Miracles 2: Who Brought the Fish?

"In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth." The very first words of Scripture establish without a doubt that the Authority over all things is such simply because He had the power to create it. Everything we see, hear, feel, touch, know, sense -- and even more than that! -- was created by God.

So, when it comes to the miraculous, we can also know that what we call supernatural is just God interacting with His creation in ways only He can. Yet, for all of that, have you noticed how often God requires a human component in His works? Four separate times in the book of Luke alone (7:50, 8:48, 17:19, 18:42), Jesus tells somebody, "your faith has made you well."

Not, "Hey, look what I did." Not, "God made you better." Even though He could have rightfully said either, where He focused was "your faith."

Throughout Scripture, there is a pattern of cooperation between God and Man. God could have simply knocked down the walls of Jericho, for example. Instead, He commanded Israel to march around it, and finally blow their trumpets. Why? Perhaps so there could be no mistake that it was the God of Israel, and not a mere earthquake, which accomplished the task. Or perhaps to set the standard of obedience and trust.

One of my favorite stories from Scripture is from Matthew 14:13-21, where Jesus feeds over five thousand people with five loaves of bread and a couple of fish.

Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
“Bring them here to me,” he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

The Lord actually accomplished this type of miracle at least twice in recorded testimony, and each time, He asked that the food first be brought to Him for blessing.  But did you notice what Jesus said to His disciples? "You give them something to eat." 

God accomplishes miracles today; but we are His hands, just as His disciples were when He walked on Earth. He will bless the work of our hands, and multiply it to His purposes. All we have to do is bring the fish.

Miracles 1: The God of the Mundane

I've noticed something about the miracles of Jesus: no matter the reason for the miracle, no matter how big or how small, Jesus performed it with the same attitude and nonchalance as if He were carrying a box from one room to another. Something was one way; He wanted it to be another way. He made it happen.

He walked on water, as though He were walking down the street. He commanded a storm to be still as if telling His dog to "sit. Stay." He can do that. He created the water, and the storm.

I think we often feel as though a miracle ought to be accompanied by fanfare. As though we have to sing and dance and shout, and announce from on high before God will so much as heal a cataract. Televangelists have an organ playing obnoxiously before dancing down the aisle, raising up a trembling hand, and smacking a troubled audience member while declaring, "Be Healed!"

Jesus spat in some mud, smeared it on some guy's eye and told him to wash his face (John 9:1-7).

Very often, when we look for miracles at the hand of the God of the Universe, we're looking for some big announcement: Hey, look! I'm performing a miracle over here! Thunder! Lightning!

But the Jesus of the Bible just says, "Get up and walk." (Luke 5:22-24)

The truth is, when we look for the mighty miracles, for the trumpets to sound and a voice to come over the wind, we miss the every-day miracles. And when we miss the miraculous in the every day, we also miss the chance to be a part of a miracle ourselves.

(Coming up tomorrow... "Who brought the Fish" -- how God uses us to perform His great works)

I'm (Trying To Be) Thankful My Side Lost

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (1 Timothy 2:1-2)

No matter who you voted for yesterday, we can know two things for certain: that at least all the political ads are over (for the next year anyway), and that ultimately God is in control. We may or may not agree with the decisions made about who will lead us for the next four years, but we would do well to remember that, for whatever His reasons, God wants them where they are.

What's always been hard for me personally, is remembering every day to live a life of petition, prayer, intercession and thanksgiving for all people -- including those in authority. That last one is possibly the toughest for me: thanksgiving.

You mean to tell me that God wants me to be thankful, even when I don't agree with the election results?!  Well, actually, yes. Thankful.

Thankful because we know that, whatever it is, God's Will was done. Thankful that God has installed a leader to serve His purposes, and that God's purpose is perfect. 

So I am thankful today. Thankful that God keeps His watchful eye on this tiny planet, and on this tiny nation, and on this tiny person. And that His Will for each is greater than my greatest imaginings.

Jesus is (insert Political Party here)!!

It's been a hard lesson for me to learn that, no matter who is sitting in a Government seat at any given time in this country, that person was ultimately allowed there -- put there, even -- by God Himself (Romans 13:5-7). Republican, Democrat, or other, God is measuring these leaders according to His own plans -- the minutiae of which remain a total and complete mystery.

We're often tempted to say Jesus would have belonged to this political party or that organization. Nonsense. Jesus is neither Republican or Democrat, because He is above our petty politics. Sometimes, He even allows people into power with whom He completely disagrees (the mass murderer Herod comes to mind). Because -- and this is the real lesson I'm learning -- our nation is but a blip on the radar of History. In the eternal Timeline of Christ, and in the grand scale of His plans of Grace and Mercy, the political movements of this world mean so very little.

