INTRO.- ILL.- I am reminded of the story of the duck hunter who was proud of his marksmanship. After a period of time a lone duck flew overhead. "Watch this," the hunter said to his friend, as he took careful aim and shot at the duck. But the duck just continued flying as if nothing had happened.
The hunter turned to his friend and said, "You have just witnessed a great miracle! There flies a dead duck!"
Miracles sound good, don’t they? Did you ever have one happen to you? Maybe a small one?
ILL.- Here’s a real miracle that happened recently. A bullet tore through a Geauga County Ohio home here Sunday night while a young family was inside. A deer slug came through the east side of the home, traveled through several walls and came to a stop after striking a child’s Bible in a bedroom closet. At the time of the shooting, the entire Milks family was home and the mother was in that room reading to her 2 1/2 year old daughter when it happened. It just missed hitting them by 33 inches. The family is not pressing charges.
The bullet came from a 12-gauge shotgun that was shot by a 17-year-old neighbor who was actually out hunting not far from the home. The 17-year-old came over Monday morning and apologized profusely. Had to be something of a miracle, wouldn’t you say?
ILL.- I totaled my 1955 Chevrolet while driving to work at 10 p.m. one time, probably in 1962-63. I was scheduled to go to work at Safeway at 10 p.m. I was a night stocker and I was running late that night and decided to take a back road from Webb City to Joplin, which was probably 5 to 8 miles to the store on 4th St. WRONG MOVE. Wrong decision. I wasn’t as familiar with that back road as I thought I was.
Needless to say, I never made it to work on time. That back road had a curve in it that was probably a 15 mph curve at best and I didn’t realize this. I was going 50 mph when I went into that curve and immediately, saw there was no way I would make it. I saw a telephone pole coming at me (actually I was heading toward it) and I quickly laid down in the front seat of my car and let her wreck, which she did. She just missed that telephone, however. My Chevy actually went between that pole and the guy wire! Amazing! Utterly amazing! How could I have missed hitting that telephone pole head on??
That’s what I call a miracle. It was something good and I attribute that good to the Lord. By the grace of God I was saved! At that time I didn’t know this, of course. I wasn’t a Christian and I just thought I was lucky.
Most of us, if not all of us, could say, "If it were not for the grace of God I would have....or I would be...." TRUE? It’s the grace of God or the graciousness of God that has kept us all out of a boat load of trouble!!! PRAISE HIM!
God delivered us from the mouths of lions. He kept us from being burned up in the fiery furnace. He saved us from the flood. He allowed us to walk through on dry ground. PRAISE HIM!
PROP.- God’s extraordinary miracles:
1- All heard the Word of the Lord
2- Many Illnesses were cured
3- Many openly confessed their evil
1. ALL HEARD THE WORD OF THE LORD
10This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.
ALL the Jews and Greeks in Asia heard the word of the Lord. Obviously, all the Jews and Greeks in Asia at that time wouldn’t be as many today! But, of course, they weren’t able to spread the Word of God compared to how we can do it today. WE HAVE RADIO, TV, THE INTERNET, CELL PHONES! We can spread all kinds of words and do through these devices and means. But are we spreading the Word of God, the gospel, the good news of Christ through these various means?
ILL.- Are you an American Idol watcher? There are about 25 to 30 million who view that show every week. I know. How worldly can you get?? Wednesday, April 2nd, 62 year old Dolly Parton was the guest star. Whether you like Dolly or not, she’s made a ton of money and has been clean as far as most famous people are concerned. She’s been married to the same man (Carl Dean) for almost 42 years. Her grandfather was a Pentecostal gospel preacher and her parents raised her in the Church of God. And I believe that she still believes in Christ and Christianity. I hope so. I pray so.
On that American Idol show she sang a new song entitled, "Jesus and Gravity." Here are some of the lyrics.
I’m to the point where it don’t add up
I can’t say I’ve come this far with my guitar on pure dumb luck
That’s not to say i know it all
’Cause everytime I get too high up on my horse I fall
’Cause I’ve got
Somethin’ lifting me up
Somethin’ holding me down
Somethin’ to give me wings and
Somethin’ to keep my feet on the ground
I’ve got all I need,
Jesus and gravity
But I’m as bad as anyone
Taking all these blessings in my life for granted one by one
When I start to thinkin’ it’s all me
Well somethin’ comes along and knocks me right back on my knees
and I’ve got
Somethin’ lifting me up
Somethin’ holding me down
Somethin’ to give me wings and
Somethin’ to keep my feet on the ground
I’ve got all i need, Jesus and gravity
He’s my friend
He’s my light
He’s my wings
He’s my ?
and I’ve got
Somethin’ lifting me up
Somethin’ holding me down
Somethin’ to give me wings and
Somethin’ to keep my feet on the ground
I’ve got all I’m gonna need,
I got Jesus, I got Jesus
I hope she has Jesus. And whether she realized it or not she just presented Jesus to probably 25 to 30 million or more people here in America and that isn’t bad! There’s something special about that name and there’s something special about just saying His name in front of millions of people! May His name be forever spread and praised!
We all need something lifting us up and not ourselves. If we’re lifted higher spiritually speaking it’s all because of Jesus! We have Him lifting us up! Thank you for the reminder, Dolly! And we need to keep on spreading that message. Do you understand? Our message is Jesus! He is the one we must present anywhere we can and as often as we can!
ILL.- When Robert Morrison, the first missionary to go to China, left his ship in a Chinese port, the captain sneeringly said, “So you think you are going to make an impression upon China.” Morrison quietly replied, “No, sir, but I believe God will.”
If we just keep on speaking the message and the name of Jesus God will do something, God will make an impression on people!
