Revelatory Ramblings…

• some recent events in my life have served for me to refocus myself on god.  the situation wasn’t His idea, but i’m glad that it caused me to see what’s really important:  Him.
• i sincerely think that i have the best parents in the world.  in a situation that can be very draining and stressful, my mother told me to stand strong in the lord.  she really encouraged me.  i was expecting to be disowned…but that’s b/c there’s some issues that i have to work out.
• i’ve been reading the book “The Way of the Wild at Heart.”  MAN!  this book has been my answer for so many things!  it talks about the process of manhood and how god fills in the gaps when the men in our lives don’t or can’t help us.  i have a Father!  i’m a beloved son!
• so…in my bible reading, i’ve discovered two cool things.  The first thing is this:  getting stuff doesn’t make you blessed.  it’s the blessing that empowers you to get stuff.  if you look at the trend in scripture, God would bless someone, and then they were told what the blessing was for.  Adam and Eve were blessed, and then they were told to rule.  Abram was blessed, and then He was told that he would be a father of nations.  Holy Spirit fell on Jesus, and then He announced that He would set the captive free.  Blessing is empowerment from God.  I believe in blessing that He actually releases His own ability into our lives!
• the other side to the bless thing is this:  you’re blessing is according to your level of favor, and you increase in favor by being like god.  Adam and Eve were blessed b/c they were in the image and likeness of God.  Abram had faith of God, so He was blessed.  as believers we all start with a certain amount of favor because we’re God’s children.  however, our character and growth determine how that favor increases.  God loves everyone, but everyone doesn’t have the same level of favor.  a parent wouldn’t (shouldn’t) give the irresponsible child the car keys, regardless of how much they are loved.  blessing is enablement.  enablement is dangerous in the hands of someone that doesn’t have the character to maintain it.  that’s why the bible says in James chapter one that a double-minded man can’t receive anything from God, b/c he’s unstable and the blessing can’t rest on Him!!

okay…my rambling is over.

The Reason For Miracles

Annoyed at the propsect of the person limping around with a bad knee, I typed back to them, “I don’t like it when knees are hurt.  Jesus heals knees.  Can I pray for you?”

The person said that I could, and I proceeded to type the command over the internet.  After a pause, they responded with an “OMG” and began to testify how their knee was almost back to normal.  As we chatted a little more, the knee in question began to get even better.  Jesus likes healing knees.  In fact, He’s very interested in your knees because He said that “every knee shall bow” to Him [insert studio audience laughter here].

This is reality, Christ’s reality.  Jesus still heals, and He still does miracles.  As the writer of Hebrews declares, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  It’s an awesome thing to watch God be God.  I can testify that I witness the Lord healing or restoring something on a somewhat regular basis.  Probably once or twice a month.  I’m praying for it to be everyday, numerous times a day.

It’s vital that believers are able to demonstrate the reality of God’s kingdom in everyday life to everyday people.  Why?  Because that’s what Jesus did, and that’s what He taught His disciples to do.   Power is the distingusishing mark that gives weight to the good news.  It does matter what we tell the world, but it makes more that we back it up with.

So, to make my thoughts legal, let me present some biblical examples.  In Exodus, God charged Moses to openly display the power of God to confront Pharoah.  The goal was to prove God’s sumpremacy to Pharoah so that he’d let God’s people go.  The enemy had power as well.  Pharoah’s magicians were able to reproduce the miracles that Moses performed…but only to a point.  It came a point when the power of God  was shown to have no equal, and Pharoah had to loosen his grip on God’s people.  The result was the instantaeous release of over one million people as a result of God manifesting His power.

When Jesus comes onto the scene, we see Him begin the New Testament parallel of the same event:  openly displaying the power of God to release God’s chosen people.  This time, however, the charge to display God’s power wasn’t just in Jesus’ hands, but in the hands of all that followed Him (read John 14:10-12).  And the point wasn’t just to free one group of people, but the entire world.  Lastly, Jesus didn’t display the power of God to plague people, but to show the love and compassion of the Father to a dying world. 

The word says that Jesus was manifested to “destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8).  Jesus didn’t come bearing a plauge; but He used the power His Father gave Him to dispell them.  The works of the devil are disease, torment, broken families, and all the other plagues that haunt mankind.  This truth tells us that the display of power through Jesus’ life was intended to reveal one of the main intents of all of scripture:  God’s intense fiery, love for His most prized creation:  man.  Whatever God loves is a target for His power and presence. 

What do miracles sound like?  They sound like breaking chains.  Every believer is destined to experience their Father’s power and give the people around access to His goodness.   Do you need a change in your life?  Ask God to show you His power today.  Have you already experienced His power in your life?  Open the door for someone else to.