Written by His Grace,
Kevin K. O’Connor
Nov. 05, 2004
Main
thought: to examine the dangers of seeking a sign
Seeking a Sign
Matthew 24 23At
that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the
Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. 24For false Christs
and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive
even the elect--if that were possible. 25See, I have told you ahead
of time.
Matthew 7 21"Not
everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but
only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will
say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in
your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23Then I will
tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the
work of his hands. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
And without faith it is impossible to please God,
because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards
those who earnestly seek him. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
Seeking a sign. Looking for a physical proof. People who say
that they need a sign to believe in God are like people who say that they need
a sign to believe that an artist painted a beautiful painting. No wonder our Lord tells people like this;
Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher,
we want to see a miraculous sign from you." (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous
sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. (Whole
Chapter: In
context: )
Have you ever wondered why those who are not seeking a sign
receive one and then those who do, don’t? God is seeking a relationship with
people who are hungry for truth. He is not one to be treated like some magic
Genie from a bottle who grants us our selfish wishes; James 4:3 3When you ask, you do not
receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on
your pleasures. . He
desires to give people more than a body full of health, a bank account filled
with wealth or a head full of knowledge. How sad it is for those who have heard
the wonderful story of God’s incredible love and then after coming to Him,
think that they can then take advantage of His goodness for their own selfish
gain. It seems that we as people are not only good at doing this with our
relationship with Him, but also with each other. We tend to grow comfortable
with those that we have come to know and then our love begins to become a
routine rather than a passionate relationship. It seems that the only thing
worse than saying no to Christ is to say Yes to Him
but living as if we never did. No wonder God tells us in
So, because you are lukewarm–neither hot nor cold–I am
about to spit you out of my mouth. (Whole Chapter: In
context: ) It seems that one of the greatest
weapons satan has in his arsenal are those who have
heard the voice of Christ and then choose to live a half
hearted or unbalanced walk with Christ. By unbalanced I mean one who is
so focused on a particular truth from God’s Word that they’re missing the many
others. Then, when these try to spread their unbalanced doctrine around, it
just magnifies the problem. Matthew 5:19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these
commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the
kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be
called great in the kingdom of heaven.
(Whole Chapter: Matthew 5 In
context: Matthew 5:18-20) One thing that angers me the most
are those who have just enough truth to be dangerous and yet not enough truth
to be changed. Many times these are like people who discover a teeter-totter. And,
instead of learning the joy of finding the center of the teeter-totter where
they can enjoy balancing both ends off of the ground, they are quick to jump on
one end and lack the joy of finding balance.
A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just
weight is his delight. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
Divers weights are an abomination unto the LORD; and a false balance is not
good. (Whole Chapter: In
context: ) One of the problems with revelation
is that we tend to wrap our hearts around new truths and thus become deaf to
the many other truths He desires to teach us. Kind of like a child that wraps
its fist around a gift. The problem with that is that
their hands are so tightly wrapped around their initial gift, they’re unable to
receive any more. Learning how to speak with our mouths what God says in His
Word is important. But, when we become so focused on this beautiful revelation
it won’t become long before we become name it and claim it/ blab it and grab it
type Christians. Believing God is fully capable of healing anyone He desires is
great. But, becoming so focused on our physical healing that we miss the
greater depths of healing He may be trying to perform is not good. Oh how we need
to learn to listen not just to those portions of God’s Word that sounds good,
but to listen and apply ALL of His Word He speaks to us;
Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on
every word that comes from the mouth of God.'[ 4:4
Deut. 8:3] " (Whole Chapter: In
context: ) Being whole hearted in doing what
you feel to be the will of God and maybe missing the mark, is better than
taking His love for granted and living a complacent, fruitless life. God is
going to judge people in what we know, not what we don’t. James 4 16As it is, you boast
and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17Anyone, then, who knows the
good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins. And notice how the following scripture has us ask ourselves
to consider the different severities of punishment for those who heard about
God’s Love expressed through His Son, and those who haven’t; Hebrews 10:28-30 28Anyone who rejected
the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three
witnesses. 29How much more severely do
you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under
foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that
sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30For we know him who said, "It is mine
to avenge; I will repay,"[1]
and again, "The Lord will judge his people."[2]
Have you
ever noticed how comfortable we become with those we live with? It’s funny how
respectful we can be with total strangers but as soon as we get to know them,
our attitudes and behaviors toward them change. We need to guard our hearts
from becoming complacent towards those in our immediate families and those God
brings into our lives. God hates lazy,
complacent, self-righteous, pride filled lives. But, for those who keep the
fire of love aflame, who realize that they will never come to a full
understanding of knowledge until we see Him and who realize that no person is
greater than anyone else, will be the ones who may find fullness of joy by
learning how to seek God;
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be
filled. (Whole Chapter: In
context: ) It seems that all of life is about
overcoming challenges. Just as life works to oppose death, death works to oppose
life. Just as life works to oppose gravity, gravity is continually working at
pulling life down to the earth. Those who are not working against the tide are
flowing with it. We need to realize that if we are going to obtain great
reward, we must be willing to work for it. There is great reward for one who
realizes that life is not of ourselves, and that any strength, desire, or
abilities we have to overcome all opposing challenges, do not originate with
us, but originate from Christ.