You and I must vote our consciences today. We must continue to work to the best of our ability to act as we believe God would have us act, even as we understand His plans may not be the same as ours. But even more important, you and I must understand what really matters: and that is Grace.

After dying on the cross and being resurrected; after providing a means for our sins to be separated from us, and for us to once again be called Children of God, Jesus' final instructions to us had nothing to do with politics, but everything to do with people.

"Go into the World and make disciples of all nations."

Love others as He has loved us, and present His love to them. Whatever our external circumstance, whether Christians face judgement and mockery, whether the final voting results lean Left or Right, all is just that: circumstance. It's just a setting in which to do what we must do. It doesn't change for one second our mission on earth to spread the Good News of God's great love and mercy to everyone, everywhere.

Love Wins

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. (1 John 4:7-9)

It seems like God can be pretty hard to figure out. It can be hard to understand why the righteous suffer while the unjust prosper, or why God allows some things to happen to some, but not to others. It can be just as difficult to comprehend why a God who is so hard on Sin can show so much grace as to send Jesus to die, be resurrected, and cleanse that sin away, and without demanding anything from us but acceptance. 

It's so tough to figure out, in fact, that we in our humanness can often be tempted to ignore the more difficult parts of Scripture. Like all the "Hell" stuff. Or that "I am the Way, The Truth, and the Life" rhetoric attributed to Jesus.  If we focus on the "Love" aspect, we figure, that'll be okay. After all, God is Love, right? Everything else is just man-made, we reason. 

Never mind that the "God is Love" stuff is part of the same Bible we want to mostly toss out. And, I hate to say it, but if you toss out all the "sin" stuff and the "Hell" stuff, the "Salvation" and "Love" stuff is pretty much meaningless. 

Confusing, isn't it? Well, after all, 1 Corinthians 1:25 does remind us that "the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of Man." And indeed, just a few verses ahead, verse 18, says, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

Could it be that, when it comes to what Love actually means, we in our humanity simply don't get it? When we say "God is Love," what we're really describing is God's entire character. If God is love, then everything God does is love. Even the stuff we don't like. 

Maybe we really don't understand Love that much at all. 

Actually, the fact that we are sinners -- the fact that we have fallen short of God's glory -- is proof that He acted out of nothing but love when He sent His son. The law -- and the sin of disobeying it -- serves to highlight the difference between us and God. It shows us that by ourselves we could never be good enough to enter the Holiness that is God, but that, because He loves us, He created a way to bring us into His presence.

Love -- God -- built a bridge. All we need to do is cross.

Daddy

I like to believe my children know I love them. I like to think that, on some level, they understand the work I do to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads; the rules and guidelines we set to keep them safe; my daily displays of affection, are all my way of proving my love for them.

Sometimes, it's not enough. They need to know, not in a practical way, but emotionally or intellectually, that I love them. So, they ask. Out of the blue, my seven-year-old daughter will look over and say, "Dad?"

"Yes, Lindy?"

"I love you."

And she expects -- needs -- to hear me say it back.

Sometimes, this will come in the form of a little four-year-old hand reaching for my own, or a tiny voice asking to sit on my shoulders.

And I love these moments because in their need to know my love for them, my children show how much they love me.

Sometimes, when we pray, it gets so easy to tell God we love Him that we say it without even thinking. It's just part of the spiel. But where Christians get burned out is when we forget that He wants to make His love for us known as well.

Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:2-4)

Sometimes, we forget it's okay to ask God to tell us He loves us. In fact, He wants us to reach out our tiny hands and grope for His own. He wants us to rest at his feet, to seek shelter in His arms. To crawl into His lap and whisper, "Daddy."

Humility isn't the same thing as weakness. Humility is a recognition that we are God's children, that He is our Father, and that we need Him to love us. 

And as a Dad, sometimes, He needs to hear it, too.  

All Saints Day

Today is All Saints Day. Traditionally, this is a day the Church would dedicate to those who came before them. In that same tradition, I'd like to make a suggestion: that we remember those who have shown us the way to Christ, and those who have discipled us. We could spend the day remembering saints of old: the famous people who changed the church, or who were known for charity and piety. Certainly, we can thank God for their lasting influence!

But what about the people in your own life? People whose names will never be in the newspapers, or in a book about the church, but whose impact on you has been profound simply because they chose to serve God by ministering to you?

I thank God for the people in my life who have impacted my walk with God. My own Dad and Mom. My Father-in-law. A former pastor, Tom Blackford. All men (and woman) who God used to impact me and so many others. There are so many others too, some whose names I don't even remember, who God has brought into my life to help bring me closer to Him.

These individuals serve as a reminder, too, that we are also called to make disciples. Not to merely make converts, but to really train people and help them to develop their relationships with God. To teach them Scripture, and to have a lasting impact. This is our highest calling here on Earth, and you and I can thank God because people before us took it seriously.