Holy Spirit And Miracles
The Godhead • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Greetings…
Theme: The Godhead
Hope: To learn more about the Godhead, specifically in this lesson the Holy Spirit, and his work concerning miracles and their work or lack thereof today.
Last week we looked at the “Holy Spirit in Salvation.”
We studied how the Holy Spirit…
Leads us through the word by first inspiring the word and then by influence through the word.
Also seals us during our immersion into Christ and then seals us after immersion through his indwelling which we will look closer at in the following weeks.
Today, however, we are going to turn our attention to the “Holy Spirit & Miracles.”
There is a lot of, frankly, false doctrines out there concerning both the Holy Spirit and miracles and so I hope today to clear some of that up.
There are many, both in the church and outside the church, that put their full faith in the Holy Spirit to deliver miracles today for them or their loved ones.
There are entire denominations built around the idea of spiritual gifts still being bestowed by the Holy Spirit today and implemented in the lives of people today in some “charismatic” way.
Unfortunately, when people put their hope in something that is doctrinally false there is certain disappointment that is going to come when those expectations, that were never going to happen, fail.
So with that in mind let’s examine our lesson from this morning.
Let’s first look at the Holy Spirit’s role concerning…
Signs & Wonders
Signs & Wonders
Who Did The Miracles?
Who Did The Miracles?
Many people have a misunderstanding on how miracles work.
But as is the case with almost every aspect of deity each personality has their role wherein miracles are concerned and when it comes to the Holy Spirit it is without question his responsibility to do the actual performing of the “signs and wonders.”
Galatians 3:5 (ESV)
5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith
Luke 1:67 (ESV)
67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying
4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Paul mentions as well that the signs and wonders that were accomplished through him were done by the Spirit of God.
18 For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed, to make the Gentiles obedient—19 in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.
Summary
Summary
Again, each of the Godhead has their roles and with miracles this is not exempt.
God the Father “willed” miracles through the Spirit (Hebrews 2:4).
Jesus did not do a single miracle until he was “baptized” and received the “Holy Spirit” (John 1:32; John 2).
No one could perform a miracle until an apostle laid their hands on them and they “received” the Holy Spirit to do so.
6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
So, there is no doubt that that Holy Spirit is the one that did the actual miracle but as I said earlier there is a lot of confusion about miracles today.
So let’s now take some time to consider some…
Miracle Misconceptions
Miracle Misconceptions
What A Miracle Is?
What A Miracle Is?
For years now people have had a misconception about what miracles are and because of they have been so watered down by those inside and outside the church, people don’t even know what a miracle is.
A miracle was supranatural not supernatural.
By that I mean it broke the laws of nature it did not conform to them.
When a person is dead and is raised this is supranatural not just the manipulation of nature.
When a person has been fully and completely healed in an instant.
When a leper is cleansed or a demon is removed instantly these are supranatural events and thus miracles.
8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.
When a person is sick and we pray today for them to get better and they do…
After seeing a doctor, taking medication, working on getting healthy through any number of natural means and then eventually becomes healthy again this isn’t a miracle because it was not instant.
3 And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
34 And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.
24 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” 25 And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God.
A sunrise or sunset is not a miracle.
Rain after a dry spell is not a miracle.
A child being born is not a miracle.
A miracle is a supranatural event that breaks the laws of nature and immediately took place.
A miracle also, “always,” had a purpose.
Mark 16:20 (ESV)
20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.
Because God’s word, which is truth (John 17:17), was not fully available yet God had to have a way to prove that someone was from him and a supranatural event was just the thing to do so.
Every miracle recorded had two things in common.
They were supranatural and they proved the person speaking was from God.
Because of the lack of understanding of what a miracle is, this has led to another misconception which that…
Miracles Happen Today.
Miracles Happen Today.
The bible writes very plainly that at some point in time miracles would stop.
The great apostle Paul, who knew a little something about miracles (Acts 19:11-12), made this point to a congregation that was “arguing over whose miraculous ability i.e., spiritual gift.”
1 Corinthians 13:8–10 (NKJV)
8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.
The question then is what is the “that which is perfect” that is going to come and therefore be no need for miracles anymore?
Remember what we said a miracle is, a supranatural event that was used to prove that someone was from God because “all truth” had not yet been delivered.
God’s word is truth.
17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
It is the perfect law of liberty.
25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
When that which is perfect came there was no need for that which was in part to be any more and confirm the word but it could confirm itself.
There is no need to “confirm” someone is from God if we can go God’s word is sufficient on its own.
We also know people cannot perform miracles specifically anymore because of how they were passed from one person to another.
The only way for one to be able to do miracles (outside of Joel 2’s prophecy of entrance into the kingdom) was if an apostle laid hands on you.
Acts 8:18 (ESV)
18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money
Because there are no more apostles today, there is no way for the miraculous to be passed to humans any longer.
Summary
Summary
Does this mean that people that “feel” like a miracle happened to people that “think they witnessed a miracle” are disingenuous and just lying about what they experienced, felt, or thought they saw with their own eyes?
Of course not, but just because someone feels strongly about something does not mean it happened in the manner one believes it did.
Satan is good at not only deceiving people, but using others to do his deceptions.
After all, how many people today still think Oral Roberts was actually capable to “healing the sick” yet we forget he needed a hospital built to “do so.”
Conclusion
Conclusion
It was the Spirit of God, Holy Spirit, that brought “all truth.”
12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
Question: Did the Spirit guide the man to complete the “Word of God” or “all truth” or not?
If yes ,there is no more need for new miraculous revelations or confirmations of truth and therefor no more need for miracles at all (Mark 16:20).
10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.
Invitation
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.
8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
7 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.
