It’s a MIRACLE! – 5

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is a book of miracles! From the moment of creation when God said, “Let there be light!”
(Genesis 1:3) all the way to the Apostle John’s vision of the new heaven and earth (Revelation 22:1-5) miracles abound!

We read about the awe-inspiring miracles of Jesus recorded in the Gospels, but they are only the tip of the iceberg. John, at the end of his eyewitness account, said, “Jesus did countless things that I haven’t included here. And if every one of His works were written down and described one by one, I suppose that the world itself wouldn’t have enough room to contain the books that would have to be written!”
(John 21:25, The Passion Translation)

Miracles have never stopped in the entire history of the Church! Since the day of Pentecost, the Body of Christ has been the  demonstrator of God’s awesome power in the earth. And that power has increased and multiplied, with each successive generation.

And the best is yet to come. A crescendo of miracles, signs and wonders will intensify and testify even louder, as we move closer and closer to the Lord’s return.

We are living in the 29th chapter of the Book of Acts! Every time someone is born again, or baptized in the Holy Spirit, or healed, or delivered from demonic oppression, or has their prayers answered, new miracles are recorded in heaven.

And if you have made Jesus your Lord, you are one of those miracles! Together with Jesus, you have been raised from spiritual death to spiritual life! You really are a new creature in Christ, and that is miraculous!

As born-again children of God, we live, and move, and have our being in Him. Abba’s miracle-working DNA is in us. There are miracles ready to happen for us and through us. We only need to learn how to receive and release them by faith.

Once again, let’s return to the account of Elisha, the bankrupt widow, and the miraculous supply of oil.In our four previous posts in this series, we focused on these three principles found in (2 Kings 4:1-7):

● STOP talking about the NEED, and START 
   talking the language of FAITH!

STOP focusing on what you DON’T HAVE 
   and START focusing on and using what 
   you DO HAVE!

● SHUT the DOOR to FEAR and NEGATIVITY
  OPEN the DOOR to FAITH and POSSIBILITY
  CHANGING the ATMOSPHERE by PRAYER

Let’s continue in Verse 3:

“Then he (Elisha) said, ‘Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors—empty vessels; do not gather just a few.”

Notice that Elisha gave no instructions or requirements on the exact number or the size of the vessels. He didn’t specify whether they needed to have a spout, a lid, or handles. Neither did he tell the widow whether to borrow common clay vessels or more expensive ones.

No instructions. No requirements. No specifications. That’s because the vessels themselves were not important. It was what the  vessels were to be filled with that was important.

There were only two essentials to be considered as the widow and her sons began to accumulate the vessels. First, the vessels were to be “borrowed”, and second, the vessels were to be “empty”.

Let’s look at how those two concepts relate to us spiritually. The fact that the vessels were “borrowed” speaks of God as the owner of all, and of our stewardship over all He has entrusted to our care. Everything we have originates with the Lord. He owns it all, so we should consider “our possessions” as “borrowed”.

Now, think about this: We have accumulated many “borrowed vessels” over the course of our lives: our skills, our talents, our finances, our relationships, and our “possessions”. We have so many “things”, so much “stuff”, and we label it all as “ours”.

But the truth is  if we’re not using our time, our gifts, our talents, our finances, and our resources to serve others and help spread the gospel, our vessels, though seemingly brimming over, in essence, are empty, because they are not producing anything of eternal value for the kingdom of God.

Now, some good news! Our empty vessels, yielded to the Master, are useful vessels. Their value to Him is determined not by their shape, size, color, or design, but by their capacity to be a container for His life.

When we ask the Lord to identify the empty vessels in our lives, and then dedicate them to Him, He converts those seemingly valueless spaces into priceless treasures, dwelling places for His glory!

Holy Spirit is ready and willing to fill the empty places in our lives, as we yield them to Him. He fills those spaces with Himself, and graciously anoints us with the fresh oil of heaven-sent power.

