water all over the sacrifice. But God bails him out conclusively. He was hated by the king with a passion, yet he never chickened out from facing him to deliver God’s word to him again and again. We see miracles, from provision to raising of the dead.

Elisha anointed kings in two kingdoms and was held in great reverence thence. Yet he was not one to pamper them as he delivered whichever message God gave him. At one time a king is looking to kill him because he is blaming him for the famine in the land. Yet instead of looking for somewhere to hide he just prophesies into the situation. We also see his life packed with the supernatural, from healing to raising the dead to provision. But we also see him killing and afflicting with leprosy and blindness. Long after he was dead and buried we see his bones raising the dead.

Like the writer of Hebrews said time would fail me to be able to highlight all the miracles and their workers in the Old Testament. I just wanted us to appreciate that God has been consistent in confirming the faith of His servants.

I also wanted us to appreciate the fact that it was even harder for them than for us. We know that it was pre-Calvary and therefore the Holy Spirit had not been released to all. Most of these feats we read were really feats because they did not have the advantage of an ever present counselor like we do. Nor did many have even a portion of the scriptures.

But I want us to realize that were we to be as serious and committed to Christ as these Old Testament characters we have an even deeper reservoir of miracles to draw from.

What we need to do to reconnect is to be as serious with God as they were God would be more than willing to release the supernatural for our assistance. Then we can be examples for those after us as these ancients are to us.

But sacrifice is something consistent to a life of miracles. We must leave God no chance but to perform a miracle by doing everything exactly as He asks us. We must be ready to face jeering and the embarrassment of people who see God’s order as crazy or outright foolish. We must decide to fan our craving to hear what He wants of us even more than we hunger for food. Psalm 42 should describe our hearts.

Many times we must be ready to face even death and especially deprivation if we are to be radical for Him. Look at these examples.

·         Isaiah walked naked for 3 years

·         Jeremiah was ordered not to marry

·         Ezekiel was ordered not to mourn his wife

·         Hosea was ordered to marry a prostitute who was not willing to change

·         Elijah was fed by ravens (similar to crows)

·         Joseph went from pit to slavery to prison

·         John the Baptist was imprisoned then beheaded for rebuking the king

·         Stephen was stoned to death

·         Jephthah sacrificed his only child

·         Read 2 Corinthians 12 to see what Paul went through to become the apostle we know

These are just a few examples of the requirements for a life of miracles.

I need to highlight that miracles are not sought, nor are they for display. Miracles are interventions of a divine into the life of His obedient servants. They are simple accessories to obedience.

May we continue to seek our hearts to reconnect to the obedience that is bound to release the miraculous in our lives.

God bless you.