561. The virgin birth. No doubt the first miraculous event recorded in the New Testament is the birth of Jesus Christ. Mary, a virgin, was "found to be with child through the Holy Spirit," according to Matthew 1:18. Several other miracles surrounded that birth, including the striking dumb of Zechariah in Luke 1, the angels' appearance to the shepherds in Luke 2, and the star which led the magi to visit in Matthew 2.
562. Water into wine. The first recorded miracle of Jesus occurs in John 2, when Christ was attending a wedding in the city of Cana and the hosts ran out of wine. Jesus requested six large jars to be filled with water, and they then miraculously turned into fine wine. As John records, "He thus revealed His glory, and His disciples put their faith in Him."
563. Healing. One of the things Christ was most known for was His ability to heal the sick. Matthew 4:23-24 records that "Jesus went to Galilee...healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about Him spread all over Syria, and people brought to Him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and He healed them." The sick included lepers, paralytics, and those with internal bleeding.
564. A man born blind. Certainly one of the most amazing miracles of Jesus was the healing of a man born blind in John 9. Christ made some mud with His saliva, rubbed it on the man's eyes, and instructed him to wash in a nearby pool. Upon doing so the man received his sight. Jewish leaders denounced him as a fraud, but when questioned, the man responded, "One thing I do know. I was blind and now I see!"
565. The centurion's servant. Since Roman conquerors were hated by most Jewish citizens, it was generally forbidden for a Jew to enter a Roman's home. Thus when a God-fearing Roman centurion told Jesus that his servant was ill, he informed the Lord that Jesus didn't have to enter his home to perform the healing. Instead Christ could do it from a distance. Marveling at the man's faith, Jesus replied, "I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith" (Matt. 8:10). Before the centurion could get home, the servant was healed.
566. Jesus calms the storm. Matthew 8 relates the story of Jesus asleep in a boat when a violent storm arose. When the disciples, fearing they would drown, awakened the Lord, He simply rebuked the winds and the waves, making them calm.
567. Raising the dead. In Matthew 9, Jesus tells a crowd of mourners that a ruler's young daughter is not dead but asleep. Though the mourners laughed at Him, Jesus proceeds to raise her from the dead. Luke 7 also tells of Jesus raising the dead, this time a widow's son. And John 11 records the raising of Lazarus, which was witnessed by a crowd of people.
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
OT Miracles Of Amazing Proportions lll
551. Oil aplenty. When a widow asked Elisha for help to pay her creditors, the prophet instructed her to ask neighbors for their empty jars. After collecting the jars, she was to pour oil from her small oil pot into the jars. She kept pouring and pouring, miraculously multiplying her oil until the jars were filled. The widow then sold the oil and paid her debts.
552. Raising the Shunammite's son. When a childless woman invited Elisha to stay with her, then prepared his room and all his meals, the prophet announced she would soon become pregnant and have a son. She did, but the boy died from an internal problem a few years later. 2 Kings 4 reveals that Elisha went to see the body, lay down on top of him, and raised the boy to life.
553. Feeding the multitudes. Elisha took twenty loaves of barley bread and divided them among a hundred men. According to 2 Kings 4:42-44, the Lord multiplied the bread so that everyone had their fill, and there was bread left over. Jesus would later do a similar miracle, feeding five thousand, recorded in Matthews 14.
554. Naaman healed of leprosy. When the commander of Syria's armies came down with leprosy, his wife encouraged him to visit Elisha. The prophet told Naaman to wash seven times in the Jordan River. Though he was skeptical, Naaman did as he was told and was miraculously cured of his disease. 2 Kings 5:15 records his response: "Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel."
555. An axhead floats. 2 Kings 6 tells the story of a workman with a borrowed ax cutting some trees, when the axhead fell into some water. Elisha cut a stick, threw it into the water, and the iron axhead floated to the top.
556. Nebuchadnezzar's dream. The king of Babylon, who conquered Jerusalem and carried off it's citizenry into exile, had a strange dream that none of his wise men could interpret. But the prophet Daniel, a young Jew selected to serve in Nebuchadnezzar's court, asked God to help him understand the dream. Not only did God reveal the dream to Daniel, but the Lord gave him the meaning of the dream-which accurately revealed what would happen to future kingdoms.
557. The fiery furnace. When Daniel's three friends-Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednigo-refused to bow down to an idol, the king of Babylon had them thrown into a fiery furnace. The furnace was so hot that even the soldiers leading them toward it were killed, but the three followers of God were miraculously saved. When the king looked into the furnace, he saw not only the three men but a fourth man, who looked like the "Son of God." Recognizing it as a miracle, he issued a decree that no one was to slander the God of Israel.