Holy Spirit takes us past the limitations of our natural abilities and resources. He launches us beyond the mundane horizons of predictable outcomes, into the exciting realm of the miraculous!

It was not the vessels, but the oil, supplied in abundance by God that made the story of the widow miraculous. The oil kept on pouring, and pouring, and pouring, as long as there was an empty vessel avaliable.

The only limit to the miracle was the limit of how many empty vessels the widow made available to God. If she had obtained every vessel in the entire land of Israel, El Shaddai would have filled them all!

Which brings us to our final principle in our study of the miraculous supply of oil. Here it is:

TAKE THE LIMITATIONS OFF OF GOD!
GIVE HIM YOUR EVERYTHING AND THEN
EXPECT BIG THINGS FROM A BIG GOD!

This is so important because if we limit God with our doubt and unbelief, we actually block the flow of His blessings to us.

One of the saddest verses in the Bible reads
⁴¹ “Again and again they (Israel) limited God, preventing Him from blessing them.”
(Psalms 78:41, The Passion Translation)

I’ve never found a single verse in my Bible where God said, regarding His blessings, “Hold on! That’s enough! You’ve reached your limit! Now you’re asking too much!”

Nope! There are no limits with our Father! He invites: ⁷ “Ask, and the gift is yours. Seek, and you’ll discover. Knock, and the door will be opened for you. ⁸ For every persistent one will get what he asks for. Every persistent seeker will discover what he longs for. And everyone who knocks persistently will one day find an open door.”
(Matthew 7:7-8, The Passion Translation)

And this passage:
² “Increase is coming, so enlarge your tent and add extensions to your dwelling. Hold nothing back! Make the tent ropes longer and the pegs stronger. ³ You will increase and spread out in every direction...”
(Isaiah 54:2-3, The Passion Translation)

He tells us, “Make room for more miracles! Expand your faith-capacity! Expect more of my presence to be manifested in your life.”

Do you remember the account in John 12 of Jesus’ supper with Lazarus, Martha, and Mary? Mary brought an alabaster jar full of extremely expensive perfume, and without hesitation, she broke the vessel to pour the contents upon Jesus, as an act of her love and devotion to Him.

Did you notice that no one complained about the broken jar, but only about the perceived waste of the valuable perfume it contained? The Lord, however, was pleased and praised her devotion. That alabaster vessel wasn’t nearly big enough to hold Mary’s love and gratitude. It was merely an expendable vehicle for the treasure it held.

The great evangelist, Kathryn Kuhlman said:
“The Heavenly Father does not ask for golden vessels. He does not ask for silver vessels. God only asks for yielded vessels – those who will submit their will to the will of the Father.”

God gives us a “blank check”. Most of the time we write in an amount that seems “reasonable” because we don’t want to make too big a demand on God’s resources.
LOL!!! Couldn’t help laughing as I wrote that!

But look on the bottom of that check! It is signed by our Father, and the signature  clearly reads “El Shaddai“, which means… “THE GOD WHO IS MORE THAN ENOUGH“!

Give Him every vessel, every empty space in your life! Refuse to limit Him in any way!
If you stubbornly choose to believe and reject doubt, the “impossible” will be made HIM-POSSIBLE, and Holy Spirit will fill you to overflowing with all the fulness of God!

⁶ “For God, who said, ‘Let brilliant light shine out of darkness,’  is the one who has cascaded His light into us – the brilliant dawning light of the glorious knowledge of God as we gaze into the face of Jesus Christ. ⁷ We are like common clay jars that carry this glorious treasure within, so that this immeasurable power will be seen as God’s, not ours.”  (2 Corinthians 4:6-7 TPT)

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We pray you were blessed by this series of teachings about miracles. If so, please let us know by “liking” below.

Have you or a loved one ever experienced a miracle? If so, we’d love for you to tell us about it in the comments section below.

Never stop believing! All things are possible to those who believe! May miracles abound to you and yours!

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