Let’s think this evening about the mistakes made in regard to miracles. Contrary to the title of my message, miracles don’t make mistakes, but people make plenty of mistakes in regard to miracles. I believe that God could make a volcano of Rocky Road ice cream if He chose to do so. In Egypt, the sky was dark and the candles refused to burn in the Egyptians homes, yet there was light in the houses of the Israelites, and He could do that again. The Lord could put a Lexus automobile in the garage of every child of God. But he hasn’t chosen to do that, and I am reasonably sure that He never will. Alas…. Despite the Lord’s omnipotent abilities, I am not looking for spectacular miracles in my life. I anticipate multitudes of small-ish miracles, but not the Spokesman Review headline kind of miracles.
And yet, there have always been preachers that have emphasized those head-line type miracles. For years there has been a false doctrine nicknamed the “prosperity gospel” or “prosperity theology.” It is designed to make the preacher of that doctrine prosperous. But there is no evidence of that doctrine in the Bible. God has never promised a chicken in every pot. Poll takers have reported that 90% of Americans believe in miracles. Isn’t it strange that not that many believe in Jehovah? This reminds us that Satan can appear to be a miracle worker too. Miracles are as much a part of the New Age Movement as they were in the ministry of Elisha. The Book of Revelation teaches us that mankind will be seeking Satan’s miracles up until the very last-minute. This, from the outset, should tell us something about miracles. They can be deceptive and part of the Devil’s manipulations.
Yet, I serve a miracle-working God, with whom “nothing shall be impossible.” And I’m not ashamed to ask the Lord for specific, and even selfish, miracles. I admit to not having faith enough to see most of those selfish desires miraculously fulfilled. But there are two miracles that I fully expect to see, and for which I earnestly long: The first is the resurrection and/or the translation of our bodies – a miracle of the highest order. The resurrection of Lazarus had the Lord’s enemies dumbfounded, but he was only one man. Very soon, the Lord will return and there will not be one child of God – none – who will not enjoy the miracle of resurrection or translation. “Even so come Lord Jesus.” The second miracle that I pray to see more often is the New Birth. The Spiritual resurrection of a heart dead in trespasses and sins is as much a miracle as a physical resurrection. The salvation of Lazarus was more of a miracle than the resurrection of Lazarus. It was certainly more important, and it was more miraculous. It is not a sin to yearn to see the miracle of God’s salvation come upon the heart of the lost soul. And it is not a sin to earnestly yearn to be clothed upon with our house not made with hands, our post-resurrection glorified bodies. But Christians should be warned about having an obsession with any other kinds of miracles. Our Lord Jesus said, “An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after signs” like these.
Watch out for mistakes about miracles. They aren’t all that some people exaggerate them to be.
Aren’t Miracles a form of the CONDESCENSION of God?
There has always been the tendency of man to elevate himself and to minimize the Lord. It’s in our nature to think ourselves ‘”more highly than we ought to think.” The Bible warns us of these dangers. Even the Christian can elevate himself in his own mind and try to put the Lord in a kind of box. Too many of us want the Lord to be like the genie in Aladdin’s magic lamp. We want Him hanging on our belts, yearning to come out to do whatever we please. And every once in a while we carefully call on His name for some great miracle. But we do so with great economy, because we don’t want to run out our welcome or use up our three wishes.
Every time God chooses to manifest Himself to us, He accepts limitations. He “condescends” to be with us. The word “condescension” means: “to descend to be with.” And in many miracles that is precisely what we see – a condescension. In Moses’ burning bush the Lord confined himself to a small flame. In the plagues of Egypt the Lord did battle with the gods of the Heathen. The Lord limited Himself in becoming a hand to write on the wall of the Babylonian palace. Jehovah dove to the bottom of the Jordan River to pick up an axe-head. He guided a pebble into the forehead of Goliath. The miraculous water that followed Israel in the wilderness was of Christ, if not actually Christ. Several of the prophets, both Old and New Testament heard the voice of God. And sometimes they were deafened by that voice. But God was whispering even when they were deafened; He highly restrained Himself. Jehovah must greatly reduce Himself even to work mighty miracles among us. The Lord’s majesty, His superiority, His Greatness are so great that it’s beyond our understanding.
And as much as we might long for or need some miracle, we need to remember who we are before the Lord. We are but tiny specks of dust on an insignificant dot of a planet in a universe whose ends are beyond our sight. And yet we want the Creator of that universe to come and visit us. But, praise the Lord, that is exactly what He does from time to time. Besides salvation, I am convinced that I have seen some of the Lord’s small miracles. He has not forsaken us. But generally speaking it should be our desire to see the Lord high and lifted up, not brought low to earth. It should be our desire to rise to glorify Him in His palace, not in our hovel.
As with the many of the miracles of the Lord Jesus…. as we see Him change water and wine, As we witness Him heal dozens of very sick people, as we see Him raised the dead, As we watch Him multiply food and silence storms, as we see Him walk on the sea, As we see Him marshal schools of fish and put coins in the mouths of specific cod, We lift our voices and we praise His name. But He is a thousand times more glorified when He gives repentance and faith to a confused, sinful Samaritan woman, than He is in all of these miracles. The Lord is magnified more by our going to Him than He is in His coming to us. The Lord is more glorified by the two denizens of Emmaus returning to Jerusalem to serve Him, than He was miraculously appearing and disappearing from their sight. He is more magnified by our serving Christ than in His service of us. You may quarrel with this idea, but the Lord may be more glorified by the peaceful death of one of His children than He is by that man’s restored health. When you ask the Lord for another miracle, you need also to ask whether or not you are bringing glory to His name in your day to day life.
Miracles should be about God, not about us. And yet, in every miracle, the Lord condescends to bless us.
