Category Archives: Miracles

Faith / Trusting God, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Jesus (hearing from God), Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Miracles, Miracles, Share the Good News

Lessons from Jesus’ Sending of the Twelve: Applying Their Ministry Today

Whether we seek to learn about Yeshua or to take His message to others, we should pay attention to the early ministry of Yeshua and His disciples and apply what we learn to our lives today.

Yeshua sent out His disciples to preach that men should repent from their wrong ways and turn toward God’s ways and toward God, Himself. They cast out demons and anointed the sick with oil, healing them. It sounds very much like a reflection of Jesus’ ministry as He began. (Matthew 4:17; Matthew 4:23)

Mark 6:7-13

The Twelve Sent Out

      7And He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits; 8and He instructed them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a mere staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belt— 9but to wear sandals; and He added, “Do not put on two tunics.” 10And He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave town. 11“Any place that does not receive you or listen to you, as you go out from there, shake the dust off the soles of your feet for a testimony against them.” 12They went out and preached that men should repent. 13And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and healing them.

It is a good thing when your ministry reflects that of the Master. We should pay close attention to His key message, which was repentance. This is a very important message. It is easy for each of us to conclude we are doing things “well enough” or “better than others”. However, that is not the standard to measure against. We are to measure against Yahweh’s holy standard. There is always more we can do, with His help, to identify and repent from sin in our life. It is not a one time decision. It is a decision and action we repeat every day of our lives. Sometimes we mess up and then we ask forgiveness and try again. For those who preach, the lesson is also that one should perhaps begin with the need for repentance as we preach or teach. People must understand their need for Yeshua… to be forgiven through His sacrifice to pay for our sins and mistakes.

I find it also very powerful that the disciples are sent with very little. They are to bring nothing extra. What a powerful statement! When we hear from Yahweh, we are to put our trust completely in Him to provide for our needs. He can and will do it. This does not necessarily mean to discard what He has already provided us, so seek His guidance prayerfully.  Jesus did not command the disciples to get rid of all their belongings or even to give them to the poor. He simply instructed them in regards to their missionary journeys not to take anything extra with them.

When they do enter a house, the intent is to stay there, perhaps to build relationships or perhaps to avoid the distraction of constantly having to worry about where they would stay the next night or week. They were not to move every night to another place.

If a place did not receive them, they are not to stay and force it, but rather shake the dust from their sandals and move on. We must take heed to this important lesson. Too often we may wish to force someone in particular to hear the message of Christ and repent. We can not force them to accept the message. Furthermore, if we continue to put our focus, time, and energy toward only those who reject Yahweh, then we will be delayed in bringing the gospel to others who are open to hearing and receiving the truth of Yeshua. Time is a limited asset and it is constantly passing. We must use it wisely.

The preaching of repentance was accompanied by casting out demons and healing. There are many examples where Yahweh allowed His followers to perform miracles in His name, in particular as they were spreading revelation from Him such as the good news about Yeshua as Messiah. When we go out to bring the good news of Yeshua, we are to accompany that with showing love and compassion to the people we meet. We are to try to help them and meet their needs, to alleviate their suffering. To those whom He calls, they can even do miracles in His name. Whether or not we can do miracles will be up to the LORD and, in part, our faith. With or without miracles, we can certainly have an impact in showing our love for people.

Both as disciples seeking to learn and follow after Christ, and as those seeking to bring the truth of Christ to others, we can learn a lot by prayerfully reflecting on scripture and the truth God reveals to us through it.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please show me clearly where You would like me to share the gospel and how I should approach any mission for which You send me. Let me not proceed on my own understanding but with strong faith and in obedience to Your direction. Amen.

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Doubt / Lacking Faith, Faith / Trusting God, Healer, Miracles

Where There Is Little Faith, There Will Be Few Miracles

Where there is little faith, there will be few miracles.  Yeshua amazed people with His power and wisdom, and many were convinced to follow Him. However, those closest to Him had a very hard time recognizing Him as Lord. Those in His hometown could not separate the person of Yeshua as carpenter’s son from the miracle working teacher… from God with us, Immanuel. This is a common struggle for many. Yeshua calls it out as applicable for prophets generally, not just limited to Him. As a result, the lack of faith limited the number of miracles Jesus performed there.  The home town really missed out!

