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Understanding & Experiencing the Miraculous

Part1 & 2
Part 3

Throughout the ages, we see that mankind has been divided with regards to the subject of miracles and its’ purpose. However, no matter ones belief or understanding of it, there is hardly anyone who doubts the existence of the supernatural regardless whether they appreciate or not.

A miracle can be defined as an event or action that defies known natural or scientific laws and hence ascribable to divine causes, i.e. an act of God. It is an unusual occurrence which transcends the normal course of nature, thus making it supernatural. A miracle could also be defined as a wonder or phenomenon that is not commonplace. Having said this, it must be noted that miracles are not to be confused with things like magic or other abnormality or phenomenon that are not of God. The difference can usually be ascertained in the purpose of such a wonder. (More explanation on these will be considered later on in this article) When it comes to miracles, every area in the life of man and every aspect of the elements in the environment are subject to divine intervention. To fully appreciate miracles, it is vital to know the purposes for which God brings them to pass, i.e. the primary and secondary reasons.

The Purpose of Miracles
A miracle can be defined as an event or action that defies known natural or scientific laws and hence ascribable to divine causes, i.e. an act of God. A miracle is an unusual occurrence which transcends the normal course of nature, thus making it supernatural. It could also be defined as a wonder that is not commonplace. Having said this, it must be noted that miracles are not to be confused with things like magic or other abnormalities or phenomenon. (The difference can usually be ascertained in the purpose of such a wonder) More explanation on these will be considered later on in this article.

When it comes to miracles, every area in the life of a man and every aspect of the elements in the environment is subject to divine intervention. To fully understand and appreciate miracles, it is vital to know the purpose for which God brings them to pass. These include the following:

Miracles bring Glory of God
The main reason for miracles we find in the bible, is that it glorifies God. More often than none, we see that when miracles happened, God was magnified, either by those on whom the miracles were performed or by those who witnessed it. A good example can be seen in Act. 19:11-17, where we read that “…God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them…This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.”

Also, in the book of Matthew 15:29 – 31, documented is what I consider to be the greatest healing and miracle episode in history. This happened not far from the Sea of Galilee, as Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down. A great multitude came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others and it is recorded that they laid them down at Jesus’ feet, and He healed them. So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.

Miracles bring Joy to Man
There is always joy whenever and wherever miracles are plentiful …a turnaround in a distressing situation in the life of any person or people is bound to bring about some great rejoicing, especially if it had been endured for a long time. In Acts 8:6 - 8, we read “…and the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. And there was great joy in that city.”

On the contrary, where there is a dearth of miracles, you would usually if not always find misery, pain and discomfort. This was the experience of Israel in the days of Gideon. In the book of Judges 7:7, the children of Israel cried unto the Lord because of the oppression from the Midianites. Going further in that passage of scripture, Gideon asked the Angel of the Lord a question that indicated that he was indeed perplexed at cessation of miraculous victories which Israel had experienced in years gone by. “Gideon said to Him, “O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.” (Coming out of Egypt was by a series of miraculous events)

Miracles serve to produce or increase people’s faith in God
Though not always sufficient to produce faith, (as seen in the case of the rich man in hell ~ Luke 16:31 and the case of the Ten lepers who were healed ~ Luke 17:12-19) miracles however, have a tendency to turn people to God. In scripture and in life, we see that one of the tools used by God in conquering unbelief in people was (and still is) the vehicle of miracles. As a matter of fact, whilst in Cana of Galilee, the Lord Jesus confronted the Galileans about their unbelief, saying, “…unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.” (John 4:46 - 53) Various accounts of people coming to faith in God can be seen in the scriptures. An example can be found in Acts 9:32 - 35, where a paralytic was healed after many years of being bed-ridden. There we read that “…all who dwelt in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.” Other examples can be seen in Acts 9: 36 – 43, Acts 13: 6 – 12, John 2:23 etc.

Miracles authenticate the messengers & preachers of the gospel
Throughout the bible, we encounter numerous instances of God endorsing His messengers by way of the miracles He did through them. In Exodus 4:1-9, God displayed to Moses the miracles He was going to perform through him as signs or proofs that He had called Moses to lead and deliver Israel from their bondage to Egypt. Prior to that, Moses had queried the Lord saying “…But suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice; suppose they say, ‘The LORD has not appeared to you.’” And we read that after the first of three miraculous signs, the LORD revealed to him one of the purposes of miracles, ‘…that they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.’

Dear reader, having seen some of the reasons why God performs miracles, it would be unthinkable not to desire miracles in the world today…whether for yourself or otherwise. I encourage you to continue with me on this journey to understanding and experiencing the miraculous. In part 3 of this article, you would:

• Learn how to receive miracles.
• Learn why miracles cease in the lives of individuals and corporations and nations
• Learn how to differentiate between miracles and magic

As you seek to have a closer relationship with God, I pray you would begin to experience the miraculous in your life, as God divinely intervenes for good concerning your affairs, in Jesus Name, Amen

Click Here Pt. 3 of this article.

Many Blessings!

Pastor Francis Obasogie