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MIRACLES ARE FOR REAL - PART ONE
MIRACLES ARE FOR REAL - PART TWO
MIRACLES ARE FOR REAL - PART THREE
MIRACLES ARE FOR REAL
by Pastor Mark Taylor
“Though Jesus had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on Him.”
John 12:37
I have heard many people say that if they could see a miracle in their lives, they would believe in God and in Jesus. Miracles are for real, and many people today have read about, heard about, and even seen God work in miraculously ways, but they have not experienced a personal relationship with Him.
Today, I will talk about miracles and try to explain a few reasons why they happen and why some people experience them, while others miss them. Let me establish that I am talking to and about Christians who have loved God and served Him. People outside the family of God may experience miracles, but the reason they do is that God is trying to get their attention and draw them to Him.
Whether you are in need of a minor intervention or a big miracle, God cares deeply about your needs and circumstances..God deeply cares about you. Regarding the supernatural the best way to live, the only way to live, is to believe that a miracle could happen at any moment.
Paul said: Now unto Him Who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all we can ask or think, according to His power that is at work within us, Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20)
Eighty percent of Americans believe in Miracles, while only Forty percent believe the Bible is God's Word and only Fifty percent pray daily. So I am not going to spend much time trying to prove to you that there are such things as miracles and they happen often. You may say that you have never experienced one, but that does not change the fact that they happen. I have both experienced God and miracles and His presence many times, so I know He is real and so are miracles. Historical writings from AD 185 to 1746, assert that miracles were happening during the life times of many Christian writers. This includes Martin Luther and John Wesley. Many fail to recognize that miraculous occurrences have been recorded in virtually every age. The record of God's miracles stretches from ancient times until today.
The Lord Jesus performed miracles in at least six different areas: In the human heart (Salvation), In the human body (Healing), In human emotions (Deliverance), In nature, In intervention in death, and miracles of provision at critical moments
The Lord Jesus performed miracles freely, graciously, and lovingly. True, this doesn't explain why some people receive special intervention and others don't. There is a powerful principle around the accounts of the people our Lord Jesus healed and that is: We can't merit them. We can't win them, warrant them, or work for them. Miracles are given because of who God is, not because of who we are. They are granted because of God's mercy and grace.
Miracles do not just happen - They have a purpose. God's primary purpose for healing a person is to focus on that individual and enhance the relationship. But there are at least six possible purposes for miracles as found in the Bible:
To reveal the nature of God, in showing His love and compassion.
To draw out faith of diseased people or those in need.
To draw out the faith of those who can help and assist the sick and the needy.
To reveal our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
To reveal characteristics about others who have healed other than our Lord.
To set the stage for a showdown between the forces of good and the forces of evil.
Instead of wondering why God isn't preventing or eliminating sickness or evil, we need to be asking why the devil chose to bring about evil. "The thief (Satan) comes not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10).
Despite all those causes of hardships and pain, God still intervenes, often keeping us safe from disaster and pain. The question is not "Why don't you do more?", but rather, "I am amazed at how much you have done for me!!"
Our all-loving, all-powerful God decides when and how to touch His people with miracles. Miracles flow from from an existing relationship between God and a person or from a relationship God desires to have with a person.
Can you do anything to bring about a miracle? God makes miracles happen. Through our prayers, we can see them happen. Additionally, you create a climate in which God's Spirit actively is invited to move. Prayer and the atmosphere of expectancy invites God in to work the miraculous.
One substantial way we can contribute is by praying in faith. Faith-filled prayers has an impact. While some miracles are entirely unanticipated most are prayed for, and even expected.
The second thing you can do is live a life pleasing to God.
"What? Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have from God, and you are not your own?
For you are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your Spirit, which is God's.". 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
WHAT WILL KEEP YOU FROM,RECEIVING A MIRACLE?
Purposeful sin and living an ungodly life will not only keep you from receiving miracles, it will keep you from getting any prayers answered. "If I regard iniquity in my heart, themLord will not hear me." (Psalms 66:18). "If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." ( 2 Chronicles 7:14).
You have to make some decisions when you walk with God. Is a selfish life of pleasing yourself worth missing the miracles God has for you?
The second thing you can do is live a life pleasing to God.
"What? Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have from God, and you are not your own?
For you are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your Spirit, which is God's.". 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
WHAT WILL KEEP YOU FROM,RECEIVING A MIRACLE?
Purposeful sin and living an ungodly life will not only keep you from receiving miracles, it will keep you from getting any prayers answered. "If I regard iniquity in my heart, themLord will not hear me." (Psalms 66:18). "If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." ( 2 Chronicles 7:14).
You have to make some decisions when you walk with God. Is a selfish life of pleasing yourself worth missing the miracles God has for you?
A prayer for a miracle: "God, I know you are my loving Father and desire to help me. I know you have given me authority to speak your will on earth and I proclaim your will over this situation. Since all good things come from you, I thank you in advance that either I will receive the miracle needed this moment, or I will experience the miracle of strength over what I now face." This prayer demonstrates confidence and strength in understanding that God has given His children authority not only to come to Him with requests but also to stand against the opposition of Satan in His Name.
Do you need a miracle today? You never know what you will receive until you ask in faith and in God’s will. “You have not, because you ask not or you ask for the wrong reason.” (James 4:2). The closer you are to God and the Lord Jesus, the closer you are to receiving your miracle.
(Most of this sermon was edited and adapted from a wonderful book about Miracles - Miracles Are For Real by James L. Harlow and Keith Wall. I highly recommend this book for a study on miracles)
