Miracles That Almost Didn’t Happen

Miracle That Almost Didn’t Happen

Introduction:  Didn’t Pastor Keith Do an amazing job last Sunday…not sure about you but I will never look at Good or even Romans the same way again…

I’m glad I’ve traded my traveling companion…left my baggage for the Hand of God…

Transition:  I want you to know you are in Miracle territory today…you are standing in a room and next to people who have experienced the miracle working Power of God…

If I took the time to tell you all the details and history of the things, I just announced…you’d be shocked at the many miracles that have transpired along the way…

But the Bible is full of stories and history is filled with People where Miracles did not happen…and I don’t pretend to have all the answers to those questions…

I do think at times we need to allow God to redefine GOOD for us!

Unity:  in the book of Ephesians, it encourages us to:

Eph 4:1-4 4 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. ESV

Eph 4:11-16

11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. ESV

  • Unity in the text is a synchronization of Breathing…
  • In the military they will sing songs, audibly proclaiming a cadence, when they are marching or doing PT…some good, some not so much…but there is purpose in the cadence.
    • Is to keep everyone’s heads up
    • To take deeper breaths
    • To exhale more forcefully
    • To synchronize the breathing of the squad
  • If you watch the soldiers, the ones who don’t participate lag behind, have their heads down and are out of breath.

Look at 3 people and tell them:  Head Up…

We need to get Synchronized with the Master…with the Healer…with Jesus!

Synchronizing our Faith with His Word…

Matthew 13:54-58

And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? 55Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? 57And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. 58And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

Matthew 23:37

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

A great part of the ministry of Jesus Christ consists of His miracles.

  • There are 37 miracles recorded in the gospels.
  • 23 times it is stated that He healed “them all” and “everyone”!
  • These miracles were meant to teach, to reveal, and to demonstrate His deity.
  • They served as illustrations to deeper spiritual truths.

The Bible lets us know that these 37 miracles recorded are but a few selected miracles among many others that were not recorded.

John 20:30-31

And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: 31But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

John 21:25

And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

But as impressive as these miracles are, there are hints and even more than hints, of miracles that might have happened had the hearts of men been receptive, that would have been beyond anything that he did

  • It is clear that more than once he was at the point of working a miracle but was somehow hindered.
  • There are needs here today that only the miraculous power of God can meet!

 

He who had all power was hindered by causes He could not overcome without invading the human will, in which He will never do.

Luke 4:16-21

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. 17And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

There were in all likelihood, sick, and leprous, and devil possessed, and sorrow-burdened, and unburied dead in Nazareth.

Mark 6:5

And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.

  • This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
  • The total effect of their attitude was that of closed and shuttered windows toward the light.
  • There was but a short step between them and eternal life, but it was a step they had to take, and they never took it.
  • There were miracles that never happened that could have!

Matthew 23:37

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

  • At the end of his life He stood and looked over the city of Jerusalem and wept.
  • What miracles He must have had in mind for this city had they only known and received Him.
  • Had Caiaphas, Herod, and Pilate arisen from their evil dreams and opened the opportunity knocking at their many doors, it dazzles one to think of what might have happened!

Luke 4:25-27

But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; 26But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. 27And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.

  • The text is so offensive to the Jews because the ones Elisha healed are not Jewish…they were Gentiles
  • So Jesus in essence was saying…the Prophet Elisha Passed by many religious, Jewish people…

Matthew 8:28 (Demoniac)

And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.

  • Matthew record two demon possessed men, the record records one that was delivered!

John 5:1-9 (Bethesda)

After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. 3In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. 4For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. 5And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? 7The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. 8Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. 9And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.

Was this man the only one healed that day at the pool?

Will there be unopened miralces, healings, breakthroughs, sitting on these seats today when we leave this house?

Miracles that never happened, that God longed to perform!

Desperate Faith

1 Timothy 6: 12 “Fight the Good Fight Of Faith”

Intro: There is something profound about faith that is never discussed by many faith teachers: There is the conflict of faith. There is a forceful quality to faith!

Three Kinds of Faith:

  1. Saving Faith – Ephesians 2: 8 “for by Grace you have been saved through faith…”
  2. Healing Faith – Acts 3: 16 that through the name of Jesus the lame man at the gate beautiful was healed…
  3. Desperate Faith…

Desperate Faith

  1. Pries the limitations off – Mark 2: 4
  • They tore the roof off to get their friend to Christ.
  • What is your limitations
    • Family
    • Finances
    • Education
  • Sometimes your friends can be your limitation or your limitation breakers…
  1. Presses through the problem – Luke 8: 42-48
  • Notice vs. 43 – She had an issue
  • What is your issue
  • Leviticus 15: 25 – She wasn’t allowed to be in public – She was unclean
  • She pressed beyond 3 things:
  • Pain
  • People
  • Physicians (professional opinions)
  1. Proclaims over public opinion – Mark 10: 47-48
  • Bartimaeus Cried Out…
  • Who didn’t cry out in the town that needed a Miracle…
  • Now here is a staggering thought…
    1. JESUS never went back through this town again…
    2. You hear people all the time say…I’m just not ready to give my life to Christ or to Call out to God…who knows if He will pass this way again?
  • Some people will try to silence your faith!
  • Until the proclamation of your faith becomes louder than the opinions of people – Jesus will not stand still!
  1. Possess the promises of the covenant – 15: 22-28 “the Canaanite Woman” Preached about her a few weeks ago…
  • 1st – He ignored her – vs. 23
  • 2nd – He was indifferent toward her – vs. 24
  • 3rd – He insulted her – vs. 26

Conclusion: 

  • What kind of faith do you need today:
    • Saving Faith
    • Healing Faith
    • Desperate Faith…
  • Are we truly willing to Synchronize our Breathing with the Lord Jesus? For He is the one who sets the Cadence.
  • Let’s Pray for Some Miracles today…

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