Do You Believe In Miracles?

I wonder how many people reading this blog believe in miracles. Not just any miracle as: I got the job, we're finally pregnant, or he was found not guilty. No, I'm speaking specifically about the type of miracles humans have no power in making come about. The kind of miracles Jesus performed like:
1. Changing water into wine (John 2:1-11)
2. Healing the son of a Royal (John 4:46-54)
3. Healing a paralyzed man (John 5:1-15)
4. Feeding 5,000 people w/a few fish (John 6:5-14
5. Walking on water (John 6:16-24)
6. Healing a man- blind from birth (John 9:1-7)
7. Raising the dead to life (John 11: 1-45)
Who believes THOSE kinds of miracles take place today? Miracles that WE can perform. Jesus said, Verily, verily I tell you, whoever believes in Me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these because I am going to the Father. And whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son, you shall have" (John 14:12-14). Jesus Himself said this. It was His promise not only for the disciples in His day but it applies to us as well because He said, "WHOEVER believes in Me." In this blog, I want to talk about 2 types of miracles. The kinds mentioned above and the "greater things than these" Jesus said we could do. Now, you might be thinking, 'how in the world could we do miracles beyond those that Jesus did? There's no way we could do better than raising the dead or opening the eyes of the blind.' Well, I'm here to say yes you can! But before I begin, there is one important thing you must do for it to work. You must have faith. And faith is only developed when you read the Word of God, "Faith comes IN HEARING, and hearing by the Word of God" says Romans 10:17. Faith to believe God's Word is the very essence of receiving the promises that He said we can have! We must have both Faith and The Word for miracles to take place. Look at Hebrews 4:2, "For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them NOT BEING MIXED WITH FAITH in them that heard it" (emphasis mine). I can speak to you all I want about the Bible (the Word), but if you don't read it for yourself to see that it is true and thereby building your faith, it won't profit you a thing and you certainly won't have the faith to produce 'greater things.'

Personally, I have been a recipient of over a dozen miracles in my 40+ years of being a Christian. Here are 3 quick examples: After a prayer meeting one night and driving for about 20 minutes down a dark, unfamiliar, hilly road in southern Missouri, I glanced down at the gas gauge and realized I was driving on fumes. The indicator needle was passed the "E". I prompted other passengers in my car to begin praying using our faith to believe we could get home safely even though we were well over 20 miles away. It was an impossibility of course but we put our faith to work and reminded God of His promises to supply our needs and to never forsake us in a time of trouble. As we ended our prayer the gas gauge still rested below the E. I shouted to my passengers, "Let's sing and praise God." We did and within just a minute or so I saw my cars' gas tank needle go from reading empty to close to 1/4 of a tank! I even shouted to those riding with me that the needle was moving! Needless to say, we made it back home. Another miracle was the day I was visiting a mother who had 4 children. This woman was receiving welfare from the government along with a few staples. Scanning the kitchen I could see that the cupboards were empty and her government check wasn't due for another 4 days. On the kitchen table was a glass bottle that only had a half-cup of milk left in it, certainly not enough to fill four hungry children. I asked the mom and all the children to hold hands with me while I prayed for a miracle. After praying AND BELIEVING that God would feed these children, I asked one of them to bring 4 glasses. The glasses were set down on the table. I picked up the glass bottle and began pouring filling one glass, two glasses, three glasses, four! The milk kept flowing until all four children we satisfied. True story! I was a hero to the children that day but I knew who the real miracle worker was. I just exercised my faith and believed God would help in a seemingly impossible situation.
I returned later that evening and delivered enough groceries to last a week. And finally, just a few months ago I prayed for a lady with a kidney stone the doctors said was too large to pass naturally and that she would require lithotripsy. I'll make this short. I laid my hands over her kidneys believing all things are possible with God and quoted scriptures related to healing. By combining the Word of God with my faith I told her she was healed. The next x-ray could not detect a stone! However, the doctors scared her into believing that the stone had to be somewhere in her body, that it only must have shifted and it would be wise for her to proceed with the lithotripsy. I refused to believe it and stood firm on my faith. However, her faith wasn't as strong so she went in for the procedure a week later. After getting prepped and going through a partial procedure, the urologist told her he could not see nor find the stone. They told her "it must have dissolved on its own." No, JESUS DISSOLVED IT! She was released and cautioned if she had the slightest indication of pain or discomfort to return to the ER. Guess what? She never had to return. So those are my personal examples of miracles still bring performed by God today through prayer, faith, and the Word.

There is no doubt in my mind God still performs miracles today for people of faith and those "WHOEVER believes in Me.". Jesus made the lame to walk, the mute to speak, the blind to see, the leper to be cleansed, and the dead raised to life again. He also filled a gas tank, filled a bottle with milk, and healed a kidney stone. But what about the "greater things than these shall you do" mentioned in John 14:12 ?? What is the greatest thing that any believer could do? Physical miracles or saving a soul from hell? I believe it is to share the gospel with someone so that they might be saved. Naturally, God does the saving, but it is our responsibility to share the good news with lost people in the hopes that God grants them repentance (2 Tim 2:25). If God uses us to heal someone by praying for them, that’s great…all glory to God, but to have someone healed while still rejecting the gospel means they’ll only live a healthier life on their way to hell. What is greater than rescuing a person who would otherwise perish apart from Christ? Does healing sickness or disease equal eternal life in Christ? No way! That’s greater than any physical healing, isn’t it? Even self-proclaimed faith healers die…but Jesus said, “Whoever believes in me, though he dies, yet shall he live” (John 11:25). You can be healed by a miracle and still die in your sins, but when a person puts their trust in Christ, they can endure in this life, even if they’re never healed. They know that not even death can separate them from God (Rom 8:38-39). They also understand that God uses suffering for His glory and our best. We are refined by being passed through the flames, yet not tossed into the fire.

Finally, for those who are running around the world claiming to do greater works than Jesus, I would ask, “Do you really believe that you have exceeded what Jesus did here on earth?” If Jesus only meant that they would do greater miracles than Him, I think it does injustice to the context of His words. Jesus was commissioning them to make disciples of all people. The scope of Jesus’ earthly ministry was basically centered near Jerusalem, but the apostles would spread out far and wide, and leave behind the Word of God (in the gospels and letters). Bartholomew would go to Asia, Matthew to Ethiopia, and Thomas to India. All but John would die a martyr’s death. The gospels would go on to be published and spread worldwide, so they are actually still doing great things, and together, as they spread out, they reached further through the Internet than Jesus’ earthly ministry ever could being limited by space, time, and distance The apostles are still doing “greater things” by reaching all nations with the Word of God because much of the New Testament comes from the original apostle’s writings, but today we’re able to reach even greater audiences than they could because we have greater technology. I would rather have my blogs reach people around the world and draw them to Christ than to see the healing of kidney stones or a thousand glasses filled with milk. Saving souls is the greater miracle.
Until next time,
-Pat-