Sunday, April 5, 2015

signs and wonders?

today's readings: Deut 28:1-68, Luke 11:14-36, Psalm 77:1-20, Proverbs 12:18

between the Gospel and the Psalm, we have lots of stories of signs and wonders that God gives us to help us have faith in Him.

but we also see people telling Jesus to give them more signs to prove that He's the Messiah.

this article has a pretty amazing account of the atheist Emile Zola. here is a poignant excerpt:

"It is sometimes asked why God does not produce more miracles in order to make it easier for people to believe. The story of Zola at Lourdes gives one possible answer. If you choose to seal yourself off from the supernatural, no miracle is going to make a difference."

the people in Jesus's day were not just asking Him to give them miracles to help them believe. they were, like Zola, looking for ways to prove that He was NOT who He claimed to be.

God, please remind me of Your works throughout history and in my own life, so that I'll remember to have faith in You when things are hard.

3 comments:

Julie said...

Well said, the reason also is because He didn't come the way "they" wanted Him to come. They wanted Him to be their king. And to destroy those who had persecuted them. They wanted Him to have godly traits as per their standards. Not Godly traits by Gods standards. Those who had open hearts and minds found Him but those who couldn't or wouldn't open up and see who He was rejected Him. Help me Lord keep my heart and mind open to You and to feed the poor, help the sick and take time for the elderly who go without human contact for long periods of time.

Cherie L. Fleming-Pearce said...

Well said and Amen!

Laurie said...

we recorded the Killing of Jesus off the Nat Geo channel. We watched it this weekend. It really emphasizes your point that they wanted the miracles to prove who he was not. I think people still react that way to Christians sometimes. We were reborn to stand out!