Don't Miss Your Miracle

Don’t Miss Your Miracle Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey Revivalist Vance Havner (1901-1986) explains, “We often hear it said that the day of miracles is past. But every true Christian is a miracle, born again by the Holy Spirit. Of course I mean real Christians, not just church members. If you are what you have always been you are not a Christian. The Christian life is a miracle, Jesus living within the true believer. He is not just our Saviour and Lord but also our Life.” Salvation is a notable miracle. John records the remarkable account of a man named Nicodemus (John 3, 7:45-53, 19:38-42). From John 3 we discover that after Jesus states only those born again will see the kingdom of God, Nicodemus asks, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus explains that being born again was not just another physical birth but a spiritual one. Nicodemus asks, “How can these things be?” Salvation is a needed miracle. Jesus explained to Nicodemus, “You must be born again” (John 3:7b). The only way for a sinner to become a saint is by “a miracle of love and grace”, to borrow a phrase from the well-know song by John W. Peterson (1921-2006) titled “It Took a Miracle”. Of all miracles the miracle of miracles occurs when a person is born again. Dr. John Phillips, former assistant director of the Moody Correspondence School as well as director of the Emmaus Correspondence School, reminds us in I’ll Take the High Road, "The Lord Jesus did not say to Nicodemus, 'You should be born again.' Nor did He say, 'Would you like to be born again?' He said, 'You must be born again.' It is one of the great imperatives of the Christian faith. This, no doubt, is why the great preacher of a past generation, George Whitfield, when asked by a woman why he always preached 'You must be born again,' replied, 'Madam, because you MUST be born again!'" Salvation is a narrow miracle. Jesus exhorts, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). Jesus solemnly declares, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Later, Peter emphatically states, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by whom we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Salvation is a numinous miracle. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, numinous means “supernatural, mysterious, filled with a sense of the presence of divinity, holy.” “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition. . . . The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 9, 10). Salvation is a nigh miracle. We find the word “nigh” in Deuteronomy 30:14 and Romans 10:8 in the Authorized Version. “Nigh” means “close, near in place, time, or relationship”. In Romans 10:8 we read, “But what does it say? ‘The word is near [nigh] you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach).” George Williams (1850-1928) explains in The Student’s Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, “The Apostle Paul declared in a parenthesis (v.8) that that was the same doctrine that he preached-‘the Word of Faith’-i.e., justification on the faith principle as opposed to the works-principle.” Margaret Dennis attended a church service as a child and walked the aisle with her cousin, but they did not properly counsel her related to the nature of her decision. She was baptized and became a member of the church. Some time later she admitted that she did not have an understanding of salvation and wrestled with these feelings for many years. On February 15, 2007, I preached a message titled “What Kind of Assurance Do You Have?” based on 1 John 5:10-13. Some time later she expressed concern about her spiritual condition. We talked several times and one Wednesday night she prayed to receive Christ in my study at church. She intended to come forward in a service publicly professing her faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ and to following Him in believer’s baptism and church membership. Her health did not permit this for several months. On Sunday evening, July 12, 2009, she walked down the aisle at the time of the invitation escorted by her husband, Henry. I had the privilege of baptizing her on Wednesday, July 15, 2009, at First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort, where she previously served as director of the Women’s Missionary Union for several years. Jesus performed many miracles on earth attesting to His deity. He sent out the seventy under His authority to spread the gospel of His death, burial and resurrection. He gave them the ability to perform miracles. Two of these, Peter and John, performed a miracle involving the healing of a lame man over forty years of age (Acts 3). Those in the council referred to it as “a notable miracle” (Acts 4:16). Undeniably Margaret Dennis’ salvation at age 81 is indeed a notable miracle. If you have never experienced the miracle of salvation by repenting of your sin and trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ alone for salvation, don’t miss your miracle. By Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey, pastor First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort 30775 Jay Drive Spanish Fort, Alabama 36527 Author of Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice Available on Amazon.com and WORDsearchbible.com http://www.amazon.com/Sound-Biblical-Preaching-Giving-Bible/dp/1594577684 http://www.wordsearchbible.com/products/Sound_Biblical_Preaching_1476.html http://www.webspawner.com/users/franklinlkirksey / fkirksey@bellsouth.net / (251) 626-6210 © August 25, 2009 All Rights Reserved