If you are looking for some breakthrough or some kind of a miracle in your life, for a long time, this sermon is for you.
It is very human to expect miracle to happen in the usual way. You think of something exciting and hope things would happen the way you planned.
But remember miracles are miracles because they do not happen the usual way. Otherwise there is no miracle at all, if it happens in the ordinary manner.
Miracles are miracles because they happen the God's way. That is why Bible says in Isa 55:8-9
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
See the analogy that God has used. As heavens are higher than the earth, which simply means with your earthly wisdom you can never comprehend God’s thoughts towards you. They are far, far higher.
Again 1 Corinthians 2:9 says But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.
That is a miracle. No one could have ever guessed it. But God knows. And He alone knows.
1. Miracles need you to see things the way God sees
Israelites were wandering through the wilderness and as always they murmured against good. If you read Numbers 11, the people craved to eat meat and they murmured against the servant of God. And a miracle happens. Although his miracle is outcome of people’s craving, we are not getting into that. God heard Moses and performs a miracle for him.
Now, understand the context very carefully. Already God promised of a miracle.
Numbers 11:18-20
18 Then you shall say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, 20 but for a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have despised the Lord who is among you, and have wept before Him, saying, “Why did we ever come up out of Egypt?”’”
And since God said it, it would happen, no matter what. It really isn't Moses’ job to figure out how this would happen. That's God problem. But Moses takes it upon himself. He begins making a mental calculation of how God could do something like this. Many times in our life we end up doing the same. We begin to make our guesses, sometimes we make plans on our own and some brilliant people would even start suggesting to God. ‘God, may be you can do this. Or else, try this.’ Hey, that's His problem. He is wiser than you. He knows more than what you know or could ever think or imaging. Allow God to do His job.
Moses begins to think. First he counts the number of people. Vs 21 - The people whom I am among are six hundred thousand men on foot. So God has to provide meat for so much people. And then he calculates the number of days. Same verse continues yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat for a whole month.
Yet, you have said. Moses thinks God has made a wrong calculation. He is saying, God, don’t you know there are so many men. And Yet how could you say, you are going to provide meat not just for a day or two but for a whole month.
Moses thinks God did some foolishness by over-promising and he gets worried. How is God going to do this? How can God do this?
He thinks next of the resources available with them for God to perform the miracle. He looks around. What do they have with them? They have with them flocks of sheep and may be herds of cattle and probably there may some fish in the sea. But he realises even all this is just not enough for all that God has over-promised them. So
Moses asks the next question to God.
Vs 22 - Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to provide enough for them?”
Moses might seem stupid. But many times in our life, we act just like him. Like Moses, we also see only the obvious. We calculate based on what the requirement is, what are the resources available, what are the means available and we begin to make our suggestions to God.
We see only what we can with our limited vision and think of ways that a miracle could happen. But a miracle is beyond that. A miracle requires faith. And what is faith? Bible says in Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen
Remember faith is not the evidence of things that are seen but rather it is evidence of things that are not seen. How wonderful!
You can never see or imagine what God has in mind for you. Look at God's reply to Moses. Just amazing. God doesn't say to Moses. ‘No, my son. You are doing a wrong calculation. But this is my plan and this is the way I’m going to perform the miracle.’
God doesn’t say that. Are you waiting for a miracle in your life? Don’t expect God to tell you, my child, this is the way I am going to perform a miracle. He might never tell. You’ll have to wait and watch.
Shall we read what was God’s reply to Moses was.. Is the Lord's arm shortened?
Numbers 11:23 - And the Lord said to Moses, “Has the Lord’s arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether what I say will happen to you or not.”
If God said it, it will happen. Come what may. Numbers 23:19 - God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
You need great faith because you have a great God who will do things in a great way - beyond what your little brains and minds can think.
I am sure Moses would have been spellbound when he saw the miracle happen.
Numb 11:31,32
31 Now a wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quail from the sea and left them fluttering near the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and about a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground. 32 And the people stayed up all that day, all night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail (he who gathered least gathered ten homers); and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp.
Moses wouldn’t have thought of this in his wildest imagination. The later part is a sad story since this miracle is outcome of people’s grumbling. But we are not getting into that.
Miracles need your faith.
2. Miracles need your patience
All of us know how of how God promised a son to Abraham. And the number of years Abraham had to be patient in order to receive God’s promise in his life.
It was even more challenging for Abraham and Sarah because, when they received the promise itself, it was impossible thing for Sarah and Abraham.
Gen 18:11 says - 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing.
And When they were thinking it is impossible (v 12), God replies them with only one word - Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.”
At the appointed time – When is the appointed time, God did not say. And that’s the problem. Just as God doesn’t say how He is going to do, he most often doesn’t even say, When He is going to do.
So you need patience as you wait. Abraham and Sarah waited for 25 long years. Because they had no other option. Because nothing happened before God’s ordained time. And nothing will ever happen. Even in your life, nothing will happen. Whether you like it or not, you have to wait for God’s time.
But see how Abraham and Sarah acted during this 25 years of long wait. It is critical how patiently you wait during this time. When we expect something good in our life, we get impatient. Because we want it fast. We want it immediately. We want it according to our schedule.
