How to give them no excuse
If I had not done among them the works no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, yet they have hated both me and my father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their law, "They hated me without reason." John 15:24-25
Why do we fear the supernatural? Or make light of it's place in our lives as believers? Even if we truly believe that miracles were a thing of our Christian past, we at least believe these supernatural things:
1. Jesus is God incarnate, was born of a virgin, died, rose, and ascended.
2. We have the Spirit of God in us, and thus God in us.
3. God hears and answers our prayers when they agree with His will, causing things to happen that would not have happened if we didn't pray. (In other words, something beyond the natural--something supernatural.)
Every believer, no matter what denomination, believes in prayer at least. And prayer is asking God to do something that wouldn't happen if we didn't pray. It's asking God to intervene, which is supernatural. In other words, the Christian life is a supernatural life simply because we serve the one true God, who is above the natural, not limited by the natural, supernatural.
This is crucial.
The reason it's crucial is because people must see and know that God is in our lives, that Jesus isn't just a religious figure, but that he's actually alive and well--a historical and supernatural fact. That's what we're telling people--that a man was God and that he rose from the dead. We're telling them to believe this. And we're trusting the Spirit in us to convince them--which is a supernatural act. According to Jesus, if the Spirit doesn't empower us, people won't be convicted. So we at least believe in two miracles: conviction and answered prayers.
When people experience at least these two things in our lives, we leave them without an excuse.
Why do we fear the supernatural? Or make light of it's place in our lives as believers? Even if we truly believe that miracles were a thing of our Christian past, we at least believe these supernatural things:
1. Jesus is God incarnate, was born of a virgin, died, rose, and ascended.
2. We have the Spirit of God in us, and thus God in us.
3. God hears and answers our prayers when they agree with His will, causing things to happen that would not have happened if we didn't pray. (In other words, something beyond the natural--something supernatural.)
Every believer, no matter what denomination, believes in prayer at least. And prayer is asking God to do something that wouldn't happen if we didn't pray. It's asking God to intervene, which is supernatural. In other words, the Christian life is a supernatural life simply because we serve the one true God, who is above the natural, not limited by the natural, supernatural.
This is crucial.
The reason it's crucial is because people must see and know that God is in our lives, that Jesus isn't just a religious figure, but that he's actually alive and well--a historical and supernatural fact. That's what we're telling people--that a man was God and that he rose from the dead. We're telling them to believe this. And we're trusting the Spirit in us to convince them--which is a supernatural act. According to Jesus, if the Spirit doesn't empower us, people won't be convicted. So we at least believe in two miracles: conviction and answered prayers.
When people experience at least these two things in our lives, we leave them without an excuse.
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