Leviticus 9
Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. Leviticus 9:23 NIV
In Leviticus 9:6 Moses said to the people, “This is what the LORD has commanded you to do so that the glory of the LORD may appear to you.” The people obeyed, got to work and followed God’s instructions. A short time later in verse 23, the glory of the Lord appeared to them as promised. Many times we look for God’s work in our lives but we do not follow His commands. Today, God promises us so many blessings if we will obey His commands. Here are a few examples: – God will love us and reveal Himself to us. “Those who accept My commandments and obey them are the ones who love Me. And because they love Me, My Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal Myself to each of them” (John 14:21). – God will dwell with us. “All who love Me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and We will come and make our home with each of them” (John 14:23). – We will abide in God’s love and our joy will be full. “If you keep My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:10–11). – Our prayers will be answered. “And we will receive from Him whatever we ask because we obey Him and do the things that please Him” (1 John 3:22).
Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown. Leviticus 9:24 NIV
The fire of the Lord coming down from the sky to burn up the sacrifices on the altar must have been an absolutely incredible thing to witness. Why don’t we tend to see big miracles like this anymore? In today’s culture we have so many modern conveniences, medical advancements, and electronic distractions that divert our attention away from the spiritual realm. Any “miracle” that is witnessed is often attributed to modern medicine or a coincidence rather than calling it the miraculous event that it is. Even overt Satanic activity tends to be more low key and less obvious in our culture compared to others. This is not because Satan has less of a presence in our society, but because we are doing fine on our own devoting more time to TV, the internet, our phones, and making money rather than spending time with God or nurturing relationships in our own homes. In poverty stricken places like Africa however, the people there are much more in tune with the spiritual realm. They do not have any modern conveniences that distract them from seeing miracles for what they really are. They understand that good and evil spirits control everything in this world, and because of this there is a higher prevalence of witchcraft (satanic activity), human and animal sacrifices, as well as big miracles from God. There have been reports of people coming back to life, complete healing after a stroke, severely ill children healed, deliverance from demon possession, and many more examples that occurred directly as a result of intense prayer for healing. Since many of these poor, remote places of the world do not have access to medicine, hospitals, doctors, etc., when someone is healed they know that it occurred because God intervened and performed a miracle. These people have no means of reasoning away a miraculous healing like so many of us do in our culture. Having said that, miracles absolutely do occur in our society, but it takes faith to believe that they were God’s work and not a coincidence. Take this true story that happened to two members of our Bible study group: In 2010 Erik felt an unexplained prompting to call Kirk. Since the two of them were just acquaintances and not friends at the time, Erik had to go to some trouble to even get Kirk’s phone number. Erik made the call and found out that Kirk was going through the worst crisis of his life and desperately needed Erik’s help. This interaction led to a lifetime friendship as they worked together through the crisis. If we are looking for God to act in our lives, then this is a miracle that God hand picked Erik and sent him to Kirk at the exact moment that he was needed. If we are not looking to God, then the credit goes to just a “coincidence.” Here’s another example: Two members of our Bible study group (Kirk and Callie) witnessed a miracle while working at an orphanage in Swaziland. A 16-month old boy named Piwa was found alive and alone in a forest, having survived being a child sacrifice. The police brought this terrified child to the orphanage, who was so traumatized that he would scream if anyone touched him. He had nightmares and would tremble in his sleep. Through prayers and the love of his caretakers (especially Callie) in the orphanage, he was completely transformed by the time he was two years old. If we are looking to God to explain this child’s transformation, then the fact that he is alive and thriving is an absolute miracle, and his life story is a testament to God’s love and mercy. If we are not looking to God, then this is just a boy who is lucky. Which perspective will you choose the next time you witness an unexplained blessing?