Recipe for a Miracle

1/12/2002 and 1/13/2002

Judges 6

6 So Israel was brought very low because of Midian, and the sons of Israel cried to the LORD.

7 ¶ Now it came about when the sons of Israel cried to the LORD on account of Midian,

8 that the LORD sent a prophet to the sons of Israel, and he said to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'It was I who brought you up from Egypt and brought you out from the house of slavery.

9 'I delivered you from the hands of the Egyptians and from the hands of all your oppressors, and dispossessed them before you and gave you their land,

10 and I said to you, "I am the LORD your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live. But you have not obeyed Me."'"

11 ¶ Then the angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak that was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite as his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press in order to save it from the Midianites.

12 The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, "The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior."

13 Then Gideon said to him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian."

14 The LORD looked at him and said, "Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?"

15 He said to Him, "O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father's house."

16 But the LORD said to him, "Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man."

-I like Gideon’s honesty with the messenger. If God is with us, where are all His miracles.

-How can God be among us if there is no sign of Hid presence?

-How can we just be normal people or worse, in bondage if God is with us?

-Jesus came as Immanuel, God with us, and His presence made a difference.

-Webster’s Dictionary says miracle means: “An extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs.”

-The Greek word for sign is mark. In other words, a sign is God’s signature.

-God does miracles to show He is present. He shows up and makes His mark.

-A sign points to something else. Signs point to God. By them, Jesus shows Himself to be alive as the living Lord.

-In our culture and possibly even in our Christianity, we can close God out.

-I want to begin to crack open the door for God’s presence.

-Thank God for worship experiences and falling or laughing.

-I’m ready to see some things among us that only God can do.

-You can’t fake a blind eye opening or a deaf ear hearing.

Recipe for a Miracle

Acts 3

1 ¶ One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer--at three in the afternoon.

2 Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts.

3 When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.

4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!"

5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

6 Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk."

7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.

8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.

9 When all the people saw him walking and praising God,

10 they recognised him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

11 While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon's Colonnade.

12 ¶ When Peter saw this, he said to them: "Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?

13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go.

14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.

15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.

16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.

1. EVERY MIRACLE BEGINS WITH A PROBLEM

-In other words, there has to be a situation where human power reaches its end.

-God provided manna miraculously for the Israelites but the day they got to where they could get food on their own, it stopped.

-There are times when you can do no more and only God can bring an answer.

-That’s easy, Gideon and the Israelites where in a mess.

-This man was crippled from birth.

-His focus was “HOW DO I GET SOMEONE TO TAKE ME EACH DAY TO THE PLACE WHERE I CAN BEG?”

-If you have a problem you can’t solve, you are a candidate for a miracle.

2.YOU MUST BELIEVE THAT GOD IS ABLE TO HELP YOU

-What kind of God are you serving?

-We sing that song, THIS GOD IS OUR GOD.

Psalm 147

3 He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds.

4 He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.

5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.

6 The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.

7 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp.

8 He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills.

-God is mighty in power.

-I love the book of Job where God tells Job if he is so great, where was he when God made all of this. (Job 38)

-God has the resources and ability to turn your whole situation around.

3.YOU MUST BELIEVE GOD IS WILLING TO HELP YOU

-Ok, God is able to help me, but does He want to?

Psalm 62

11 One thing God has spoken, two things have I heard: that you, O God, are strong,

12 and that you, O Lord, are loving. Surely you will reward each person according to what he has done.

Matthew 8

1 ¶ When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him.

2 A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean."

3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.

Wade-“if you have the will, you have the power”

-The blind man said, “Son of David, have mercy on me.”

-Jesus was moved with compassion and healed and helped people.

-Jesus fed the multitudes miraculously because He cared about them and saw that they were hungry.

-Jesus looked at Jerusalem and was moved with compassion.

-Jesus saw crowds and was moved with compassion.

-He can and He wants to.

-We have a little sign in our guest bathroom, it says, “Faith isn’t believing that God can, its believing that He will.”

4. MIRACLES COME FROM GOD’S QUALIFICATIONS, NOT OURS

-James says the prayer of a righteous man avails much.

-Who is that guy? It is the person who believes God and his faith is credited as righteousness.

Acts 3

12 ¶ When Peter saw this, he said to them: "Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?

16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.

-There are examples throughout history of God using imperfect people.

-That’s all He has!

-It is not because you deserve it or because the person who prays with you is so wonderful.

-It is by believing. Faith in Jesus’ name, not just His physical presence, releases God’s power to you.

-Nobody deserves a healing or miracle.

-Everything you receive from God is in Christ.

-Religion is trying to receive from God based on our behavior and merit.

-The first fundamental of the Christian faith in Hebrews 6 is REPENTANCE FROM DEAD WORKS.

-What is that? It is trying to receive from God on

merit.

5. OPEN THE DOOR

-Smith Wigglesworth said, THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES WAS WRITTEN BECAUSE THE APOSTLES ACTED.

-They say one of his sermons was, faith is an act.

-Faith without works is dead.

-You only believe what you are willing to act on.

-When I was healed of the flu once and for all in my life, I HAD TO GET OUT OF BED AND GO ON.

-Again, back to our text,

Acts 3

4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!"

5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

6 Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk."

7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.

8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.

-If you believe in salvation, act on it. Demons believe in God and tremble.

-If you believe in miracles, open the door and let God in to work.

Romans 1

16 ¶ I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.

17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

-Some things happen instantly, some begin with prayer and happen over time.

-They don’t happen at all unless you crack the door open.

Mark 11

22 "Have faith in God," Jesus answered.

23 "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, `Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.

24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

-If God is among us, where are His miracles!

Acts 4

20 For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."

21 After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened.

22 For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.

23 ¶ On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

24 When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. "Sovereign Lord," they said, "you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.

25 You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: "`Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

26 The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One.'

27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.

28 They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.

29 Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.

30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus."