Miracles Happen!

Miracles happen! They happen all the time. I consider myself one, in many ways. The trouble is that the word is tossed about carelessly and used in error. You get varying numbers of how many time it is used in the Bible, depending on the version or the interpretation. Jesus is mentioned as doing thirty five but we know He did many more, so many the books could not hold them.

I have seen those whose lives were spared quite miraculously remain in unbelief that God had stepped in, one even told me that doctors made mistakes. Yes, they are fallible but this boy woke up just before they were preparing him to be an organ donor. Just like not everyone will be saved, not everyone will believe and even if they do they often attribute it to something else, a higher power or technological advancement, not the sacrifice or resurrection power of Christ.

A miracle, by definition,  is an event that is inexplicable in the natural or by scientific and physical laws. It is described as God intervening for mankind, though a lot of beliefs include them and ascribe them to different gods. I like this one from the Topical Bible.  Miracles are seals of a divine mission. That really sums up the ministry of Jesus.

Jesus replied, “I did one miracle on the Sabbath, and you were amazed. ” John 7:21

Now, of course, if you are familiar with Jewish teaching, He should not have worked on the Sabbath, but in the previous chapter, He had multiplied loaves and fishes. They had accused Him of having a demon and He answered that they were trying to kill Him, for He knew their thoughts and the intent of their hearts.  He always knows and we don’t always walk in that discernment. Sometimes, He had to walk away. Jesus told them about the bread of life and many walked away at the teaching of Communion, because they did not understand, the body and blood, and He had not been crucified of risen.

They were still following pagan laws and even the law of Moses, yet, they circumcised on the Sabbath and rescued livestock if the need arose. They were very critical of Him, and He chose not to go on to the feast of Tabernacles. He often said His time had not come. And it was the response to the first miracle at Cana, He changed water to wine for Mary but it was the same answer. He was so condemned for healing on the Sabbath, a man’s hand, and a woman bound by infirmity for eighteen years. But Jesus fulfilled the law of Moses, and overcame the world.

Look what happened to Him in Nazareth, His hometown, though He was born in Bethlehem, and lived in hiding in Egypt until He was twelve.

And because of their unbelief, He couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place His hands on a few sick people and heal them. Mark 6:5

John 10:41 explains that followers of John the Baptist had seen no sign or miracle performed by Him but that everything he had spoken about Jesus was absolute truth. In Mark 9:39, the disciples tell Him that someone is casting out demons in His name, but not following them. He said to let him continue and emphasized that anyone who does can say nothing bad about Him. Yet, thee will be some who lay claim to this and He will say to them  ” Depart from me. ” He knows who is a true believer in Him, and who is not.

The working of miracles is a gift of the Holy Spirit, listed in 1 Corinthians 12:10. I believe there are different kinds of miracles, and many also require deliverance. Sin can cause sickness but Jesus made sure to tell the crowd that a blind man was not to blame for it, nor his parents. I do believe that there are creative miracles, like changing a heart, not to mention that Jesus spat on the ground and made a man a pair of eyes.

Among others gifts are tongues, prophesying and discernment. I believe that there are people gifted with that, however, I have never like the term ” faith healer. ” Yes, it takes faith in Him to be healed, He says so to the centurion and the woman with the issue of blood. It is, to a degree, faith in the person praying for you, but that doesn’t have to be in church, necessarily or even a minister but a trusted friend. Many times, it is just you and Jesus.

I had a family member who worked with someone who saw a limb grow back in a service, back in 70’s. I have seen a woman with 0% chance to live actually get her cancer removed and dance at a wedding. I personally, along with others prayed for a baby, who might not have lived, they said she would have to wear a colostomy bag, her whole life. After two operations the baby girl went home in a diaper, and is now about nine.

Mark 16:6, says that believers will speak in tongues, lay hands on the sick, take up serpents, which is casting out spirits or demons. It is not snake handling! And if they drink poison, back in the day water would have been contaminated, but it also refers to the poisonous venom of false teaching. A lot of people, myself include, have allowed fear to hinder them. It can be difficult to believe in a miracle, especially when you need one, which is why I have studied for so long, that faith had to be built up. And we have to allow the Holy Spirit to teach us wisdom and discernment.