for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good
purpose. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
Jesus is coming back but
only for overcomers;
To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over
the nations– (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
AND,
He who
overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name
from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his
angels. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
AND,
Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again
will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the
city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my
God; and I will also write on him my new name.
(Whole Chapter:
In
context: )
AND,
To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit
with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his
throne. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
AND,
He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my
son. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
God Bless every heart to realize that there are rewards beyond
imagine for every heart that is willing to press in to receive them. There will
be those who will be like doubting Thomas who need to see a sign and their
reward will be minimal; John
20:27-29 27Then he said to Thomas,
"Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into
my side. Stop doubting and believe."
28Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!" 29Then Jesus told
him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who
have not seen and yet have believed.". Then, there will be those who will hear God’s call to live
for Him in spite of what we can see, hear, touch or taste and their rewards
will be great. Seeing is not necessarily what develops depth of character,
satan at one time was actually a very important member in Heaven, The
Israelites were actually lead through on dry land that was just hours earlier a
sea bed and while in the wilderness ate bread from Heaven, yet, neither one of
these showed where these incredible experiences developed depth of character.
Satan, turned his back on God and almost all of those Israelites grumbled and
complained to God. Is it any wonder then, that those who focus their energies
on receiving a sign today aren’t given one and then those who aren’t seeking a
sign are given one? It seems that God wants to be the focus of our hearts, not
for what He can do, but for Who He is. Oh how shallow we can be to get so wrapped up
around our temporary comforts in this world that are here and gone and neglect
those things that truly count. Take note of how God feels about our physical
welfare; Matthew 18 8Wherefore
if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it
is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two
hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. 9And if thine
eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to
enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell
fire. To Him, the most
important part of our being is our soul which will never die. Please note the
following scripture; 3 John
1:2 2Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all
may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
Please note that God wants us to prosper and be in health but not at the
cost of our eternal welfare. Unfortunately, there will be many who will not
listen to these truths of God’s heart and only focus themselves on the gifts of
God’s hands and will persist in seeking Him only for what He can do and not who
He is. Thus, God will many times answer people’s persistent requests only to
their own destruction. Take note of how God handled the Israelites request for
something they thought was for their best but wasn’t; 1 Samuel 8:4-9 4So all the
elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5They
said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now
appoint a king to lead [1] us, such as all the other nations have." 6
But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased
Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD . 7And the
LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not
you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8
As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day,
forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now
listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will
reign over them will do." Many
times God will go ahead and grant requests to our own detriment if we persist.
How something in my heart winces when I see people becoming consumed with
excitement at the presence of miracle services. Or, when they smother
themselves with books and people who talk about miracles of the flesh. This
sounds so similar to when our Lord had miraculously provided food for people to
eat as annotated here in John
6:25-27 25When
they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, "Rabbi, when
did you get here?" 26Jesus answered, "I tell you the
truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw
miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27Do
not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which
the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of
approval." We get
so consumed with what we can see and our minds can comprehend, we miss the
author of Life standing right in front of us. I love the stories of Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego when their lives were threatened with death via a fiery
furnace and their response to the King was; Daniel 3: 13 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar
summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the
king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "Is it true,
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve
my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you
hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of
music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good.
