3 Ways Miracles Are Good News For You
Miracles are for everyone.
Luke 4 says: 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Miracles are proclamation, not in the normal sense of a preacher getting up and saying something, but those works are an extraordinary, anointed blessing from God for the people. When the words of the prophets came to the people, they believed that it was God speaking. Miracles are God speaking on a level that appeals to our senses.
Here are 3 ways that miracles are good news for all of us who are poor in spirit:
(1) Miracles liberate because there are all types of captivity that we face
Captives always dream of being able to liberate themselves. People living under an oppressive regime dream of being able to rise up and overthrow those who in control. We dream of being able to defeat our dire circumstances.
But Jesus, and the Scripture He is quoting, talks of a much deeper captivity and oppression than one of even the most vile of earthly dictator. It is a captivity that is unceasing in its attempts to drive all seeming opposition away.
For each of us, there is a captivity that we dare not admit. It is that deep, dark place where no one can help. We might admit it, but it’s just a passing reference to remind ourselves of our hopeless situation; we firmly believe that no one can address that kind of helpless pain we endure.
It’s in those places that we long for the Lord to intervene. For some, the suffering and the agony are worse than death. The reproach we feel is the epitome of eternal strife, it’s just felt here and now, in this world. With that kind of pain now, we can’t contemplate what eternal suffering must be like. It’s in those places that the Lord reminds us that miracles are meant to liberate from the deep captivity that foreshadows eternal pain. When the Lord grants us release, whether the circumstances are big or small, it is a foreshadowing of the great release we find in Jesus’ redemptive work. Miracles are an extension of the great liberation that promises eternal grace instead of eternal death. Miracles are a means by which God reminds that God’s mercy is not just something that is waiting for us when we pass from this life into the next, but healing happens even now.
Miracles are for your liberation; what is it you need liberation from?
(2) Miracles help recover sight lost to sin
Sight is the sense that most people would have a hard time losing. That is one of the reasons that I believe that the Lord emphasized healing the blind and God’s Word talks about the Messiah as one who would be able to restore sight. Without sight, many people consider life unlivable. Without spiritual sight, eternal life is unlivable.
Miracles are meant to alter our sight. For those that are strong believers, even a miracle will help us see God in a different way. For those that witness what is incomprehensible, miracles call us to respond as only the Holy Spirit can shape. Miracles can call us to greater praise, or necessary repentance when belief has taken a backseat to what is more important.
How has a miracle, either in your life or one that you have witnessed, helped change your thinking about God?
(3) Miracles proclaim that the Lord has chosen to act graciously in a way we can’t predict
Miracles tell us it is our moment, hour, or year. In the Old Testament, there were prescribed years where there would be great celebrations because of the Lord’s generosity, but there were many times where the nation of Israel fell into sin and needed intervention that would lead to spontaneous praise and response.
Miracles remind us that there are always opportunities to see God’s goodness, and we don’t need to wait for a prescribed “Holy Day” or “Holy Season” to honor God. The reality is that if we lived in perfect harmony with God and His Word, we wouldn’t need miracles or other means of strengthening our faith. But, until that day comes, miracles are a part of God’s plan which chooses to say that God has certain moments where His unpredictability is a great thing. It means that the Lord has chosen us for an eye-witness testimony of something we couldn’t do ourselves even if we tried. That is a proclamation from God that given us a special blessing.
Miracles happen to all kinds of people in all kinds of ways; what was your greatest miracle?
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Miracles are for everyone. We all need to see them and we need to understand God’s purpose for providing miracles. Ultimately, it is His pleasure to perform them so that we might respond with praise and the confession of faith in Jesus. Some will miss them or not be thankful for them, but that will not stop God from performing them. He knows that every miracle performed is one step closer to a greater Kingdom. Amen.
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