EXORDIUM
Without controversy, the topic assigned to me is a weighty one with numbers of questions and issues that need to be addressed. My task in this presentation is to make them simple, isolate thorny subjects and major in them. Let no one, therefore, think that this is going to be a walk-over.
This
topic is naturally divided into four parts:
1.
Miracles,
signs and wonders;
2.
Dreams,
visions and prophecy:
3.
What
are the truths and misconceptions about them?
4.
Are
they relevant and practicable in Christianity today?
As regards whether miracles, signs and wonders; dreams, visions and prophecy are relevant and practicable in Christianity today – the answer is a compound NO! On the other hand, we should ask, are these practiced in today’s Christendom? The answer is a compound YES! The ultimate question then is, are they genuine? Their authenticity or otherwise will form the major thrust of this discourse.
I offer no apology to anyone to state without equivocation that Miracles, Signs and Wonders have ceased; that they are not relevant to the Christian Faith of today, that rather than being of any relevance and complements have turned around to serve as distractions and hindrances to the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The same also apply to dreams, visions and prophecy. These have offered charlatans leeway to water down the message of Christ and to seek to destroy the very foundations upon which genuine Christianity was built.
MAJOR PREMISE ON MIRACLES, SIGNS AND WONDERS
It should be stated that God began all things by miracles, but does not continue all things by miracle. He began the world by creation but sustains existence on planet earth by procreation. Christianity began by miracle but continues by proclamation.
Miracles were essential in creation but
not in procreation. Miracles were essential in revelation but not in proclamation.
God used miraculous powers to reveal and confirm His Word. Supernatural powers are
not essential to reading and proclaiming His revealed word.
We
do not need revelation today – either as dreams, visions or prophecies. We need
to preach that which has already been revealed. We do not need signs to confirm
our message. It has already been confirmed (Hebrews 2:3). Therefore, the onus
is on us proclaim that which has been revealed and confirmed; to define our
lives by the tenets of revealed truths.
Miracles, signs and wonders were like
scaffolding employed in building construction which are no longer required when
construction work is completed, having served their purposes. Indeed, miracles
served as scaffolding towards the erection of the edifice of the written Word
of God. When the New Testament, God’s complete revelation to man was completed,
confirmed and written, then the scaffolding of miracles, signs and wonders were
permanently removed.
In view of these, no man today can
perform miracles similitude to that of Jesus Christ and His Apostles. All
supposed “miracles” wrought by modern “miracle workers” should and must be
classifieds as, “…lying wonders….” (II Thessalonians 2:9). They are false, from
start to finish!
DEFINITION OF TERMS
It
was Cicero, a Roman philosopher who affirmed that words should be defined so as
to make everyone come to appreciate the subject of enquiry. In view of this, we
shall attempt at definitions of concepts:
What is Miracle?
Dictionary
defines miracle as, "An event in the physical world deviating from the
known laws of nature, or transcending our knowledge of these laws; a wonder or
wonderful thing; a marvel."
C.
S. Lewis conceives miracle as, "An interference with nature by
supernatural power." Bible
Dictionary affirms, "Miracles are events in the external world wrought by
the immediate power of God and intended as a sign or attestation. They are
possible because God sustains, controls, and guides all things, and is personal
and omnipotent."
Brother
Batsell Barret Baxter says of miracles, "God occasionally steps into our
universe, setting aside normal, observable laws of nature, and does something
beyond the ordinary. This, we believe, is what the Bible means when it speaks
of miracles."
Gene
Fooks says, "A miracle is something that God causes to happen outside or
beyond his natural laws which govern the universe." An anonymous student
observed, “A miracle is the occurrence of any event apparently contradictory to
and unexplainable by the laws of science, and usually attributed to God.”
By
simple conceptualization, miracle is any supernormal activity superimposed on
nature by a supernatural force - God. By every stretch of imagination, miracle
is contrary to nature. In other words, for a miracle to occur natural laws must
be violated or suspended. A miracle reverses the course of nature: it is
unnatural to walk on water; to turn water into wine; for a virgin to conceive
without contact with a male; for a dead person to rise, etcetera.
