Title: Waiting for a Miracle
Content Title: A heart waiting for a miracle
Bible: Matthew 12:38-42
It is said that the people of Israel really like miracles, but if you know the history of that nation, you can fully understand it. This is because whenever the nation faced numerous national difficulties, they knew the limits of their strength, and the history of the nation was all accomplished through the miraculous work of God.
In fact, not only Israel but also us today have a strong desire for a miracle to happen in the things around us or in our own problems. The Lord healed many sick people with miraculous help while He was on this earth, and I hope that miracle will happen.
The Lord healed the lame, the 36-year-old paralyzed, the blind and lame, the epilepsy, the blind, and the hemorrhagic. The Lord healed the things that were impossible with human strength in a miraculous way. That miracle can happen today, and we wait for it. Today, when I see patients who say that medicine has advanced but cannot do it, especially our church members, I always pray that way. Pray for God's miraculous grace. Even today, there are many people who cannot do it with medicine and need God's miraculous help. Like the people in today's text, we want to cry out, "Jesus, show us a miracle." A miracle must happen. A heart waiting for a miracle But what is the heart waiting for a miracle, and why do we wait for such a miracle to appear?
First, the state of mind waiting for a miracle.
It is the heart of surrender that knows that it is impossible with one's own abilities.
Waiting for a miracle is a state of human incompetence and disappointment. So we ask for God's help. Because it is no longer possible with my own strength and effort, it means that God must give me miraculous grace. It's surrender to yourself that you can't do it in your own strength. If you can do it on your own, you are hoping for a miracle. Modern people often say, "We don't need a miracle. We can do everything on our own." Some say "I believe in myself" and not God. However, in reality, everyone on this earth wishes for good luck and for miracles. Therefore, in fact, miracles are not because they spare their own abilities, but because they do not have them.
Second, conditions for miracles to occur
One). Miracles happen only in despair.
In the text, the Lord said to the people of Israel who were seeking miracles, "miracles can only be spoken of the miracles of Jonah." It is a miracle that Jonah was able to come out of the deep sea, from the belly of a fish, in his deep despair. It is not a miracle that the life is safe on land. It is a miracle that arose in the depths of despair buried deep in the sea. The miracle of Jonah suggests that only a state of despair can bring true miracles.
2). It happens when repentance precedes it.
When the Lord speaks of Jonah's miracle, Jonah is telling the cause of his hopeless condition. The cause of Jonah's despair was that he did not follow God's will. He was given a special mission to go to Nineveh and preach the word of God. Jonah was a man on a mission. However, he neglected his mission and rejected God's will. He didn't do God's will, but his own will. He didn't know what God's will was.
They acted according to their own desires and thoughts.
3). Miracles are accomplished through Christ.
The Lord, who said that Jonah's miracle could not be shown in the night, continued in verse 40, "Just as Jonah was in the belly of a great fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the earth three days and three nights." In other words, this sign of Jonah is also a foreshadowing of the Lord's resurrection. The resurrection of Christ is the greatest of all miracles. No matter what miracles happen to nature and humans, great miracles such as resurrection cannot occur. God created a new work of saving sinners through this miracle. There is no end to adversity and storms in our lifetime. However, the owners of true faith are those who can overcome all these adversities and storms. This is because faith is the ability to accomplish missions to the end without giving in to all circumstances. I put my trust in you. let's win