Signs and Wonders

Acts 2:1-13
Signs and Wonders

Jesus announced His advent with stars and angels. Here, the Spirit makes His grand entrance on the day of Pentecost, kicking off the church with an amazing display of power.

1) God's miracles are for a purpose.
Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?" –Acts 2:12

Remember when the Pharisees asked for a miracle, and Jesus said no? (Mark 8:11-13) Jesus tells us the purpose of doing miracles: to draw people to God. (John 10:37-38) Look at the strategy at work here on the day of Pentecost. It's a holiday, and people from all over (Acts 2:5-11) are in Jerusalem for the festival. Jesus has departed, and is waiting to usher in the age of the Spirit-led church. So, what does He do? He comes down and miraculously grants His followers the power to speak in other languages. He told His followers to be witnesses, and empowered them to do so.

· What miracles are we praying for? Remember to pray for God to show Himself to the world through us in miraculous ways.

2) Sometimes we're the miracle.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. –Acts 2:4

So many of God's miracles involve people doing something they could simply not do otherwise. Here, we have His disciples preaching in languages they don't even know. God gave Samson supernatural strength to fight the Philistines. (Judges 13-16) Jesus gave His disciples the authority to heal the sick and drive out demons. (Matthew 10:1) He kept Paul alive in order to reach Rome and preach. (Acts 28:1-6) The Spirit desires to empower us to do God's work.

· Are we doing things we couldn't do without God? Do we take the risks He calls us to take?

· Do we witness to the fact that God has healed us?

3) Some will see and not believe.
Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine.” –Acts 2:13

For some reason, people will sometimes just not get it. Hail fell to the hot sands of Egypt, and still Pharaoh refused to submit to God. (Exodus 9:34) Sometimes that's because of stubbornness and pride, which can overshadow brilliant arguments, loving care, and even blatant miracles. Sometimes, it's because they don't know enough, or haven't seen enough. It's not up to us how people will react. It is only up to us to obey the God who loves the ignorant and the stubborn, and patiently, continuously seeks them out.

· Do we face opposition graciously, or vengefully? Are we ready to embrace our enemies, or bite their heads off?