As
an example, human life began on planet earth by creation, which by stretch of
human imagination is a miracle. Today, it continues by reproduction. A miracle
would be said to occur when God creates another set of humans not through the
reproductory process. In view of these, pregnancy and child birth are no
miracles. They are natural. Anything that happens without the natural process
is a considered miracle.
Late
marriage is not a miracle. Delayed conception is not a miracle, surviving an
accident, answered prayers, etcetera are no miracles. There are so many things
that people refer to today as “miracles” that technically speaking are not
miracles in all ramifications of the word.
What is “Signs” and “Wonders”? (ISAIAH 8:18)
Signs are things that point to existence
of a thing. Signs are indicative. Mark 16:17 speaks of signs that follow
believers. They were indicative that certain persons were followers of Jesus
Christ.
A “Wonder” is a phenomenon that causes one
to want to further investigate. Seeing a bush burning but the grasses were not
consumed caused Moses to “Wonder,” making him want to find out more about the
occurrence (Exodus 3:1-4). A WONDER IS THAT WHICH IS INTENDED TO MAKE
PEOPLE STOP, LOOK AND LISTEN.
In New Testament, “signs” were wrought
to make believers. Today, there are no more signs - we have the signs written
that we might believe. To ask for a sign to be performed today is to doubt the
ones that were written. Asking for another sign to believe is a sign of unbelief.
It is only those who accepted the signs that are written in God’s Word are the
only ones who have the signs.
“…these
are written….” (John 20:30-31) is a powerful testimony of God’s Word. That is
all we need. If anyone asks for a “sign” to show that Jesus is God’s Son, all
we need is read from our Bibles and not to try to perform any sign.
Dreams, Visions and Revelations
Dreams, visions and revelations are used
interchangeably (Job 33:15). In as much as no one can contest against anyone
who claims to have a dream, has a vision and has received revelations, we have
to object to the contents of their personal experiences. No apostle gave us
God’s Word by dreams, visions and revelations but by inspiration. Apostle Paul had
visions and revelations but he refused to make them articles of faith for
fellow Christians (II Corinthians 12:1).
Dreams
come by various means: personal obsessions (Ecclesiastes 5:3) and can be
engineered by Satan. Dreams and visions are natural to all of us (Acts 2:16-17).
However, personal dreams, visions and revelations must be kept personal because
that is what they are (Jeremiah 23:28-32).
Our
dreams must be brought under the searchlight of God’s Word to avoid being
deceived (I John 4:1). Anyone has a right to his/her own dreams, visions and
revelations but should never make them acts of public consumption and must not
superimpose them on others. Christians are warned in Scripture to beware of
visions and revelations because they puff the mind and lead people away from
Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:18-19).
Mediums
and sorcerers are equipped with “Familiar spirits” to give revelations. Instances
abound in Scripture where pieces of information reeled out by these were true BUT
SOURCES of those revelations were not God. A classical case was a slave girl in
the city of Philippi. Apostle Paul was angry and commanded the spirit out of its
host (Acts 16:16-19).
We
must be careful not to fall victims of those who are lying in wait to deceive
with their spurious claims to dreams, visions and revelations. God does not
want us to know about our personal future (Deuteronomy 29:29) but Satan does.
God wants us to live each day at a time (Matthew 6:34).
Prophecy
The subject of
prophecy has been very confusing to a large number of people in today’s world.
The subject is so misunderstood to the point that it has been associated with
Metaphysics and elevated to the place that is above what the Christian
Scripture ascribes.
