The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
Matthew 11:5
Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.
Luke 7:22
What is a miracle? When we look at the list of evidences that Jesus is Messiah, it is easy for us to say that the various healings and the raising of the dead are certainly miracles for no mere man can do these things. However, Jesus includes the preaching of the gospel in the same list of miracles!
But don’t we see the gospel preached all the time? Or do we?
Just because a person claims he is called of God to preach does not make him a preacher. Just because a person says a few “good things” that seem to be supported by scripture doesn’t make it a sermon. Just because a person can turn a phrase and keep our attention does not mean the gospel is being preached.
Paul says that he is not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation. He is not ashamed because the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith. And that is the key – Faith.
God is the author of faith. We would not have it without His love, mercy, grace, and it being given to us in the miracle of the new birth. This is by an irresistible action of God in regeneration.
Then, when God moves in the mind of the preacher and the listener, a miracle happens. The miracle is that God uses a man to preach things to us when the preacher knows only a little, if any, about what we actually need. Sometimes, the preacher will deliver messages that were put on his mind and he doesn’t know why until we tell him our situation. Sometimes, preachers will prepare us for things coming in our lives that only God knows are coming. These are all wondrous miracles.
Perhaps we have too low a view of what is happening when a man is blessed of God to preach and teach exactly what we need when we need it. Perhaps we are too quick to dismiss a sermon because we do not feel it applies to our personal situation. Perhaps we ought to pray more for our preachers. Perhaps we ought to pray more for ourselves and one another that we see the miracle of God teaching us through a man the things He wants us to know!
Lowrance Ministries 