Mark 6:1-6

Teaching at Nazareth

      1Jesus went out from there and came into His hometown; and His disciples followed Him. 2When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands? 3“Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him. 4Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” 5And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6And He wondered at their unbelief.
And He was going around the villages teaching.

Two main themes I want to emphasize. First, for those of us who truly change our lives, turn our lives around to focus on seeking after God and putting Him first in our lives… many who have already known us will have a hard time recognizing the significance of the change in our lives. We could study and pray and draw near to the Lord and they may always look back and say… “Isn’t that Joe? He was in my class at school and he used to play tricks on people” or “That is Sally. She was always grumpy and complaining about doing too many chores.” It may be hard for them to recognize us as an authority on scripture and the Christian walk in such a way as to help lead them to change their lives. Interestingly enough, others who did not know us growing up may have a much easier time responding to the “light” of Christ in us. Try not to be discouraged. Continue to focus on “letting your light shine” before others so as to show them the way to Christ.

The second theme is specifically pertaining to miracles. Many skeptics can always look to find reasons to explain away the power of God working through miracles. It is sometimes amazing to see what they come up with. One common example we should all be familiar with… many want to ignore the miracle of creation itself.  They rather believe that everything came from nothing randomly than that a divine Creator made everything in an ordered and structured way. Yet if we showed those same people a clean house, they would immediately know someone had cleaned it and it had not gotten organized randomly on its own. How absolutely silly to deny God’s hand in creation!

Where there is little faith, there are few miracles. For those who look to dismiss miracles from God, they will experience few, if any. Yeshua often is cited in scripture for referencing someone’s faith when He conducted a miracle. In verse 5, it actually translates that He “could do no miracle” because of lack of faith. That is a different statement than He “would do no miracle” to be sure. It is intriguing and could be subject of additional study.

For those who recognize the miracles from God all around them, who put their faith in Him, they will truly rejoice at their Creator’s involvement in the world all around them and they will experience His miracles in greater number.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please help me to strengthen my faith. Help me to believe and to grow in intimacy with You. Amen. 

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Powerful / King of All, Faith / Trusting God, Healer, Loving / Kind, Miracles

Trust God Can Overcome Any Obstacle

We all go through difficult situations. Sometimes they may feel hopeless. However, we are reminded that nothing is too challenging for God. Mark 5 records two examples of miraculous healing Yeshua brought about during His earthly ministry. Cast your anxiety on the LORD and bring your problems before Him. Whether He heals you or not, know that He can and trust Him in any outcome.

Mark 5:21-43

Miracles and Healing

      21When Jesus had crossed over again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around Him; and so He stayed by the seashore. 22One of the synagogue officials named Jairus came up, and on seeing Him, fell at His feet 23and implored Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death; please come and lay Your hands on her, so that she will get well and live.” 24And He went off with him; and a large crowd was following Him and pressing in on Him.

      25A woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, 26and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse— 27after hearing about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind Him and touched His cloak. 28For she thought, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.” 29Immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. 30Immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?” 31And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” 32And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. 33But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. 34And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.”

      35While He was still speaking, they came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, “Your daughter has died; why trouble the Teacher anymore?” 36But Jesus, overhearing what was being spoken, said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid any longer, only believe.” 37And He allowed no one to accompany Him, except Peter and James and John the brother of James. 38They came to the house of the synagogue official; and He saw a commotion, and people loudly weeping and wailing. 39And entering in, He said to them, “Why make a commotion and weep? The child has not died, but is asleep.” 40They began laughing at Him. But putting them all out, He took along the child’s father and mother and His own companions, and entered the room where the child was. 41Taking the child by the hand, He said to her, “Talitha kum!” (which translated means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). 42Immediately the girl got up and began to walk, for she was twelve years old. And immediately they were completely astounded. 43And He gave them strict orders that no one should know about this, and He said that something should be given her to eat.

Both examples of healing showed great faith. That is a common characteristic of Yeshua’s miracles. I would not recommend trying to control God’s miraculous power as the woman with the hemorrhage did.  And even if you wanted to, I am not sure how that would work when Yeshua is not in human form in His earthly ministry.

