This past Sunday Pastor Scott taught from 2 Kings 4 and spoke about the theme of miracles, challenging us to see the miracles around us on a daily basis.
When Elisha arrived, the child was indeed dead, lying there on the prophet’s bed. 33 He went in alone and shut the door behind him and prayed to the LORD. 34 Then he lay down on the child’s body, placing his mouth on the child’s mouth, his eyes on the child’s eyes, and his hands on the child’s hands. And as he stretched out on him, the child’s body began to grow warm again! 35 Elisha got up, walked back and forth across the room once, and then stretched himself out again on the child. This time the boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes! 36 Then Elisha summoned Gehazi. “Call the child’s mother!” he said. And when she came in, Elisha said, “Here, take your son!” 37 She fell at his feet and bowed before him, overwhelmed with gratitude. Then she took her son in her arms and carried him downstairs – 2 Kings 4:32-37
The Bible is full of miracles such as this one that God enabled Elisha to perform. So what changed? Why don’t we see miracles in our lives any more? As Fyodor Dostoyevsky observes ‘It is not miracles that generate faith, but faith that generates miracles’. If miracles where enough to convince people to believe in God then the whole world would already belief. As Christians our faith in God opens our eyes to see his marvellous work. If we don’t maintain a spiritual mindset and outlook we will miss the miracles God is doing around us all the time.
C.S. Lewis said ‘It (Christianity) is precisely the story of a great miracle. A naturalistic Christianity leaves out all that is specifically Christian’. So the challenge for us today, and every day, is to stay spiritually alert, seeking a fresh filling of God’s Holy Spirit each day, and to not explain away the miraculous things God is doing. May our faith grow stronger, may be see at least one miracle every day (the very facts of our existence are miraculous after all!) and seek God’s will in our lives – that we would grow and change and become more like Him