I think we see miracles everyday. Butterflies, and breezes, little one that He puts in our paths to make us appreciate a God that could make something as small as a snail or as large as whale. He wants us to see the design in His beautiful plan, and He makes it beautiful in His time, Ecclesiastes says. He is divine and responds to prayer and faith, He take pity on us and enjoys blessing us. We can see the delicate handiwork in a feather or wing, in a snowflake or a cloud.

He made the laws of nature and physics and can bend them at will. Nothing is too hard for God, even if it is for us. He held the sun place for Joshua and holds babies in wombs, unless they are given up or unable to thrive. He changes literally, death to life. He even creates miracles, something the devil cannot do.

We are living in a time like no other and in a generation like this one. But we know what He meant about dying for us and being in the tomb.

But Jesus replied, “Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign; but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. Matthew 12:39

Perhaps, the most difficult miracle for Him, is to change a heart from its way, to save a soul that clings to darkness, while wanting to believe. I can’t answer everything about miracles, but I know they exist. He has protected all of us more times than we may ever know. And I know miracles happen! And I will not be surprised to see many more before His return and coinciding with it.

Scopio / Canva Pro

Embrace His Grace

We are, too often, just taking the grace of God for granted. I like what the Message Bible says about grace upon grace, in John 1:16, it is translated as gift upon gift. And the verse I have so come to love and depend on is John 14:27, about His peace, and that too is a gift.

So many verses will tell you about grace but do we really see them and embrace them as gifts. There are fruits of the Spirit, Galatians 5:22,23 and they are gifts, the gifts of the Spirit, 1 Corinthians 12, and so many more. Are gifts and grace one in the same or two separate, I can see both points.

Salvation is a gift from God, Ephesians 2:8, and it is by grace. It’s nothing that we deserve or earn only that we repent and ask for His forgiveness, believing in His love by sending and sacrificing His beloved Son.  If it wasn’t for grace, we would not be saved at all, and if it were not that He sends sufficient grace to endue as He told Paul, we wouldn’t make it either.

I read a commentary suggesting that graces are for everyone while gifts are apparently for a few. Many signs and wonders were necessary to draw believers to God but they are still around. True, we are all under grace as believers, but I can see how they are both gifts and graces. However, I did agree that both are divine and from God, but I realize that they are according to a person’s will, and that the Spirit also gives as He sees fit as we grow in grace. Many people never mature or bear fruit.

Not everyone will get this concept but that’s alright, The main idea is not to cheapen or disrespect the grace of God. Not everyone is willing to love like Jesus, even as a believer. Not all believe in spiritual gifts or miracles, healing or tongues, but they do exist. I see way too much in the way of tempers flaring even in the body of Christ, let’s not forget that we are expected not only to embrace His grace but respect it, cherish it.

But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Ephesians 4:7 English Standard

But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:17 New Living

It is the same today, for a few of the people of Israel have remained faithful because of God’s grace—his undeserved kindness in choosing them.  And since it is through God’s kindness, then it is not by their good works. For in that case, God’s grace would not be what it really is—free and undeserved. Romans 11:5,6

In His grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. Romans 12:6 New Living

But He gives more grace. Why he said, God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. James 4:6

A lot of people, like myself, find themselves being more of a giver, than receiver. But we are to freely receive His grace and have great admiration and respect for this gift. Have you ever had someone offer to pay for lunch and refuse, or say that gift is ” too much “, or ” You shouldn’t have! ”

Well, God shouldn’t have, didn’t have to but He loved us enough to send Jesus. And what if He had not? Where would we be? We had to receive and love Him and allow Him to love us and teach us wisdom and grace. We did cost Him too much but He thought we were worth it. Let’s look at a couple of examples of how Jesus exemplified humility and grace, and how different the responses were from a man, religious, and a woman, once a sinner.