Many have in the past and more so in the
present paraded themselves as “Prophets” and “Prophetesses,” making utterances
and predicting future events, which often times do not come true:
“Jehovah’s
Witnesses” prediction that the world would end in 1914, later in 1945 and
lastly in 1970 all failed. Roman Catholic Church’s prediction in year 2000 regarding
coming of “Three days darkness” never saw light of day. “Pastor” Tunde Bakare,
General Overseer of Latter Rain Assembly’s (and CPC’s Presidential Running Mate
in April, 2011’s Nigeria’s Presidential Election) prophecy in 1999 and 2002
that former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo would not be sworn in
as president and “Pastor” Chris Okotie’s prophetic declarations in year 2002
that God had spoken to him strongly that he was going to be the next president
of Nigeria come year 2003 were all hoax. All these prophecies, no doubt have
failed.
This
raises the question of, who is a prophet? What is prophecy? What were the
places of prophecy and prophets in the Old and New Testaments? What is the
place of prophecy today and what is the ultimate source of prophecy?
What
is prophecy?
The
Greek word translated “Prophecy” is, “Propheteiu” meaning, “Speaking forth of
the mind and counsel of God.” There are two types of prophecy:
Fore-telling
– Predictive prophecy (Acts 3: 22-24; Isaiah 7:14;
Matthew 1: 18-23; Isaiah
9: 6-7; Jeremiah 31: 31-33;
Hebrews 8: 6-13; Acts
11: 27-30)
Forth-telling
- Serving as God’s Mouthpiece); speaking the very mind
of God – a “Thus said
the Lord” (Acts 21: 10-11; Deut.
18: 18-22 of. I Pet. 4: 11).
Place
of prophecy and prophets:
A
prophet, principally was a mouthpiece, one who amplifies a message (Exodus
4:10-16; cf. 7:1-2); a messenger who serves as an intermediary; receiving word
from God and sharing same with God’s people (cf. Exodus 20:18-19). A prophet’s
role was twofold: warned God’s people of impending anger of God when they sin
as well as edified God’s people (I Corinthians 14: 23-25).
Prophets,
prophetesses and prophecy in New Testament
There were
prophets (Acts 13:1) as well as prophetesses (Acts 21:8-9) in the early Church.
These were given for a purpose: to direct the early Church who had no written
Bible in her daily affairs (Ephesians 4:11-14).
The work of prophets, prophetesses and
prophecy were to stop with the advent of the completed version of God’s Word (I
Corinthians 13: 8-10; cf. James 1: 25).
Ultimate source of prophecy today
God spoke to our predecessors in Faith through
various means but has in these days spoken to us through His son Jesus Christ
(Hebrews 1:1-2). Jesus on His own has spoken to us through His apostles who
speak to us through the messages inspired by the Holy Spirit and recorded on
pages of New Testament (John 16: 12-15; II Peter 1:19-21; Hebrews 2:1-3).
“Testimonies
of Jesus,” therefore, is the ultimate source of true prophecy today
(Revelations 19:10).
Prophecy
today
When we take God’s Word upon our lips and declare it to
others to warn them, we are prophesying. When we share the word of God with
other Christians and encourage them in the most Holy Faith, we prophesy.
When we bring God’s Word to bear on our
situations or that of others, we also prophecy (cf. Ezekiel 37:1-14). In
fact, when we say what God said, we are prophesying!
We are, however, warned to beware of false
prophets (I John 4:1). How then do we know the true from the false? By
comparing what they say with what God has said! QED!!
BODY OF PRESENTATION
ARE MIRACLES,
SIGNS AND WONDERS RELEVANT AND PRACTICABLE IN CHRISTIANITY TODAY?
Are
miracles, signs and wonders practiced in Christendom today? YES!! Are they
relevant to today’s Christianity? NO!!!
Are
today’s miracles, signs and wonders genuine? Are there really any miracle, signs
and wonders taking place anywhere? My answers to these is a resounding, “NO!” If
there is any “miracle” taking place anywhere it is either a miracle of
deception, lying wonder or plain smokescreen. I have never seen any, never
heard of any genuine testimony from any genuine beneficiary – all are
stage-managed: from Reinhard Bonke to T. B. Joshua; from Chris Oyakhilome to
Lazarus Mouka, etcetera!
If
there is any “sign” going on, it is the sign of the end time! If there is any
wonder being experienced, it is time for us to wonder and to take Jesus’
warning in Matthew 24:4-5, 23-28 seriously. There is an avalanche of false
miracles, signs and lying wonders.