But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing
furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?" 16
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we
do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we
are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from
it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he
does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will
not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." Now had this same scenario been
presented to those consumed with the miraculous workings of God they would have
been naming it and claiming it. Something like “it’s
not God’s will for us to perish like this so get behind me satan!”
Or maybe “You can throw us in there but we will not burn”. But Instead, their response was beautiful to the moving of God
on their behalf. They said "O
Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17
If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us
from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even
if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we
will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." Their confession stated that they
knew God had the power to deliver them, BUT! Even if he chose not to that was
ok because they were still going to obey God rather than man. WOW, we need that
kind of faith today. That kind of Faith is still looking for lives to abide in,
and every once in a while, it finds a home like the heart of Joni Erickson Tada
who lives for God not because of what He CAN DO, but because of WHO HE IS! http://www.joniandfriends.org/
For those
who are so consumed with the workings of God like the supernatural gifts, let
me remind them that satan can imitate every
supernatural gift there is like speaking in tongues, signs and wonders, faith
to move mountains, healing, BUT, he cannot imitate the fruits of the Holy
Spirit. Those fruits are Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness,
Faithfulness, and self control; Galations 5:22&23 22But the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such
things there is no law. This
must be why our Lord tells us in; Matthew 7:16 By their fruit you will
recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes,
or figs from thistles? (Whole Chapter: Matthew 7 In
context: Matthew 7:15-17) And, that must be why He also tells
us in; 1 Corinthians 13 1If
I speak in the tongues[1] of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only
a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of
prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith
that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give
all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames,[2] but have not love, I gain nothing. You will note, that Love is a fruit
of the Holy Spirit, which cannot be imitated by satan.
But, you will also notice many other wonderful acts that have been listed
there, but they can be done without Love.
I believe that God is trying to ready the Bride of His Son
for the great wedding feast that will be taking place soon. I also believe that
He wants us to put the focus of our hearts not on the things of Christ but
Christ Himself. If He is what becomes our heart’s desire,
than I believe He will be the one transforming us into His image; Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of
your heart. (Whole Chapter: Psalm 37 In
context: Psalm 37:3-5) And what should be the desire of
every believer? To be like Christ! Remember, He laid all of His wealth and
possessions aside that He may be emptied out for us. How are we emptying
ourselves out for Him? I’m afraid that many Christians are getting caught up in
what we will become instead of who we should be now. Today we should be
learning how to weep with those that weep and giving of ourselves so that
others may live. Not padding our own bank accounts, and feeding the lust of our
flesh with any desire it fancies.
God help us to put aside the attitude of seeking a sign and
open our eyes to the sign He has already given us in His Son! Where is our
focus today? Is it on the miracles of Christ or is it on Christ of the
miracles? He needs to be at the center of our focus and the center of our
Hearts. When that happens, He will do great and mighty things in our lives not
because we sought them, but because we sought Him!
Heavenly Father, Thank You for the
wonderful signs given us in Your Son. Teach our hearts to focus on Your Son’s
heart and not the working of His hands so that You may
do great and mighty things thru us unto Your Glory, Honor, and Praise. In Jesus
Matchless, Eternal, Glorious Name, Amen.
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your
might, for in the grave, [ 9:10 Hebrew [ Sheol ] ]
where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor
wisdom. (Whole Chapter: In
context: )
Romans 1:18-32 18The
wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and
wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19since
what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to
them. 20For since the creation of the world God's invisible
qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being
understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
21For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor
gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts
were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools
23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to
look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts
to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They
exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things
rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen. 26Because of
this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural
relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also
abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one
another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves
the due penalty for their perversion. 28Furthermore, since they did
not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a
depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. 29They have become
filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full
of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30slanderers,
God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil;
they disobey their parents; 31they are senseless, faithless,
heartless, ruthless. 32Although they know
God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not
only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice
them.
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