A Notable Miracle
God enabled His prophet Elijah to work many miracles. All of these miracles were signs to the people around him that he had been sent by God. Perhaps his most notable miracle was when God heard his prayer for God to restore life to the son of the widow with whom he was staying. (I Kings 17:21,22) There are not many resurrections recorded in the Bible. Of course, we will celebrate the most famous resurrection later this month. However, these notable miracles might lead us to ask a question about God's will as it relates to miracles.
Why does not God work a miracle every time a faithful believer requests one? After all, God can do anything, and He is love. Well, I do not claim to be a theologian or have a perfect understanding of the Lord's nature, but I believe I know several reasons why God does not work miracles in every case. God created the world totally good, in fact, it was very good. Then, sin entered the world through Adam and Eve's sin, so everything was corrupted by sin. Therefore, the consequences of sin cause us many of our problems in life. So if God worked a miracle every time, He would be taking away the consequences of sin, which were designed to help us turn from our sins and trust in Him. God wants us to be saved, so He doesn't want to do anything to lessen our desire for it. Also, if God always worked miracles, then, the supernatural would become the natural, and replace the original design of God. God does not want that either, since He made the world very good. Finally, if God always worked miracles, some people would never die. That is against God's order, also.
All of that leads me to my conclusion. I believe God works miracles when He knows it would be the best thing to do for the most people. Since He sees everyone's hearts, and He knows the future, He is the only One who can make this judgment. When He does not choose to work a miracle, He is so loving that He meets our needs by His grace, and His grace is sufficient for us in every situation of life. That is why even a quadriplegic like Joni Erickson Tada can still have a full productive life by the grace of God. Therefore, whether or not God works a miracle, we can all rejoice in the fact that He always does the wise and loving thing each time.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Kings 18-21.
Why does not God work a miracle every time a faithful believer requests one? After all, God can do anything, and He is love. Well, I do not claim to be a theologian or have a perfect understanding of the Lord's nature, but I believe I know several reasons why God does not work miracles in every case. God created the world totally good, in fact, it was very good. Then, sin entered the world through Adam and Eve's sin, so everything was corrupted by sin. Therefore, the consequences of sin cause us many of our problems in life. So if God worked a miracle every time, He would be taking away the consequences of sin, which were designed to help us turn from our sins and trust in Him. God wants us to be saved, so He doesn't want to do anything to lessen our desire for it. Also, if God always worked miracles, then, the supernatural would become the natural, and replace the original design of God. God does not want that either, since He made the world very good. Finally, if God always worked miracles, some people would never die. That is against God's order, also.
All of that leads me to my conclusion. I believe God works miracles when He knows it would be the best thing to do for the most people. Since He sees everyone's hearts, and He knows the future, He is the only One who can make this judgment. When He does not choose to work a miracle, He is so loving that He meets our needs by His grace, and His grace is sufficient for us in every situation of life. That is why even a quadriplegic like Joni Erickson Tada can still have a full productive life by the grace of God. Therefore, whether or not God works a miracle, we can all rejoice in the fact that He always does the wise and loving thing each time.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Kings 18-21.