In
view of the above, we shall seek to investigate the subject further as we begin
with:
JESUS AND HIS MIRACLES
Miracles were part of the earthly ministry of
our Lord Jesus Christ. He performed miracles not to entertain or to bamboozle
His audience; rather, they were His sympathetic responses to the overwhelming
needs of the people.
Jesus
never advertised His miracles, never held a miracle rally and neither were His
miracles stage-managed. They were spontaneous and incontrovertible. They left
people relieved, healed and whole, testifying that, “God, indeed has visited
His people…” (Luke 7:11-16), asking, “But who is this man that even the wind
and the waves obey…?” (Mark 4:41) and saying, “See, He has done all things well….”
(Mark 7:37), etcetera.
The
miracles that Jesus performed were not to last for ever; that is, it was not
intended to be a continuum. Miracles served to authenticate His claims as God’s
Son and Messiah as well as to confirm God’s revelations through Him (John 20:30-31;
Hebrews 2:3-4). Today, we need nothing miraculous to prove that Jesus is the
Son of God and that the Word of God which He spoke and which He embodied is
true. Faith has taken care of all these (John 20:29; cf. II Corinth. 5:7). We
became followers of Jesus not because of what we have seen but because of what
we have heard (John 17:20; Romans 10:17).
It
is an incontrovertible fact that where God builds His Temple, Satan sets up his
sanctuary. Jesus’ miracles have over the years been counterfeited by forces of
darkness, which have gone a long way in entrenching deception. Today, the
mantra is MIRACLES, SIGNS and WONDERS. Over the years, however, what to seem to
obtain is more clouds but no rain; mere claims but no real demonstrations (cf.
Proverbs 25:14).
Consequently,
we are inundated with audio and visual messages that emphasize “signs” and “wonders”;
“miracles” and “demonstrations of supernatural powers.” These, at least are
what people claim to do and possess the gifts of.
Miracle
as a phenomenon has become commonalized. As a subject of discussion, the term
“miracle” is misunderstood, misused and abused. It is important that we
understand what Bible teaches on this subject matter.
To
set records straight, members of Church of Christ believe in miracles but not
in miracle workers. We believe in Biblical miracles, but not modern day
make-believe called “miracles.”
BIBLICAL MIRACLES VERSUS MODERN DAY MAGIC
Biblical miracle is not modern magic. Magic is make-believe, hoodwinks and has strong link to Satan. Miracle is true in all ramifications and cannot be faulted by anyone (Acts 4:16). True miracles are linked to God.
There are Satan-induced miracles. These
are miracles that are performed in Jesus’ name, which Jesus Himself knows nothing
about (Matthew 7:21-23). These are magic in guise of miracles.
CHARACTERISTICS OF JESUS’ MIRACLES
VERSUS MODERN DAY MIRACLES
Jesus never held any miracle rally. He needed not to because power was available to Him everywhere He went (Acts 10:38; cf. Mark 5:25-34). He never invited people to come with their problems and to exercise faith as they came, rather, as unction was present in His sympathetic responses, He healed them all of all their infirmities. Compassion was the driving force of Jesus’ miracles (Matthew 14:14; 20:34; Mark 1:14; Luke 7:13).
When we compare and contrast Jesus’ cum Biblical miracles with our modern day magic, we will be able to see a vast difference:
1. Jesus’
miracles were instantaneous (Matthew 8:3, 14-15).
2. Distance
was never a barrier to Jesus (Matthew 8:8-13).
3. Did
not require raising of emotions to be able to generate the atmosphere for
miracles to take place.
4. Did
not usually require faith on the parts of recipients (Mark 2:1-5).
5. Were
creative in nature (Matthew 25:50-51; John 18:10).
6. No
one who came to Jesus for healing went back the same as he/ she had come and
Jesus never blamed anyone over His inability to cure him/her because of the
person’s lack of faith. Biblical testimony says, “He healed them all” (Matthew
12:15b).