In John 13, Jesus washes the feet of His disciples. He humbles Himself before them. Washing feet was a servant’s task. Peter refused, but Jesus called Him out on it and He changed His mind. Perhaps, He thought it was too lowly a thing for Jesus to being doing or just that he wasn’t accepting such a token as a gift of love and grace. Like Peter, a lot of us speak before thinking it through.

And in one of my favorite stories, just two chapters before, Mary of Bethany came to anoint Jesus with and expensive perfume from her broken alabaster box. While Jesus was brought low before the disciples, Mary was humble before Him, she even wiped His feet with her hair as opposed to Jesus and His towel.

Both were submissive, Jesus to the Father, and Mary to Him. Jesus was cleansing them in a ritual sense but they were already clean from the spoken words He had said. He was girded with a towel, as an apparent covenant, a sort of covering.

Mary used her hair, which is also a covenant or covering in it made her a glorified woman in church history. Jesus said she anointed Him for death but He has anointed us for life. And it is time to embrace His gift of it, and to embrace His grace.

Milko / Getty Images Signature / Canva Pro

Washed In The Water Of The Word

I took lots of baths as a child, but as I got older, getting clean became a hurried routine. I really never was a woman who got to lounge in the tub for very long. I  was even fortunate to soak my feet, I was always on the go. And I needed His rest. Not just sleep, that too, but spiritual rest.

But what does it mean to washed in the water of His Word? Well, it is a lot more than knowing it or reading it. It is letting it soak into  your spirit, past that flesh that longs for bubbles and perfumes, and quiet luxuries. We all like write about what pertains to women and how to apply it to our lives, and yes, there are cute sayings and positive affirmations of faith, but while we are striving to deal with the cares of the world, Jesus has already performed that ritual bath.

Without getting into detail or Hebraic study, Jews were required to be clean, a scribe had to be in order to write, a mistake meant starting over. There were ritual baths. Lepers were considered unclean, for instance, and the woman with the issue of blood, and certainly sinners were. There were requirements under the law that Jesus fulfilled under grace. He touched and healed the unclean, spoke to sickness and unclean spirits to leave. He spoke life to death, fear to love, and  yes, even though we may not always look or act like it, sinner to saint.

People here in the south are always talking about once saved, always saved, and I do agree. If you are truly saved you might wander but you are no longer a willing sinner, which is how we are to know or rather, recognize believers from those who just call themselves Christians. God’s love is pure and Christ sanctifies us. Grace is by not any means cheap, it cost Jesus dearly, yet people cheapen it daily with their own thoughts, words and ways. Can you backslide, go astray or even sin? Yes, which is why believers should keep a repentant heart. But you are washed in His Word, so keep them in your mind and heart, and in your mouth.

Salvation is a gift, freely given and we can’t brag about it, Ephesians 2:8, only what He has done for us. I heard a minister say that if we could lose our salvation we all would have by now, we are human, He isn’t. That is still not a license to sin. Let’s look at how Jesus has cleansed and sanctified us b washing us with the water of the Word.

You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you John 15:3 New King James

For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word. Ephesians 5:25,26 New Living

Some of you were once like that. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.1 Corinthians 6:11 New Living, previous verses list the sins…

Vessels were washed, sacrifices were washed but Jesus is our mediator to heaven, so He has cleansed us and sanctified us. He loves the church like husbands should love their wives and wives their husbands, and there are just lines that are not to be crossed or confused. The blood and water flowed from His side and is not to be taken lightly, but He is our High Priest and we can go before Him in prayer as even Levitical priests could not.

….let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:22 New Living

I hope this helps you to understand why soaking in His Word and His presence is so necessary in these times, in order for the Spirit to help us discern, like we bathe our bodies, we must keep our spirits refreshed and renewed, so we know that we are washed in the water of His Word.