It is always interesting to note when Yeshua downplays His miracles. He told people the girl was sleeping and gave strict orders no one should hear about the healing. Yeshua was not on a “healing mission”. He was on a “teaching mission”. He healed people out of compassion and as part of demonstrating that He was Messiah and fulfilling prophecy.

Do not judge God by whether or not you receive the outcome you desire. Remember Yeshua when He came before Yahweh in the garden of Gethsemane. He was fully submitted, even as He asked for the cup of suffering to be removed.

Matthew 26:39

     39And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.”

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, thank You for getting involved in our personal lives. Who are we that You should care about us? But You do! Help me remember that no matter what my problem may be, I can bring it before You and nothing is beyond Your ability to fix or use for Your purposes. Help me to trust You no matter what the outcome, even when You do not choose to do what I am asking. Amen. 

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Powerful / King of All, Demons, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Miracles, Miracles, Obeying God, Spiritual Warfare

Responding to Yeshua: Lessons from Demons, Townspeople, and the Transformed

There are quite a few scriptures in the Bible that show us directly how demons and people act when confronted by Yeshua and His miracles. These encounters are worth reflecting on prayerfully.

In Mark 5, we have the opportunity to observe demons, a man who had demons cast out, and some pig farmers and townspeople all react when confronted with the glory of Yeshua and His power. All of their reactions still have relevance for us today as we reflect on our own responses to Yeshua in our lives.

Mark 5:1-20

The Gerasene Demoniac

1They came to the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gerasenes. 2When He got out of the boat, immediately a man from the tombs with an unclean spirit met Him, 3and he had his dwelling among the tombs. And no one was able to bind him anymore, even with a chain; 4because he had often been bound with shackles and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him and the shackles broken in pieces, and no one was strong enough to subdue him. 5Constantly, night and day, he was screaming among the tombs and in the mountains, and gashing himself with stones. 6Seeing Jesus from a distance, he ran up and bowed down before Him; 7and shouting with a loud voice, he said, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God, do not torment me!” 8For He had been saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” 9And He was asking him, “What is your name?” And he said to Him, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10And he began to implore Him earnestly not to send them out of the country. 11Now there was a large herd of swine feeding nearby on the mountain. 12The demons implored Him, saying, “Send us into the swine so that we may enter them.” 13Jesus gave them permission. And coming out, the unclean spirits entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, about two thousand of them; and they were drowned in the sea.

14Their herdsmen ran away and reported it in the city and in the country. And the people came to see what it was that had happened. 15They came to Jesus and observed the man who had been demon-possessed sitting down, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the “legion”; and they became frightened. 16Those who had seen it described to them how it had happened to the demon-possessed man, and all about the swine. 17And they began to implore Him to leave their region. 18As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed was imploring Him that he might accompany Him. 19And He did not let him, but He said to him, “Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you.” 20And he went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

Many people become complacent in their search for Yeshua by simply stopping at “I know Yeshua is real” or “I believe Yeshua is Son of God”.  Take caution if this is your attitude, because so do the demons. The demons actually immediately recognized Yeshua immediately and knew who He was and knew of His power. They asked permission to not be cast away entirely. They were constrained by His power. In fact, the first thing they did was bring the man to bow down before Yeshua. I would say this is a great deal more respectful than many people act when confronted with Yeshua, and these are demons who oppose Him!

Simply acknowledging the reality that Jesus is God is not enough. We must surrender to Him as Lord of our life and seek after Him. We must put our faith in Him, which will be reflected in our change in behavior and attitude toward all we do in life. We start to live as He lived instead of how we have been living as part of the world. Let us not be complacent to simply acknowledge the historical person of Jesus.

Let us now consider the response of the people in the story to the actions of Yeshua. The man who had been demon-possessed was forever changed. He knew what it was that Yeshua had done for him and wanted to follow Him. More importantly, he submitted to Yeshua, choosing to obey what Yeshua called him to do instead of pursuing his own desires… even though they were good desires to follow Yeshua. This man likely had great impact remaining amongst those that knew his history and could see the transformational change in him. Yeshua knew where he wanted this man to be and what he wanted him to do in proclaiming the good news of Messiah.

