Thursday, April 14, 2016
Acts 5:14-16 And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them. Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.
THE SPOILS OF VICTORY -- SIGNS AND WONDERS
As in the ministry of Jesus, some of the early apostles were given the ability to perform signs and wonders. These gifts were also a spoil of victory from the resurrection. Many people often wonder why we don't see miracles and healings in the church today. We may not have an explicit answer in the Scriptures to that question but we do have a good idea of God's reason for operating without miracles.
We know that many people placed a high emphasis on the miracles that Jesus did. Certainly, these miracles were necessary as signs to confirm His status as the Chosen One of God. However, sometimes the over-emphasis on these miracles overshadowed the actual teaching of Jesus. King Herod was a good example of this. When Jesus finally came to his court on Good Friday, all Herod wanted to see was a miracle. He viewed Jesus as only a Miracle-worker and completely missed His teaching of sin and grace.
In a similar way, God used signs and wonders to help establish the early Church. But after a time, the need diminished, especially once the entire Bible was recorded for people to use. The testimony of miracles was certainly a spoil of victory and God blessed the apostles' use of these gifts. However, we shouldn't fear that we are missing out on anything today. We have exactly what God wants us to use, His Word.
Hebrews 1:1-2 "God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son..." When we use the Bible, we see Jesus, the Word made flesh. Could there be any better resource for our lives and our ministries?