Thoughts On The Eclipse

A lot of people are interested in the eclipse of the sun tomorrow. Or maybe you got to see it. And it is very interesting, both from the scientific and Biblical point of view. You can’t look directly at it with out protecting your eyes, but how about protecting our hearts? We don’t need to be too focused on the heavens and not enough on the reality of heaven. And it is a difficult time we are in but also a blessed one for believers.

In Bible days, the people told times by signs and seasons, as told in Genesis. It was how crops were planted and the fields were to not be furrowed as a rest, the seventh year. It was how the Levitical priests kept the calendar. It was Nimrod who corrupted astronomy into astrology. It is just like God using numbers and symbols, but it can be misused in numerology and other ways. A lot of people ascribe human behavior to the moon and tides, and it is true that there are times that crime is higher, but spiritual warfare occurs at certain times as well, it often coincides with occult celebrations, and some of those are in the same time frames of Christian holidays.

Just like God works in cycles and seasons, the enemy always attempts to copy Him. But he fails, completely. Especially, when we are aware of the devices in his arsenal. Does the eclipse have any bearing on a season. It certainly could. We have had blood moons and then there is this verse, how else would a prophet, who doesn’t know the word eclipse describe them? Joel 2:31. Amos 8:9, Isaiah 13:10, for instance. But here’s what Jesus said using their term, about the days after the Great Tribulation. So, isn’t it interesting that we are getting a glimpse already?

Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Matthew 24:29

This is shortly before His Second Coming, remember, when He Raptures the church, or catches it away. I believe the ” stars and powers ” He refers to are fallen angels, demons, principalities and powers. ” These spirits are real whether or not people believe it and affect an already fallen world that God has  planned to redeem by sending Jesus.

But when studying Revelation it is necessary to familiar with symbols and numbers, and have some knowledge of ancient history. No one knows when He is coming, not the day or hour. Jesus hints at the fall, but even He doesn’t know until God tells Him. When the evil has reached a peak and the last soul is saved, He will come, and when you’re not expecting Him! That’s why I do my best not to get lost in the shuffle of day to day, problems, politics, diseases, terrorists. The general chaos and confusion that surrounds us as we await the Lord.

Does the sun or moon have a bearing on behavior? I suppose it depends on the person and their practice and beliefs. As for the total eclipse of the sun, you need special glasses, and can only remove them when it is totally eclipsed, but just for a moment. It will be photographed enough, and scientists are study it all, there are even planes that will be able to get into the ionosphere. The sun’s corona, the ring around it will be all that is visible.

And even that is interesting. The Latin word for  crown or halo, is corona. Does the eclipse signal another outbreak? It is possible that the world will see another pandemic in the end of the age. It is the enemy of God that is behind the diseases that plague humanity in a fallen world, and God allows only so much before He steps in, one of the strains of Covid is Sars, the word sar means prince. Jesus described the devil as the prince of this world, but the Prince of Peace has defeated him and is with us.

So, we can be interested in the eclipse, and what goes on with the moon and sun, even stars. But like those, He calls us by name and I prefer to be more interested in the Son.  Does it have a bearing on God’s timetable and the coming events of history and eternity, we will see. And one day soon we will see Him coming in His glory.

https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/what-to-expect/

hitdelight/ Canva Pro

How To Walk With God

Of all the things I have learned in  my life, I never thought I would have to learn to walk all over again, but I have had to after a long hospital stay and several leg surgeries. It is something we take for granted. Though I was never really a walker,  I didn’t expect to actually need one. And though not a jogger or runner, I knew some who were, people who ran in races, like our Peachtree Road Race in July. One of them once wrote that God told her, that at her height and weight, that He was in charge of her. She was overdoing it.

I liked to walk at antiques fairs, and the mall, even though I tended to tire. When women I knew went walking I never really could keep up. The slant of the road and cu de sac were too much for me. Even when I went to a charismatic convention, because I was studying and in need of healing, I remember a lady asking me why I was running, ” To get a seat! ” I replied. Though I couldn’t run as fast as most, and had nearly been pushed through a plate glass window, I was trying. Christians should not be stepping on or over each other, should they? Literally or figuratively. Jesus was thronged by crowds, but His power went a lot further than that, as it does today. He can heal you anywhere you are!