The reaction of the herdsmen and the people who return with them from the city is clearly disappointing. In truth, their reaction is perhaps worse than that of the demons. They see an undeniable miracle take place and all they can do is react in fear and self interest and ask Yeshua to leave. What a lost opportunity for them. However, take note that Yeshua did not hold a grudge… He actually used the man who was possessed by demons to remain in region and proclaim the word to help these people. Yeshua loves them even though they fear Him.

Prayerfully reflect, “How do you react to the instructions of God? to the prompting of the Holy Spirit?

Do you, like the demons, acknowledge the power of Yeshua, but refuse to submit to Him as a faithful servant? Are you like the townspeople, so uncomfortable with the presence of God that you look past His miracles and focus on your own desires and interests?

Or rather, do you listen carefully and obey His instructions even if it conflicts with your desires, as the man who was demon-possessed demonstrated?

When we obey God instead of our own desires, then truly God can use us for His glory! Others around you should be able to see that you are different, that God has changed you. You are a light and should no longer “blend in” with those around you.

If you find yourself reasoning… “but the man was cured of demon possession… of course he was transformed and excited… how does this apply to my life”… then consider that truly each and every one of us is a sinful being who is due punishment for our sin. The punishment for sin is death. Only through Yeshua’s death on the cross for our sins and  our genuine submission to Him, seeking forgiveness, shall any of us be delivered from death to everlasting life with God. All of us are corrupted by sin and headed for eternal suffering in hell if not for the actions of Yeshua. In effect, Yeshua has rescued all of us in similar fashion to what we read about in Mark 5. Do we respond in like manner to the man who was demon-possessed? We should be laser-focused on Yeshua and seeking to follow Him and obey Him in all aspects of our lives.

Be prepared that many will reject or resist this transformation in you as they reject God, Himself. Stand up for God anyway and proclaim the good news of Messiah! God may use you as a vehicle to save others by leading them to Him.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, thank You for sending Messiah to make a way for me to be reconciled to You. Please help me to embrace You through Yeshua, even when You ask me to do something other than what I want to do. Let me not be absorbed in my own desires and self interest. Let Your glory be shown through me to others. Amen. 

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

All Powerful / King of All, Doubt / Lacking Faith, Miracles, Peace / Rest, Worry/Anxiety

Cast Your Anxiety Upon the LORD and Enter Into His Peace

Yeshua consistently amazed the crowds and His disciples with wisdom and with miracles. The miracles helped to show His power and authority from Yahweh and to help focus people as to why they should pay attention to Him vs. other teachers. We too should pay attention to His wisdom and power and let it serve as a constant reminder that we can trust Him and should indeed model our lives after His life and His teaching.

Mark 4:35-41

Jesus Stills the Sea

      35On that day, when evening came, He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. 37And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. 38Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. 40And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”

A few things to consider. First, though perhaps not the most important, Jesus did not simply stay in one place to teach the people just because He drew a crowd. He knew His mission was to move and teach in many different places to have the most impact. We should take note in our own lives to not just go or stay somewhere because we draw a crowd. Let us instead seek to understand God’s will for our lives and be willing to pick up and move on when He calls us to do so.

Building on that theme, consider that Jesus knew He was leading the disciples into a storm. Sometimes God will lead us out of a comfortable place and into a challenging one in order to help us grow and develop in our faith.

We will all face difficult times, even when we are with Jesus. Our lives will be challenging for sure and sometimes even those of us who love Yeshua and try to follow Him will be distracted by our circumstances, as the disciples became afraid because of the storm.

We can take heart and be encouraged by looking to Yeshua, remembering the power of Yahweh and putting our faith in Him. When things seem difficult, let us always try to remember that Yahweh is in control and we can trust Him. It is often in the midst of the storms that we realize we need Him most and  draw near to Him.

What storms are you facing in your life? Do you believe Yahweh is in control and can handle the situation… really believe it? That does not mean that you do not prayerfully take actions to help your situation, but it certainly reminds us to pray and look to Him for help and should help us to not worry and be anxious or fearful.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please help me not to be anxious and worry, even in difficult situations. Please help me to grow in my faith and trust for You, even when it may appear that You are “sleeping in the back of the boat”. Thank You and may all the praise and honor and glory be for Your name’s sake as I am able to demonstrate the desired behavior, which will garner attention from others as they wonder how I stay calm in the storm. Amen

 Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Demons, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Miracles, Miracles, Satan, Spiritual Warfare

Live in Contrast to the World While Following Jesus

Many of us who follow Jesus will at one time or another be essentially mocked or called out as “out of our senses”.  The world struggles to understand how true disciples of Christ think and act. To follow in the example of Christ is very different from much of their worldview.

I can think of several examples simply ranging from declaring Jesus as God to giving generously while seeking nothing in return. Just declaring evolution as the false doctrine it is may be sufficient to evoke these kinds of responses. In fact, I remember one event where someone generously bought dinner for a large group at a restaurant which was unexpected. Rather than simply saying “thank you” and recognizing the person was “giving generously”, some actually mocked him as crazy for spending money that way. The world does not understand the followers of Jesus.

But take heart, Jesus experienced similar reactions. It may well be a good indicator that you are living apart from the world’s way. After going up to the mountain to appoint the twelve disciples, Jesus returned home to quite an uproar. The crowd gathered such that they could not even eat a meal. People said Jesus had lost His senses or was  possessed.

Mark 3:20-27

      20And He came home, and the crowd gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal. 21When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.” 22The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.” 23And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24“If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25“If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26“If Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but he is finished! 27“But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.

Jesus certainly has a way of summarizing the issue.  How absurd that someone would say He is possessed by demons because He casts out demons! If Satan is the strong man in this scenario, then one greater than He must be present to “bind him” and cast out the demons.

Do not be discouraged when others do not understand the motivations and actions you exemplify in your life. Test to ensure that you are in line with Jesus Christ by studying and applying scripture. If that is right, keep on marching forward whether or not they think you may be crazy. Pray for God to help you be a light and draw others to Him through Christ.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Miracles, Share the Good News, Teachable

Lessons from Jesus’ Selection of the Twelve Disciples: Learn, Preach, Miracles

Mark chapter 3 records Jesus’ selection of the twelve disciples who are selected to be closest to Jesus. It is interesting to study a bit the reasons stated for why the twelve were appointed.  They were appointed to be with Jesus, to be sent out to preach, and to have authority to cast out demons.

Mark 3:13-19

The Twelve Are Chosen

      13And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. 14And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, 15and to have authority to cast out the demons. 16And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter), 17and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”); 18and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot; 19and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.

I find it interesting to consider the order in which Mark lists the three reasons for appointing the twelve. How natural for us to think first of being sent out to preach or to have miraculous power such as casting out demons. However, these are not the first reasons listed.

First, the twelve are appointed to be with Jesus. I can think of at least two main reasons… first before one can be entrusted to preach or to do miracles, one must first draw near to the Lord and learn and disciple after Him. Second, Jesus likely appreciated the support and companionship of these close friends during His earthly ministry. While He was fully God, He was also fully man and we are created to be social beings.

I find it telling also that the second reason listed for appointing the twelve is to preach. After we learn and disciple under Jesus we become more prepared to preach the good news and share with others.

It is not until the very last of the three that Mark records the authority to cast out demons. I believe that this is because if you have not spend time with Jesus and do not patiently disciple under Him, you will not be prepared to preach truth appropriately. Further, what is the purpose of the miracles? The purpose seems to be to reinforce the truth of the gospel. Therefore, one must learn to preach the truth before God desires to grant the ability to cast out demons, lest one cast out demons and preach the wrong gospel. The people would then be easily led astray to follow wrong doctrine.

As with most things, God’s order contains much wisdom, but would not be the same order and manner that most of us would anticipate or map out on our own. The power to cast out demons can lead people to hell if not anchored in the strong faith and truth of teaching people the truth of the gospel!

We can also consider for our own lives the order provided here. Let us first seek to learn and disciple at the feet of our Master. Then let us learn to share the truth with others. Lastly, we can trust the Master to demonstrate miracles through or around us at His discretion to support His truth.  Let us not rush to ask for power to do miracles before we first disciple ourselves after Christ!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Compassion, Healer, Help / Serve Others, Jesus (hearing from God), Miracles

Jesus’ Righteous Indignation: Lessons from His Anger

Scripture identifies a few examples where Jesus actually gets angry. I think it is good to pause and consider what it was that makes Him angry. Thus we can learn something from it and apply it in our lives to live in obedience to Him.

