Do You Believe in Miracles?
15/11/09 12:53
Nine-year-old Johnny
was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday
School. “Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God
sent Moses in behind enemy lines on a rescue mission.
He was to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. They
escaped at night and traveled as far as the Red Sea.
The Egyptian Army was closing in fast, so Moses ordered his engineers to build a pontoon bridge over the sea. After all the Israelites had walked over the bridge and were safely on the other side, Moses called in to headquarters and ordered an air strike to the bridge. All the Israelites were saved but the Egyptian army drowned in the water.”
Without even looking up, Johnny’s mother said, “Now Johnny, is that really what your teacher told you?” “Well, no,” Johnny said sheepishly. “But if I told it the way the teacher did, you’d never believe it!”
Have you ever found yourself in Johnny’s shoes; you know, trying to explain away some supernatural event in the Bible? You know you believe it (at least you’re pretty sure) but as you get deeper into the account you sense that you need to help God out here a little bit to explain the unbelievable.
Your hearer is raising an eyebrow and you’re losing him more and more with the passing of each sentence. You think if you tell him just one more thing that is too fantastic to believe, he is going to walk away and write you off as nuts. And you can’t have that; you’re just as normal as the next guy. You’re not a psycho. You’re perfectly sane. (Well, the jury is still out on that one.lol)
I have listened to preachers and I have even done it myself; I have tried to explain away the miraculous, or at least tone down the supernatural, so that the story that I am telling can be “believable.” I didn’t really do this intentionally; I did it to save God’s reputation and mine. I didn’t want anyone thinking God was weird or something. I even tried witnessing the Gospel on the statements (and scientific conclusions) of some modern-day archeologist who had discovered the fallen walls of Jericho.
The article was found in the Columbus Dispatch and stated that they had discovered that the walls of Jericho had fallen just like the Bible reported it. I was ecstatic, finally something I could use in my evangelistic efforts. (Crazy huh?) I was ready to clip out the article and get on with business. Then God quickly reminded me that He didn’t need the Columbus Dispatch to prove His Word. “If they don’t believe Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”
You see, if just one miraculous event in the Bible is untrue, then all is untrue, and we are lost. Paul tells us that if Christ is not raised from the dead then our faith is futile and we are still in our sins. The greatest miracle is the resurrection of Jesus Christ and His ascension into Heaven where He is seated at the right hand of God.
Peter tells us that God accredited Jesus of Nazareth to you through miracles, wonders, and signs that were performed among us by Him. This same Jesus is the miracle of God that proves there is more to this life than what we experience within the parameters of our comprehension.
If I can only believe in what I can comprehend, then my faith is still within myself. I love Christian apologetics but I refuse to defend God and the way He has chosen to reveal Himself. If you can’t believe in miracles –what do you believe in?
Have a God blessed week. Pastor Jim
The Egyptian Army was closing in fast, so Moses ordered his engineers to build a pontoon bridge over the sea. After all the Israelites had walked over the bridge and were safely on the other side, Moses called in to headquarters and ordered an air strike to the bridge. All the Israelites were saved but the Egyptian army drowned in the water.”
Without even looking up, Johnny’s mother said, “Now Johnny, is that really what your teacher told you?” “Well, no,” Johnny said sheepishly. “But if I told it the way the teacher did, you’d never believe it!”
Have you ever found yourself in Johnny’s shoes; you know, trying to explain away some supernatural event in the Bible? You know you believe it (at least you’re pretty sure) but as you get deeper into the account you sense that you need to help God out here a little bit to explain the unbelievable.
Your hearer is raising an eyebrow and you’re losing him more and more with the passing of each sentence. You think if you tell him just one more thing that is too fantastic to believe, he is going to walk away and write you off as nuts. And you can’t have that; you’re just as normal as the next guy. You’re not a psycho. You’re perfectly sane. (Well, the jury is still out on that one.lol)
I have listened to preachers and I have even done it myself; I have tried to explain away the miraculous, or at least tone down the supernatural, so that the story that I am telling can be “believable.” I didn’t really do this intentionally; I did it to save God’s reputation and mine. I didn’t want anyone thinking God was weird or something. I even tried witnessing the Gospel on the statements (and scientific conclusions) of some modern-day archeologist who had discovered the fallen walls of Jericho.
The article was found in the Columbus Dispatch and stated that they had discovered that the walls of Jericho had fallen just like the Bible reported it. I was ecstatic, finally something I could use in my evangelistic efforts. (Crazy huh?) I was ready to clip out the article and get on with business. Then God quickly reminded me that He didn’t need the Columbus Dispatch to prove His Word. “If they don’t believe Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”
You see, if just one miraculous event in the Bible is untrue, then all is untrue, and we are lost. Paul tells us that if Christ is not raised from the dead then our faith is futile and we are still in our sins. The greatest miracle is the resurrection of Jesus Christ and His ascension into Heaven where He is seated at the right hand of God.
Peter tells us that God accredited Jesus of Nazareth to you through miracles, wonders, and signs that were performed among us by Him. This same Jesus is the miracle of God that proves there is more to this life than what we experience within the parameters of our comprehension.
If I can only believe in what I can comprehend, then my faith is still within myself. I love Christian apologetics but I refuse to defend God and the way He has chosen to reveal Himself. If you can’t believe in miracles –what do you believe in?
Have a God blessed week. Pastor Jim
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