So, I started thinking about the best way to walk with God and I am leaving a few verses at the end of the post to meditate on.  We are to be an example, redeeming the time, but really, I believe that He is doing that for us. We have missed out on a lot because of attacks, wrong teaching, fear, worry, and lack of knowledge. We should walk worthy and in white, like the brides of Christ we were meant to be, and not abuse His grace.

I could give you a lot of examples of men and women in the Bible that walked with God and Jesus is the best example of that. Joseph has always been a favorite of mine, he talked about his walk and it angered the family. I can relate in some ways, it happens to all who choose to follow Him, they may lose friends or family over their decision to let Jesus be Lord. But a personal relationship with Him is worth it, it is eternal.

The one person that came to mind is Enoch. The Bible says that he walked with God and was not because God took him. So, Enoch never died. Now, I believe that he is one of the two witnesses that will die and lay in the streets of Jerusalem in Revelation, along with Elijah. Why? They never died but lived in a time when they would have had to, unlike those of us who are alive and remaining when the Rapture or catching away of the church comes. Jesus even spoke of a wicked generation that wanted a sign, what He called the sign of Jonah, referring to His death and resurrection is a sign that the Jews would understand about the prophets then, Matthew 12:39.

I have a book that includes some lost texts of the Bible. The book of Enoch is in it. Actually, I never read it all. I am somewhat skeptical of old manuscripts, they may or may not be authentic. A lot of them may have been copied and just signed with that name. The Bible mentions the book of Jasher, and Josephus was a Roman historian who recorded a lot of Jewish exploits. I encourage readers to study but to let the Holy Spirit be the best teach and help to discern.

For instance, I have heard that many believe the two witnesses are Moses and Elijah, but Moses dies and was buried by God, no one knows the location, though some claim to. The Bible is an accurate historical text, since it is the Word of God, we know the Holy Spirit directed what was to be in it, it contains all that is necessary to be saved. And it interprets itself and might appear to contradict, but that isn’t so. We learn more and more, and one day will know all the answers in heaven.

But what about Enoch? Well, he is mentioned in Genesis 5:23 and Hebrews 11:5, as well as few other verses, Enoch was the seventh from Adam and also the father of the oldest man, Methusaleh. It is believed that he walked in God’s rest, a place of perfection not seen since the fall. In the next chapter before the flood, Noah also walked with God, before the flood.

Enoch was also a prophet and saw what was coming, perhaps, even the falling of angels and the latter days before the coming of Christ. We might have clues to what happened and is about to, in the heavens and on earth.  Let’s read it.

Enoch, who lived in the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said, “Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of His holy ones ( angels ) to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against Him. “

These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want. Jude 1:14-16, you may want to read the chapter.

I am not here to speculate and whether you agree or disagree is not a problem. But I think that our walk with God can be half hearted or whole hearted, or even non existent. There is a lot of deception. Grace is not one but it is being abused. Perhaps, we should rethink our own walk and reflect on His mercy and hope to live like Enoch, contemplative, conveying divine completion and rest, God knows we are not perfected but His love is all that will ever perfect humanity. And many will not believe.

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Ephesians 4:1,2

So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. Galatians 5:16 New Living

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God…Colossians 1:9,10

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, or we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:6

But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son cleanses us from all sin. 1John 1:7

There are many other verses about our walk or walking with God or His ways. Why not do your own study. And really, ” walk ” translates to how we live. So, let’s pray to walk worthy, we are in evil times and only God can truly redeem us, He loved us enough to send His Son. And He’s coming again for believers, then all the way to earth in the Second Coming to ultimately destroy that enemy, the devil.

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Ephesians 5:17

We can keep Him in our thoughts, walk with God and like Enoch, be taken when Jesus comes.

StockSnap / Pixabay / Canva Pro

All verses from English Standard Version unless noted.