Ever wonder why some people seem to have stories of God doing extraordinary things in their lives while the majority of believers don’t? Things like providing great jobs, healing sickness, finances from seemingly nowhere and so on. The four gospels are full of not only Jesus performing miracles, but many of his close disciples as well. To be truthful, I believe the miraculous is meant to be a part of each believers daily life. So why the disconnect for many of us in experiencing the miraculous? The best way to answer this important question is to go back to the scriptures and see what Jesus said about it.
If you the read the stories in the Bible you can’t help notice that the miraculous was happening from Genesis to Revelation. Miracles were not just part of one period of time or one book of the Bible. It’s a pattern God wants His people to see so that our relationship and faith in our Heavenly Father is not just based on “facts” or “stories” but on our own personal experience with our creator. Miracles are meant to back up and reinforced by the physical world we live in. The longer we live and the smarter we become we discover how complex and wonderful all of creation is. From the beauty of a simple flower we learn there is a complex structure that is often hidden to the natural eye. The truth is that the more we discover in science complexity through the use of modern computers and high-powered microscopes the more creation screams at us about our creator and master designer rather than the lie when earlier science tried to convince the world that there is no God….. only a “BIG BANG”. God wants us to see his “Finger Print” in creation and thus discover we were made to be like him, made in his image, to be creators ourselves in smaller and more limited ways yet every bit as wonderful.
Let’s look at just one example of how and why Jesus preformed miracles and discover some important principles to follow and learn from. When Jesus did miracles like healing the lame, restoring blind eyes or even raising the dead he qualified his miracles by saying the following about “Believing & Asking”:
John 14:8-11
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and we will be satisfied.”Jesus replied, “Philip, don’t you even yet know who I am, even after all the time I have been with you? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking to see him? [10] Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I say are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me. [11] Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe because of what you have seen me do.
Our “Natural Man”, without the help of the Holy Spirit, only thinks about what is possible from our experience. I can believe you are a great car driver who can drive at 200 mph, but if I have never driven a car that fast, let alone a true race car, I tend to believe I can’t do it. We probably won’t even try. As Christians, if we have never been apart of a miracle we can tend to feel overwhelmed with the possibility of such a thing happening through us.
In the past many “Master Craftsmen” would take on an “Apprentice” to help them discover the ability to create master pieces by their example. First, the principles are taught and then the apprentices are introduced to hands on discovery through the helpful hands and eyes of the master. From my perspective, I believe the body of Christ has lost the master apprentice tradition and therefore lost the ability to draw out our God-given creativeness and gifting. Even prophets needed a school for prophets to learn how to use those gifts.
This story about Philip, one of Jesus disciples, is about Jesus trying to get his disciples to think from a Godly perspective rather than from a natural, worldly one. The disciples wanted to see their Heavenly Father and they forgot all the principles Jesus had taught them. Jesus had already given the disciples a clear “pathway” to a regular life in the Spirit and the miraculous. Jesus tells them that if they have seen the miracles he has done then they have already seen the Father working. They wanted the “physical” to take the lead and Jesus wanted the “spirit” to be the lead. Isn’t that one of our major problems? We realize without God in our lives we are hopelessly lost and headed for destruction so we trust Christ even through we can’t physically see him. When we trust the Holy Spirit’s revelation about trusting him and the saving work of Christ we are set free. Here’s the rub. After learning to trust the Holy Spirit’s revelation we keep going back to wanting the natural things to take the lead in our lives. We trust financial advisors more than the Holy Spirit in making financial decisions. When we are looking for a spouse we trust our feelings more than the voice of God. When we choose our friends, church, etc. we trust human reason with the lead and maybe, just maybe, let the Holy Spirit give us some counsel.
Jesus finishes the conversation with Philip and the disciples with this amazing statement:
John 14:12-14
“The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. [13] You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. [14] Yes, ask anything in my name, and I will do it!
Jesus is declaring that we will do miracles like he did and even “Greater” ones. We read this and try to reason out this promise with our natural mind and fall flat on our faces. We conclude that we are not the ones he is talking about and thus stop trying to walk in the miraculous. You can’t learn to walk in the Spirit by trying to raise the dead in one step, but too often we try. What if we built on what we know about keeping our hearts and minds open to the Holy Spirit’s voice each day and start with simple things like understanding who we are meant to help or talk with? Then, move into more complex steps, from a lifestyle of sampling, listening and following what we know from our current relationship with God. I believe when we start a consistent pursuit of the Holy Spirit and his direction into our personal life the miraculous becomes a by-product of our relationship with our Heavenly Father. Things will start to open up to us and miracles will be more common than we could ever imagine.
Questions:
1) How often do we listen for the Holy Spirit’s voice each day? When we do regular things will change.
2) Are you looking for a mature believer to learn from on a regular basis? When you do God will move in a greater way.
Longing to listen more regularly and more consistently.
Pastor Dale
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