DOES GOD STILL PERFORM MIRACLES
TODAY?
In as much as no one has the prerogative to dictate to God what He should or should not do and when He should do them, technically speaking, miracles have ceased. Does this, however, mean that God is no longer active in the lives of His people today? Far from it – God is actively involved in lives of His people: He answers their prayers and intervenes in their daily affairs, especially when forces of darkness are unleashed against them (Isaiah 59:19; cf. Luke 22:31-32).
WHAT ARE THE MISCONCEPTIONS OF MIRACLES, SIGNS AND WONDERS; DREAMS, VISIONS AND PROPHECIES?
|
MISCONCEPTIONS |
TRUTH |
|
Misconceptions
about miracles |
Truth
about miracles |
|
It is a continuum. |
It was provisional. |
|
It confirms ministry of a minister showing
that he/she has God’s approval. |
Miracles and the supernatural are not test
of true servants of God (Matthew 7:21-23) |
|
Believers will do greater works than Jesus
had done. |
The “Greater Works” of John 14:12 has
nothing to do with miracles but proclamation and enlargement of God’s Kingdom
in hearts and communities of men. Jesus did not come, specifically to perform
miracles but to bring salvation to mankind (Mark 1:37-38). Therefore, the “Greater
works” Jesus meant would be His disciples “Turning the world inside out” with
His message (Matthew 28:18-20; cf. Acts 17:6). Jesus left about 120 faithful
followers (Acts 1:15). Today, Jesus’ followers number into hundreds of
millions. Isn’t this a greater work? Come to think of it, how could anyone with
baptismal measure of the spirit perform more miracles, signs and wonders more
than He who received the Spirit without measure (John 3:34)? It therefore,
implies that if Jesus had walked on water, His disciples would fly without
aid an airplane. |
|
Jesus is the same yesterday, today and
forever. |
Jesus has not changed in both character
and message but in His methods. The miraculous were to end (I Corinthians
13:8-10) as they were provisional (Ephesians 4:11-14). |
|
Absence of miraculous manifestations are
indicative of God’s disapproval. |
God’s approval of a person’s ministry is
not dependent on performance of miracles but on faithfulness of the
individual to God’s Inerrant Word (II John 9-11). |
|
Misconceptions
about dreams, visions and prophecies |
Truth
about dreams, visions and prophecies |
|
Visions and prophecies will continue until
Jesus, who is the perfect one comes. |
Visions, prophecies and tongues were scaffold
(temporal structures) set in place which would end when “…that which is
perfect is come” (I Corinthians 13:8-10). Jesus is not “that which is
perfect” but “He who is perfect.” That which is perfect is “Perfect Law of
Liberty” – Bible (James 1:22-25). |
JESUS’ WARNINGS AGAINST END-TIME MIRACLES
Shortly
before Jesus left this world, He warned His disciples to beware of people who
would take undue advantage of them through signs, wonders and supernatural
demonstrations of power (Matthew 24: 24).
Today,
miracles have become the doom of our generation consequent upon the great imitation
(Revelations 13:11-13).
Germane
to the issue of miracle is the authority behind it, the source of one’s power (Matthew
21:23). Today, there are various sources of power for miracles. Sorcerers and
magicians have unleashed themselves on the people, using sorcery and magic to
bamboozle them. These are ancients mystic arts reinvented.
We all need to be careful
Gone
were the days when we were entertained on various streets of Nigeria with men
and women singing, “Come and see American….” Today, magicians have become full
blown miracle workers, speaking the languages of Christ and Christianity. Satan
is a great imitator.
To
establish and justify this assertion, a couple of Biblical examples would
do:
1. Moses
and Aaron versus Pharaoh and his magicians (Exodus 7:8-12).
2. Simon,
the sorcerer and the Samaritans (Acts 8:9-12).
3. To
be sure, some magicians are using hypnotism to subjugate and hoodwink
intelligent people to believe and accept their lies (Acts 13:6-11).
