The "fruit" of miracles |
Filed under Sabbath Thoughts |
Have you ever wondered how people in today's liberal Europe will be motivated to persecute those who have a different belief system? That seems unrealistic in our society today, where being tolerant is the norm and almost any lifestyle is acceptable.
For many years now people in the church of God community watch world events, on the lookout for develops that would reflect the prophecies describing conditions prior to the return of Jesus Christ. One prophecy made by Jesus Himself has not yet come to pass:
"False christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect" (Matthew 24:24). Jesus does not say that the "great signs and wonders" will be fake. Why not? Because they will be real!
And His words tell us that there will apparently be more than one person performing "great signs and wonders". The "false prophet" will be among them. He is described as the second of two beasts pictured in Revelation 13. What will he be capable of doing? "He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast" (Revelation 13:13-14).
It is during the time of the false prophet's influence – the time prior to the return of Christ – that the church of God will be persecuted (Revelation 12:12-17).
People will be very impressed by the false prophet's miracles – they will rave about them! And they will be willing to do what he tells them to do.
They will also be biblically illiterate and unaware of the need to "evaluate" any miracle. By contrast, God's people know His warnings about miracles:
"If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, Let us go after other gods – which you have not known – and let us serve them, you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deuteronomy 13:1-3).
So miracles, of and by themselves, are no proof that they came from God or that the person performing them is a man of God. Instead, what is the result of the miracle? What is its "fruit"? Does it make people aware of the truth of the Bible? Does it motivate people to serve the true God? Or is it just the opposite?
That is the way supernatural events are to be judged. Prior to Christ's return God's elect will know and practice this, and those deceived by the false prophet will not.
With these thoughts I wish everyone a rewarding Sabbath!
Paul Kieffer's blog with personal insights and news from the German-language region in Europe.