But unfortunately, God doesn’t work according to your timetable. Bible says in 2 Peter 3:8 - But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
Sarah thought of giving alternate ideas to God, so God could fulfil his promise. That is why Hagar comes into the picture. Tell me, was Hagar God’s initial plan for Abraham. Remember, Hagar was the result of Sarah’s impatience. Ishmael was the result of Sarah’s impatience. I wouldn’t just say Sarah, both Sarah and Abraham. They together agreed upon this master plan to fulfil God’s promise.
And the saddest thing is that Abraham did not even consult God before he took this decision. God was silent. He was silently watching all this.
And when Hagar became pregnant, Sarah should have been happy. Because it was her masterplan. But unfortunately, what she thought will bring her happiness only took away her peace. There was confusion, rivalry and hatred.
Do not try human means to fulfil God’s plan. If you are confused, at least ask God. God can guide you in the midst of your confusion. But at least, go and sit in the feet of God.
And in years to come, Sarah’s daughter-in-law Rebekah does the same mistake. Do you remember?
God promises her twins and also tells her about their future. He says the older will serve the younger.
Rebekah believed God's word. What she did wrong was using wrong ways to hasten God's promise.
She cheated her own husband. She did wrong to her own elder son.
And do you know who paid the price for her mistake. The son she loved the most. God blessed Jacob only at the time he chose. Until then, for twenty years, he was deceived by his own uncle Laban.
You need patience as you wait. And that’s really not easy. Gal 5:22 list patience among fruit of the spirit.
Psalm 37:7,8 says
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret—it only causes harm.
When you wait for God to act, important thing is that you don’t fret or worry. You are not get angry. Bible says it only leads to harm. When you worry, you become mentally depressed. You become physically weak. Worrying does no good. When Jesus talked about it, He said, Worrying doesn’t add even one cubit to your body.
If you worry, it means you don’t have faith. It means you don’t trust God to fulfil His promises.
When you pursue God’s dreams for your life, you might be delayed. And remember God allows those delays. He allows those waiting periods in your life. Not only that, he uses those waiting periods to prepare you for the next phase of your life. He uses those waiting periods to change you.
When Israelites had to travel to the promised land, they were delayed. And that delay made them impatient and complaining. Despite all that God did, they grumbled against him. No matter what God did for them, they found something to complain about. They had no water, God provided water. Then they had no food, God provided food. And then they complained about the food they got.
Remember, although God gave them everything, their journey in reality wasn’t an easy one. It was very difficult. Though God provided them pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night, still they had to walk through the wilderness. With all their cattle and their little ones, they had to walk day and night. And that wasn’t easy. They got food, but they had to work. They had to collect from the field and make. And then there was no variety at all. All time, they had to eat the same food. And so they complain as we read in Number 21:5 - Our soul loathes this worthless bread’
The period of waiting for the Israelites wasn’t an easy one. They were challenged in various ways and they reacted badly. And the result of all their grumbling, they never got to see or enter the Promised land.
And the waiting period wouldn’t be easy for us either. When things don’t happen at the time we expect them to, it is common to grumble.
What is your attitude as you are waiting for a miracle? Are you waiting the wrong way or the right way? As you wait, if you are missing the joy and peace, you are not trusting on God. If your mind is depressed all the time, remember you are not trusting on God.
If we wait the wrong way, our life will be miserable. But if you decide to wait by trusting God, you can enjoy the wait. If God did everything we asked for immediately, we will never grow spiritually. So when we learn to wait for God’s timing, God changes us and right things happen to us at the right time.
3. As you wait, don’t stop using your talents for God
Your wait must be interesting for you and that will happen only if you continue to use your talents for God as you wait.
Have you come across people who have said, ‘Let this thing happen in my life and then I will do this for God. Let God answer my prayers, until then don’t bother me for anything.’
No… As you wait God wants you to use your gifts and your talents to glorify God. Might not be easy, since you yourself are waiting for a breakthrough. But you need to.
When Job was waiting for a miracle, God expected that God pray for his friends to receive a miracle.
All of us know about Joseph. He had a waiting period of 13 years since he got the vision. God gave him a vision when he was 17 years old and he saw the fulfillment when he was 30. During these 13 years, what he went through is hard to forget.
He kept his integrity, without compromising for anything. Secondly, he used his gifts for God. What was the great and special gift that God had given to Joseph? He was someone who had the ability to interpret dreams. And he used this gift of His even during difficult times. And remember it was this gift that God used, to bring Joseph out of prison. It was this gift that God used to lift him in the land of Egypt.
When Joseph was in prison, there were two people along with him who were being imprisoned. One was a baker and other was a butler. When their faces were saddened in the morning, Joseph approached them and asked if he could be of some help. Both of them said they had a dream that made them confused. Joseph interpreted the dream for them and just as he interpreted, the king put the baker to death in three days while he released the butler from prison and put him back to his work.
Years later, the butler remembered this act of Joseph and told it to Pharaoh when Pharaoh had a dream and wanted someone to interpret. Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream on seven years of famine and seven years of abundance in Egypt and God used these gifts to exalt Joseph and fulfil the vision that he had promised to Joseph 13 years ago.
How about you? As you wait, are you using your gifts and talents for God?