4. Some
people are imbued with “spirit of divination” with which they are able to see
the unseen and predict perfectly certain events and happenings, yet, the power
by which they operate are everything but Godly (Acts 16: 16-22).
5. Some
magicians are making use of “secret arts” known today as “Seven Books of Moses”
to unleash their arts on unsuspecting people (Acts 19:10-20).
6. Pastor
Chris Okotie openly accused Chris Oyakhilome and Prophet T. B. Joshua of using the
power of “Shamanism.”
7. Only
recently, Anselem Madubuko of New Anointing Ministry, Lagos, Nigeria accused
some Nigerian pastors of using occultism.
Let
us be warned: there are things being done behind the scenes by certain
categories of self-acclaimed “men of God” which most people do not know of. On
the surface, you think that they are serving the Lord but behind are their
magic (Ezekiel 8:6-16).
You
see, men and women can do anything to make money and attain cheap popularity.
Therefore, beware - that “Miracle” you are running after could be satanic in
its source!
1. Most
modern day miracles are in line with the activities of Satan
(II
Thessalonians 2:7-12).
2. Messengers
of Satan every where with the look and feel of Servants of Jesus Christ (II Corinthians
11:12-15).
3. End-time
miracles are dragonic in origin (Revelations 13: 11-13).
Let
us be reminded that ability to bamboozle people with signs, wonders and
miracles are not sign that Jesus is with a given man or woman or that a given
“ministry” is under the anointing and approval of God (Matthew 7:21-23).
Some
Miracles are even arranged. The article below appeared on Saturday edition of
SUN Newspaper in 2008 captioned, “ARRANGEE MIRACLE.” It reads:
A Ghanaian Pastor, Mr. Kojo Nana Obiri-Yeboah was arrested in June
by detectives at the Entebbe Airport as he attempted smuggling in an
electric-shock device that when activated would send shock waves through anyone
he touches, making them assume that they had been touched by the Holy Spirit.
According to reports, “he would lace his body with the gadget’s low-volt electricity
and once he touches anybody on crusade ground, the person would fall –
ostensibly gripped by the Holy Spirit.” It was gathered that many Nigerian
pastors use the device to hoodwink unsuspecting members of the public, who
regard them as powerful men of God. It’s an endless tale really.
The main problem:
The above stories are just a few of the evil pastors perpetrate.
There are many unreported ones. These pastors have turned the supposed house of
God into “den of thieves” and sexual adventures. The pastors are having a field
day because of the low spirituality of church members, who cannot discern
between the spirit of God and that of the devil.
To be sure, people are swayed by wonders pastors perform, without
caring to know the sources of power used. They do not care that some of these
pastors take devilish power from occult chambers, from India and other sundry
countries, with which they hypnotise people. Also, the economic situation in
the country and the desperation to have children have made people preys of
pastors. Many of the pastors, in preaching prosperity, tell their members that
their situations would change for the better if they are prayed for. Women, who
are looking for the fruit of the womb easily fell for these pastors, who claim
that their prayers would get them pregnant. For the pastors, the more people
have problems the better, as they would have more “clients” to deceive.
MAGICIANS IN GUISE OF MIRACLE WORKERS
When
it comes to modern day miracles, you would not be surprised to appreciate the
fact that magicians have taken the center-stage of events. I like for you to be
sensitive to the revelation of God’s Word in this matter. Revelations 13:11-13 is
most revealing:
And I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and
he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke like a dragon. And he
exercises all authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the
earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound
had been healed. And he performs great
signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in
the presence of men.
Revelations
13:11-13 reveals the great imitation, which has become the doom of our
generation. It speaks of the beast
imitating the Lamb “...he had two
horns like a lamb” (Revelation
13:11). The beast is the devil, also called the dragon (Revelations 12:7-8)
whose work is to deceive the whole world (Revelations 12:9). The Lamb, on the other hand, is Jesus
Christ (John 1:29; cf. Revelations 5:8; 1 Corinthians 5:7b).