II. MANY ILLNESSES WERE CURED
11God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
ILL. - Three guys were fishing in a lake one day, when a television faith healer walked across the water and joined them in the boat. When the three astonished men had settled down enough to speak, the 1st guy asked humbly, "Preacher, I’ve suffered from back pain ever since I took shrapnel in the Vietnam War...Could you help me?" "Of course, my son," the faith healer said, and when he touched the man’s back he felt relief for the first time in years.
The 2nd guy, who wore very thick glasses and had a hard time reading and driving, asked if the healer could do anything about his poor eyesight. The healer smiled, removed the man’s glasses, and tossed them into the lake. When they hit the water, the man’s eyes cleared and he could see everything perfectly.
When the faith healer turned to the 3rd guy and he put his hands out defensively, crying out, "Don’t touch me! I’m on a disability pension.’’
In our text, God did extraordinary miracles through Paul. Does God do miracles today? Does He still heal the sick through certain individuals as he did Paul?
ILL.- When I was just a kid the famous Oral Roberts was in the healing ministry and tent revival business. I remember watching him on TV and often, he would say to his TV audience, "Put your hand on your TV and be healed." And I did that because I always wanted to be able to see better.
I tried to believe him and what he was saying with all my heart but nothing seemed to help my vision. WHY DIDN’T GOD HEAL MY VISION PROBLEM, my nearsightedness and lazy eye problem? Was the problem with Oral Roberts or perhaps my lack of faith or something else?
I suspect it may have been a combination of things. My lack of faith in the Lord, for one. Also, it may well be that God thought, "Son, you have worse problems that poor eyesight." And that’s true. And God probably thought that I needed to be cured from those other problems worse than poor eyesight.
The problem has never been with God! DID YOU HEAR ME? The problem of someone not being cured is not with God! Why? Because He can do anything good. God is all-powerful!
ILL.- I have a little book in my library entitled, "Your God Is Too Small" by J. B. Phillips who also translated the New Testament scriptures called the "Phillips translation." And sometimes, our God is too small! We’ve often put God in our own little boxes, saying He can do this but He can’t do that, forgetting that He is all-powerful!
A group of mixed older adolescents were asked, "Do you think God understands radar?" This question was asked many years ago but nearly everyone answered, "No." To me, that would be like asking today, "Do you think God understands how computers work with all those little circuits and gizmos inside?" And some people might be tempted to say, "Well, no, how could he?" The God who spoke the world into existence doesn’t understand how computers work? HOW UTTERLY RIDICULOUS.
And you can ask any question pertaining to life’s complexities and GOD KNOWS IT ALL! Yes, God can cure all illness if He so desires! But that’s the key. He knows what is best and He will do what is best in every case. All we can do is ask of Him and if He grants our wish, the praise His name! If He doesn’t then we still praise His name! Because ultimately healing will come.
ILL.- I have a preacher friend named Boyce Mouton in Carl Junction, MO, whose grandson, Josh, was hurt in a car wreck about 5 years ago and has never recovered. He requires constant care and is fed through a tube. His wife left him after a period of time. He is constantly sick and suffers with one infection after another. He’s been in and out of the hospital dozens of times. WHY DOESN’T GOD HEAL HIM?
II Cor. 4:16-18 "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."
III. MANY OPENLY CONFESSED THEIR EVIL
18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds. 19A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. 20In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
ILL.- The new priest was nervous about hearing confessions, so he asked an older priest to sit in on his sessions. The new priest heard several confessions, then the old priest asked him to step out of the confessional for a few suggestions.
The old priest suggested, "Cross your arms over your chest and rub your chin with one hand."
The new priest tried this. The old priest suggested, "Try saying things like, ’I see, yes, go on, and I understand, how did you feel about that?"
The new priest said those things. The old priest said, "Now, don’t you think that’s a little better than slapping your knee and saying, ’No way! What happened next?’"
The moral of the story is that many people like to hear the dirt from others or about others! "Wow! Did you hear..."
18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds.
Brothers and sisters, what do you think of this? What about practicing this today? Do you know of anyone who would want to openly, publicly, confess their evil deeds? NOT MANY FOR SURE.
ILL.- A young married lady in my Sunday School class years ago said that her brother went to a church where you had to publicly confess your sins before you could become a member of that particular church. ANYONE INTERESTED?
I don’t see how a church could get many members with a practice like that. We’d get a lot of listeners but not many confessions!
Honestly, I don’t know of many churches that practice public confession of sin but I suppose if someone wanted to publicly make some kind of admission of error we shouldn’t be opposed to it. Of course, the biggest thing is that we not gossip about it but rather give that person our support and encouragement.
James 5:16 "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."
I John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
Romans 10:9-10 "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved."
There are several confessions that we should encourage: private confession of sin, which should be a daily thing with all of us. And public confession of our faith in Christ should always be a daily thing!
Matthew 10:32-33 "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven."
18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds. 19A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. 20In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
When people turn from their sinful ways and give their lives to Christ in faith and repentance, good things happen! Sins are forgiven, lives are changed, churches grow and the Lord is praised!
CONCLUSIOIN--------------------------------
ILL.- In the play The Barrettes of Wimpole Street, Elizabeth asked her husband Robert, “O Robert, how can you love me when you are so strong and I am so weak?” He replied, “Elizabeth, my strength needs your weakness just as much as your weakness needs my strength.”
“And he said unto me, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness’ ” (II Cor. 12:9).
Brothers and sisters, God can work even when we can’t! He can do things, good things even if we are unable! He is strong even though many times we are weak! And He needs us in our weaknesses so that His strength and glory can be displayed and honored!
God will continue to work today whether He works through us or not, BUT HE WOULD PREFER TO WORK THROUGH US! And God can do more than we think He can and He can do it through us!
