Expect a Miracle

"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus,"but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." --John 9:2

Ten years ago, when my wife and I separated, my sister gave me a refrigerator magnet that said, "Expect a Miracle."  Little did I know that nine months later, my wife and I would reconcile and re-marry each other. Those familiar with the situation at the time thought that it would have taken a miracle for us to get back together.  But by God's grace, it happened.  At many points in time since then, I'm sure my wife has thought it a curse rather than a blessing, but I have not regretted it one minute.

There are many times in life where the circumstances we find ourselves in seem insurmountable.  But we know that with God, all things are possible.  And that's what I want to visit with you about today.  My last blog post was based on the 8th chapter of John's gospel.  As we move into chapter 9, Jesus and his disciples encounter a blind man along the road.  He was probably begging, as his disability prevented him from any type of gainful employment.  Jesus looked at him with compassion.  The disciples, however, looked in judgment.  They assumed that the disability was the result of sin, either in the man's life, or perhaps his ancestors.  Having been brought up in the Jewish tradition, they had long been taught that God's wrath would be visited upon the third and fourth generations.

There is a certain truth in that.  Actions do have consequences.  Bad decisions can come back to haunt you.  "Be sure your sins will find you out." (Numbers 22:23)  If you have been caught in a sin, I encourage you to confess it and repent--commit in your heart to never do it again.  If it is too much to commit to never doing it again, ever, then commit to stand against that sin today.  Two key points in the Lord's prayer come to mind: Jesus said, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."  He also said, "Give us this day our daily bread." In other words, let me not worry about tomorrow's needs; give me today what I need today.  If that is deliverance from temptation, God is able.  Hebrews 3:12-13 says,

See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.  But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.

The more you train your heart toward God and your head toward His thoughts, the more He will bless you.  I'm not talking about a works salvation.  I am a believer in grace, and have benefited from God's grace as much as anybody.  What I am saying is that the less God has to carve out of our lives, the more He can use us; the less we have to empty ourselves, the more He can fill us.

On the other hand....
Not all of our circumstances are the result of our sinful nature.  Sometimes we find ourselves in a predicament through no fault of our own.  We are walking with God, living our best life, and something tragic happens.  Or, like the case of the blind beggar in John 9, we are at the mercy of life from the very beginning. This man had been born blind.  He did not run with scissors; he did not play carelessly with a pellet gun; he didn't even look at too many nudie pictures.  (Each of these activities comes with a warning in our culture--"Don't do that, or you'll put your eye out" or "You'll go blind".)

What possible good could come out of this situation?  Well, if you were able to have the work of God put on display in your life, that's pretty darn good.  I'm sure this man didn't get up that morning wishing he had his sight.  He and his parents had probably given that up years ago.  They may have been resigned to their fate.  "It is what it is," they may have thought.  Or maybe not.  Maybe this man had heard of the miracles that Jesus had done, and maybe he found a place to be where he knew Jesus would find him.  We may never know.  What we do know is that when Jesus healed him, he became a witness to those he knew, and also to the religious leaders of the day.  Three times the Pharisees asked him how it was that he had gained his sight. The man did not need to study theology or religion to give his testimony--"I was blind, and now I see."  This testimony made his unbelieving parents throw him under the bus (instead of taking his side, they said, "He is of age, ask him").  It even got him kicked out of the synagogue.  But I believe this man probably thought it was worth it to be able to see clearly.

The application is simple.  Whatever situation we find ourselves in, give glory to God.  We can be a witness in poverty as well as in riches; in pain as well as in perfect health; in slavery as well as in freedom.  With God's help, we can overcome.  And in some cases, if God so chooses, we can be delivered from our predicament in grand fashion, so that our message, our testimony, can get a wider audience.  That's why it is so important to be faithful.

Don't be discouraged.  Do you think that Paul and Barnabas knew that they would be thrown in prison for preaching the word of God?  Maybe, maybe not.  But I'll bet they didn't expect to be awakened by an angel, and find their shackles undone, the chains lying on the ground and the prison doors opened for them. Look at Hebrews chapter 11.  The writer lists several Old Testament figures who could not see the future, but remained faithful so that God could use them.  Each of them was commended as one who pleased God. "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:6).

Spend your life earnestly seeking God, and at the end, you will see that God has blessed you richly.  Maybe in ways that you didn't recognize at the time.  Maybe not in ways that the world measures success.  But you are blessed by Him if you believe in Him, and confess Him as Lord.

To hear with my heart
To see with my soul
To be guided by a hand I cannot hold
To trust in a way that I cannot see
That's what faith must be 

When the universe fell from His fingertips
He decided He wanted some fellowship
But the man and the woman would not submit
So He made a better way
When the moment was right He sent His own Son
And He opened the way so that everyone
Could have hope and believe that when time was done
He'd be able to make us one 

Chorus 

Now I understand that there is a key
It's Jesus in me, a reality
That God is in Christ and that Christ's in me
That with faith I see what is unseen 

Chorus 

That's what faith must be