Miracles can actually create IDOLATRY.
The Bible speaks of miracles in the terms of “signs and wonders.” Like the gift of speaking in tongues, for example, a miracle of the apostolic days. The gift of tongues was the ability to speak or hear in a language which the speaker had never learned. Tongues – glossolalia – were for a sign to the unbelieving Jew. That is not my opinion that of the Bible says. And it also says that upon the completion of the Word of God the gift of tongues would cease. When Paul was talking about his ministry he emphasized the importance of preaching the Word of God. In I Corinthians 1, he said, “The Jews require a sign and the Greeks seek after wisdom.” But we preach Christ crucified unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness.” While the Jews were looking for signs from God, like glossolalia, and the Greeks were watching the wonders. But the Lord Jesus said that “a wicked and adulterous generation seeks after signs and wonders.”
In John 2.we have a description of what may have been Jesus’ first miracle – in Cana of Galilee. Then Jesus went to Jerusalem to go into combat with the wicked religion that He found there. And many of people began to follow Him when they saw the miracles which He did. Nevertheless John 2:24 says, “Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew what was in them.” When many of the people of Jerusalem saw the miracles that Jesus performed, they did not worship Him as the son of God, they either worshiped Him as a miracle worker, or they worshiped the miracles themselves. And some people followed the Lord, not for his grace, but for His miraculous food. They were like some people at a Fourth of July celebration. They are in the park laying on the blanket, looking up into the sky and watching the fireworks. When there is a lull between explosions, they get restless. And when the party is over, and the last skyrocket has exploded, they have a tiny feeling of disappointment. Whether or not they ever say it, they think “more,” they want more, they want bigger and better. But how many of them actually look for the man who created the spectacle to thank him?
I wouldn’t be so foolishness as to say that the miracles of God have never prompted an atheist to become interested in Christ. But I have scriptural authority not to expect it. In Luke 16 we have the account of the rich man and Lazarus. After his death the rich man pled with Abraham to send dead Lazarus back to his brothers. He wanted a miraculous apparition to warn them of the judgment to come. Apparently his brothers knew Lazarus, because before his death he was often found sitting in the gate of the rich man’s house begging for money and food. If this sick beggar could return from the dead, the man was sure that his unbelieving brethren would turn to Lord. But Abraham assured him that this was not was not going to happen. First of all, those men had the Word of God which is the true revelation of the Lord. They didn’t need any miracles to convict them of their need of Christ. If they didn’t listen to the revelation of God they weren’t going to listen to a miracle. And secondly, the results of miracles are rarely what people think they will be.
Please turn to I Corinthians 1:17-25 – “For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” It is not miracles, but the preaching of the word of God that destroys idolatry. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God,” not by miracles.
Ideally, miracles are a wake up call from God. Have you ever asked the motel operator to give you a wake up call? I suppose that they are not all exactly the same, but most are automated. The phone rings, but if you answer it, there isn’t a human voice on the other end of the line. Miracles are the wake-up call of God. But more often than not, there is no one there to talk and certainly few even try to listen. That miracle is just a tap on the noggin to get somebody out of bed. The real message is already in their hands in the form of the Word of God.
Miracles often make even Christians more shallow than spiritual.
Like the exploding of fireworks in the dark July evening, our eyes may be dazzled by the beautiful light. We may in fact be blinded for the next few moments because of that light. A few weeks ago I taught the chapter which describes the miracle that was experienced by Hezekiah. The king was sick unto death, but the Lord granted him a miraculous healing and fifteen more years of life. Unfortunately those fifteen years were not spent in a fashion worthy of the Lord’s grace. I am not saying that every life blessed with a miraculous will end up like Hezekiah’s. But that man soon began to rejoice more in the beating of his heart rather than in the will of the Lord. Like the young Israelites, who by God’s grace were permitted to enter the promised land – for the most part they saw and tasted the manna, but not the God who provided it.
Isn’t it true that when we have a headache, we usually treat the pain rather than the thing that caused it? When Jesus healed the nobleman’s son, and Peter’s mother-in-law, and the Centurian’s servant, the Lord was merely relieving symptoms. The 9,000 people who ate Lord’s miraculous bread and fish got hungry awaiting more miracles. Generally speaking, it is not faith which looks for miracles. It’s selfishness that drives Hezekiah to plead for healing. It’s fear of debt that makes the student-prophet plead for the return of the fallen axe-head. It’s love that makes a father plead for the restoration of his nearly dead little girl. In some ways miraculous gifts are like social welfare: The more we have the more we want – and the more we deteriorate inside. Many kinds of deterioration end up in death.
And speaking of death, most of the people of this world have no concept of the cause of death. They think that death is an anomaly, a freak of nature, an accident – especially for the Christian. But the Bible tells us the death is a result of sin; there is little mystery about it. “Wherefore as by one man’s sin death came into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all man, for all have sinned.” “The whole creation groaneth and travaileth together until now waiting” for the end of the curse brought about through Adam’s sin. One more month of life – for any of us – is one of the Lord’s small miracles. And if a hundred dying people selected at random each had ten years miraculously added to their lives, I would venture to guess that ninety of them would continue to live as ungodly and sinfully as they ever had before. Then at the end of their extended lives, they would still die and be cast into Hell. For the Lord to restore the dead son to the widow of Nain – that was no indication that he is not in Hell today. Death is merely the primary symptom of the larger problem – sin. Except for the miracle of salvation all other miracles deal only with symptoms.
Other than our translation, and from time to time some selfish specific miracles, there is only one miracle that I long to see: I’m talking about the miracle of the new birth and the forgiveness of the sins of sinners. I wish that our services were filled with miracles – not miraculous healings of cancer, heart disease and twisted limbs. I’m talking about salvation from sin – the new birth.