558. The writing is on the wall. Daniel 5 records that when the loathsome king of Belshazzar threw a drunken party and used sacred cups that had been brought from the Temple in Jerusalem, the fingers of a human hand suddenly appeared and wrote a message on a wall: "Numbered. Weighed. Divided." Though none of the king's astrologers could divine the meaning, Daniel could. He told the king that God had judged Belshazzar and found him wanting, so his kingdom would be taken away that very night. That is exactly what happened.
559. Daniel in the lion's den. When king Darius decreed that anyone found praying to God would be killed, Daniel went into his room, opened the shutters, and prayed loudly to the Lord. Darius reluctantly had Daniel thrown into a lion's den, but God shut the mouths of the lions and he was preserved without a scratch. The court members who had plotted against Daniel were then thrown into the den and devoured.
560. Jonah and the whale. The last miracle recorded in the Old Testament involves the reluctant prophet Jonah who, while attempting to run away from God, was caught in a horrible storm and thrown into the sea in the sailor's attempt to pacify their gods. He was swallowed by a great fish, survived for three days, then was coughed up onto the shore. Upon reaching the intended city of Nineveh, Jonah preached repentance, and the pagans there turned to God (much to Jonah's disgust).
552. Raising the Shunammite's son. When a childless woman invited Elisha to stay with her, then prepared his room and all his meals, the prophet announced she would soon become pregnant and have a son. She did, but the boy died from an internal problem a few years later. 2 Kings 4 reveals that Elisha went to see the body, lay down on top of him, and raised the boy to life.
553. Feeding the multitudes. Elisha took twenty loaves of barley bread and divided them among a hundred men. According to 2 Kings 4:42-44, the Lord multiplied the bread so that everyone had their fill, and there was bread left over. Jesus would later do a similar miracle, feeding five thousand, recorded in Matthews 14.
554. Naaman healed of leprosy. When the commander of Syria's armies came down with leprosy, his wife encouraged him to visit Elisha. The prophet told Naaman to wash seven times in the Jordan River. Though he was skeptical, Naaman did as he was told and was miraculously cured of his disease. 2 Kings 5:15 records his response: "Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel."
555. An axhead floats. 2 Kings 6 tells the story of a workman with a borrowed ax cutting some trees, when the axhead fell into some water. Elisha cut a stick, threw it into the water, and the iron axhead floated to the top.
556. Nebuchadnezzar's dream. The king of Babylon, who conquered Jerusalem and carried off it's citizenry into exile, had a strange dream that none of his wise men could interpret. But the prophet Daniel, a young Jew selected to serve in Nebuchadnezzar's court, asked God to help him understand the dream. Not only did God reveal the dream to Daniel, but the Lord gave him the meaning of the dream-which accurately revealed what would happen to future kingdoms.
557. The fiery furnace. When Daniel's three friends-Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednigo-refused to bow down to an idol, the king of Babylon had them thrown into a fiery furnace. The furnace was so hot that even the soldiers leading them toward it were killed, but the three followers of God were miraculously saved. When the king looked into the furnace, he saw not only the three men but a fourth man, who looked like the "Son of God." Recognizing it as a miracle, he issued a decree that no one was to slander the God of Israel.
558. The writing is on the wall. Daniel 5 records that when the loathsome king of Belshazzar threw a drunken party and used sacred cups that had been brought from the Temple in Jerusalem, the fingers of a human hand suddenly appeared and wrote a message on a wall: "Numbered. Weighed. Divided." Though none of the king's astrologers could divine the meaning, Daniel could. He told the king that God had judged Belshazzar and found him wanting, so his kingdom would be taken away that very night. That is exactly what happened.
559. Daniel in the lion's den. When king Darius decreed that anyone found praying to God would be killed, Daniel went into his room, opened the shutters, and prayed loudly to the Lord. Darius reluctantly had Daniel thrown into a lion's den, but God shut the mouths of the lions and he was preserved without a scratch. The court members who had plotted against Daniel were then thrown into the den and devoured.
560. Jonah and the whale. The last miracle recorded in the Old Testament involves the reluctant prophet Jonah who, while attempting to run away from God, was caught in a horrible storm and thrown into the sea in the sailor's attempt to pacify their gods. He was swallowed by a great fish, survived for three days, then was coughed up onto the shore. Upon reaching the intended city of Nineveh, Jonah preached repentance, and the pagans there turned to God (much to Jonah's disgust).
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