In Mark 3, Jesus goes into a synagogue on Sabbath and finds a man with a withered hand.  Here, in the place intended to help connect man with God,  the religious leaders are more interested to “catch” Jesus doing something they think is wrong than they are to see one of their people healed. This is the definition of being hard-hearted and selfish instead of gracious and kind and focused on others.

Mark 3:1-6

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

      1He entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered. 2They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. 3He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and come forward!” 4And He said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

Jesus was clearly grieved and angry for the hardness of their hearts. I am a proponent of recognizing and observing Sabbath consistent with what God has commanded in scripture. However, the Pharisees demonstrate that they have missed the point. They would rather leave someone in need of healing and play “gotcha” around rules with Jesus to plot to destroy Him than see one of their people healed and recognize the power of God right in front of them!

They already knew Jesus had the power to heal… they were watching for it… and yet all they could think about was if they could trap Jesus in their perception of Him breaking a rule! They were selfishly protecting their own power and authority and completely overlooking God’s miraculous power.

Yes, we are to obey God’s instructions in scripture. However, in our efforts to honor and obey God, whether for to Sabbath or other commands, let us not miss the greater point in helping others and demonstrating God’s love and compassion to them. Yes, we are to hold teachers accountable for properly teaching truth of scripture, but we need not focus so hard on trying to catch them doing something wrong that we miss the glory of God right among us!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Miracles, Seeking God, Spiritual Warfare

Rekindle Your Passion and Pursuit of Christ

It is good to reflect on the power of the miracles and teaching of Jesus and the impact it had on many who were there to witness it. Mark 3 captures the essence as crowds pressed in so forcefully, Jesus got in a boat to keep some space. He had healed and cast out demons. He taught the truth of God’s word.

Mark 3:7-12

      7Jesus withdrew to the sea with His disciples; and a great multitude from Galilee followed; and also from Judea, 8and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, a great number of people heard of all that He was doing and came to Him. 9And He told His disciples that a boat should stand ready for Him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd Him; 10for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had afflictions pressed around Him in order to touch Him. 11Whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, “You are the Son of God!” 12And He earnestly warned them not to tell who He was.

Ask yourself, “Am I that hungry to pursue Jesus? Do my actions and choices in life reflect that about me?”

If the answer is “no”, then it is a good time for reflection and prayer to change your focus and priorities and pursue Jesus with greater passion.

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua, be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Faith / Trusting God, Healer, Miracles, Seeking God

Those Who Seek Jesus Diligently Will Find Him

What a beautiful and inspiring event it must have been. Jesus had healed many and then gone on to other towns to preach the gospel. When He returned to Capernaum several days later, crowds were eager to see Him and hear what He had to say. The miracles of healing that Jesus performed truly got people’s attention to listen to the gospel… exactly as Jesus intended.

As the crowds gathered to hear Him, a small group of friends wanted to bring a paralyzed man to Jesus to be healed. They could not get in. What were they to do? Should they give up? Should they wait outside and hope He comes to them?

Mark 2:1-13

The Paralytic Healed

      1When He had come back to Capernaum several days afterward, it was heard that He was at home. 2And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room, not even near the door; and He was speaking the word to them. 3And they came, bringing to Him a paralytic, carried by four men. 4Being unable to get to Him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above Him; and when they had dug an opening, they let down the pallet on which the paralytic was lying. 5And Jesus seeing their faith said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6But some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 7“Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8Immediately Jesus, aware in His spirit that they were reasoning that way within themselves, said to them, “Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts? 9“Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven’; or to say, ‘Get up, and pick up your pallet and walk’? 10“But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—He said to the paralytic, 11“I say to you, get up, pick up your pallet and go home.” 12And he got up and immediately picked up the pallet and went out in the sight of everyone, so that they were all amazed and were glorifying God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”

      13And He went out again by the seashore; and all the people were coming to Him, and He was teaching them.

The friends did not whine or complain or blame Jesus or the other people for being in their way. They did not declare “It’s not fair”. They had such faith in Jesus that they worked harder to get close to Him. When they did, He was pleased and rewarded them with the healing they sought. The diligent exercise of the faithful was rewarded.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.