One
physical features of a lamb is its two horns. Informed by this, the beast
(devil) took on the physical features of the Lamb:”… he had two horns like a lamb”
(Revelation 13:11). However, one only gets to know who the beast and the lamb are
when they speak “...he spoke like a
dragon” (Revelations 13:11b). The good thing is that the beast can only imitate
the physical features of the Lamb but not the way He speaks.
A
lamb bleats but a beast roars. To know who is who, one only needs to
familiarize himself/herself with the sounds of a true lamb so that he could
detect when it is faked just as the best way to know an original currency from
counterfeit is to acquaint ourselves with the original security features to
enable us to easily detect counterfeits.
The
moral behind this is to acquaint oneself with God’s Word so that agents of the
beast who masquerade themselves as servants of the Lamb cannot deceive him.
You
would never know who a real servant of God is, or who a real messenger of God
is by how they look but by what they preach (II John 9-11; Galatians 1: 6-8).
Many have thwarted the word of God and are still in the business of thwarting
it (II Corinthians 2:17; 4:2). Many false prophets have the look of sheep but
are in reality beasts (Matthew 7:15).
IMITATION: AN AGE-LONG PROBLEM
The
problem of imitation did not start today. It began way back in the days of Old
Testament. Do we talk of how the devil took on the form of a serpent in
friendly disposition with a diabolical intent to deceive (Genesis 3:1-7)? What
had happened at the Garden of Eden remains a warning to all of us alive today
with the Holy Spirit of God laying great emphasis on it (I Corinthians 11:2-4).
Do we need talk on how Jacob took on the form of Esau to deceive his father
that he was who he was not (Genesis 27:11-24)?
Today,
we are facing the same deceptive situations. We need to be wary of the many
voices of Jacob with the hands of Esau that abounds everywhere, most especially
in Christendom and the religious systems of this world around us.
LAMB,
THE BEAST AND IMITATION OF DEMONSTRATION OF POWER
Another
area of great imitation of the Lamb by the beast is relative to the
demonstration of miraculous powers (Revelations 13:13). Jesus (The Lamb) while
on earth performed great signs and miracles (cf. Acts 10:38). Revelations 13:13
reveals that the beast “...performs
great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in
the presence of men.” This would be great reenactments of what had happened
in I Kings 18:24-39 when “...God answered by fire.” Today, we hear
claimants say that God is going to be present at a certain crusade and that He
was going to answer by fire as He had done in the time past. Ask yourself when
you hear such claimants whether it is the original fire of God or the imitation
fire of the beast.
To
make fire come down from heaven to the earth is not small feat and if the beast
could succeed in doing this, imagine what he could do the rest of other
miracles and signs that our Lord Jesus had performed while on earth.
Do
not be easily deceived by the claims, “The God that answered by fire let him be
my God.” The true God may not answer by fire but the beast usually do.
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR THESE PERPETRATORS?
False
miracles and imitation go hand in hand (II Thessalonians 2:8-12; Matthew
24:24). The people who perpetuate these acts of beastial imitation of the Lamb
and His works would have their rewards in accordance with their works (II
Corinthians 11:13-15).
Since
this is so, what then are we supposed to do? Get to know the Lamb and His words
so well to be able to detect the beast and his servants. Do not be fooled by
the “Trickery of men, by craftiness in deceptive scheming” (Ephesians 4:14) who
with “smooth words are daily deceiving the hearts of unsuspecting” members of
the public (Romans 16:18).
SUMMATION
Deception
is a dangerous game, which the devil uses to his great advantage and with which
he has destroyed many and is presently destroying. You are encouraged not to
give in to his deceptions. Your soul is more important to be led away by false
miracles, signs and wonders.
In
reality, no real demonstrations have been witnessed except that people keep
making noise, claiming to posses what they do not posses. Only the truth of
Jesus can set men free (John 8:32). Give yourself to knowing the truth of God
and save yourself the agony of being deceived by the devil and his servants.
The earlier this is done the better and more secure we will all be.
Thank
you for your time and attention. God bless us all in Jesus’ name!
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