Miracles in the Last Days

 ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. Acts 2.17 NKJV

When did that happen? ‘In the last days.’ What does that mean? In the last days of the old Jewish nation.

But this expression also has another meaning. We now live in the end times, shortly before the return of the Lord Jesus, the time when the last of all terrible world rulers will appear.

The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. Acts 2:20 NIV

But Peter’s message is also a message of hope.

‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams.
And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy.
I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapour of smoke. Acts 2:17–19 NKJV

Some Reformed Christians believe that prophecy, signs and wonders were only for Bible times, but Martin Luther and John Knox shared prophecies that were fulfilled.

In 1909, some conservative Christians in Berlin declared that the signs and wonders in the Charismatic Movement came from below.

The Pharisees made exactly the same mistake when they declared the miracles of Jesus to be demonic.

I know a woman in Australia who visited heaven during an operation.

I spoke to a Persian woman in Germany who saw Jesus in a dream when she was a Muslim. Eight years later, she converted to Jesus.

A woman I know very well escaped certain death when God saved her from a collision.
It was too late for the brakes. She couldn't avoid a collision. Then she felt a terrible heat. The vehicle went right through her car, without noise, without causing any damage. It was like something out of a fantasy film.

The sensation of heat lasted for a few days.

The extreme multiplication of signs and wonders in our time is a problem for many conservative Christians.

Not all stories are true and not all supernatural phenomena come from God.

We have to test revelations, but if we condemn all strange events as counterfeit, we will also reject the miracles of God.
Maybe you come from a conservative background. You find these dramatic testimonies doubtful, but you are not sure.

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. Jas 1:5 NIV

Don't stay where you are. A true disciple is one who always wants to learn from God Himself.

C. Peter Wagner was a conservative lecturer at a Bible school in America. He heard amazing testimonies of miracles in Argentina and Brazil.
He attended meetings in which poor people received new teeth or gold fillings. He was then convinced that it was not a deception.

Salvation of all Israel

 If our end-time theology is based on Luther, Calvin or Rome, we will ignore or misinterpret many important passages of Scripture.

Zechariah chapters 12 to 14 tell how Jesus Messiah will return from heaven to His besieged Jewish people in Israel ... This is yet to come ...

“I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. Zec 12:10 NASB95

In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south. Zec 14:4 NASB95

There are many references in the prophetic books of the Old Testament to this return of the Lord when He will save the remnant of His Jewish people.

Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the LORD their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the LORD and to his blessings in the last days. Hos 3:5 NIV

Here the prophet is not talking about some Jews or many Jews who will come to Jesus in the last days, but about Israel. The prophet is also not talking about the church of New Testament believers.

Paul was an Old Testament scholar. He also wrote about this wonderful salvation of Israel.

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in,
and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. Rom 11:25–26 NIV

Great Miracles before Jesus Returns

 The modern Pentecostal movement has been condemned by some as ‘from below’, but in China, South Korea, Indonesia, Africa and South America millions of people are flocking to Jesus, including Muslims and communists. Without signs and wonders, this phenomenon would be unthinkable.

Millions of Muslims are experiencing visitations from Jesus in dreams. Millions are converting to Jesus. But some question if this can be biblical.

In the Bible, God often spoke in dreams.

C Peter Wagner was a conservative, sceptical, by no means charismatic lecturer at an academic Bible school in the USA. He heard extreme stories of the revivals in Argentina and Brazil.

He wanted to investigate these reports and he visited South America. He attended events where amazing miracles happened. Poor people without access to a dentist got multiple gold fillings. The conservative academic Peter Wagner was convinced.

The Holy Spirit does work in our times and we see real miracles that are just as extreme as in the Bible and some real miracles that we don't find in the Bible.

“ ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. Acts 2:17–18 NIV

But there are Bible teachers who claim that these phenomena were only meant for Bible times. We must seek the answer in the Bible itself, for God's Word is our foundation.

So let's read on in the passage.

I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke.

The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. Acts 2:19–20 NIV

So these signs and wonders are for the last days, for the end times, even for the time just before ‘the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.’

If we do not understand our time in this way, we need to ask God for wisdom and revelation.

Aim High, Start Small

 Jesus was not a trained theologian. He had no time for it. As a young man, he had to provide for his family as a carpenter.

Nevertheless, he lived in close communion with his heavenly Father and studied the Old Testament in his spare time.

But they delight in the law of the LORD, meditating on it day and night. Ps 1:2 NLT

Even before his public preaching ministry began, Jesus was our role model.

Do you have no ministry apart from your family life and your work? When God sends revival in hard times, He will amaze you.

About 60 years ago, an American preacher received a prophetic vision from the Lord. He saw Christian housewives and other completely unknown Christians ministering on the streets. They prayed for the seriously ill and many were healed by God.

I know Christians in Australia who are already doing this. The sick are healed and many are converted to Jesus.

Unfortunately, there are some conservative Christians who question this. They quite rightly say that Jesus healed everyone infallibly, but not everyone is healed today. Quite right.

But if our faith and heavenly power are not on the same level as Jesus, should our ministry be completely invalid?

When the Jews returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, they began to rebuild the destroyed temple.

Some Jews criticised and complained because the new temple was not glorious like Solomon's temple. Perhaps they were like some critics today. All or nothing. In the healing ministry we are supposed to either be 100% successful, like Jesus, or our ministry is invalid or false.

Zerubbabel was the high priest who administered the rebuilding of the temple. His name means that he was born in Babylon. He was not a brilliant personality like Solomon, whose father was the great King David.

But God encouraged Zerubbabel, who was allowed to respond with anointed confidence.

“Zerubbabel is the one who laid the foundation of this Temple, and he will complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has sent me.

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” Zec 4:9–10 NLT

Don't you have a pulpit? If a colleague or neighbour has a headache, you can pray openly.

I was once at an event. When the pastor arrived, his wife had a headache. I stepped aside and prayed fervently. When I came back shortly afterwards, the headache was gone.

Start small. Prepare for an amazing manifestation of God's power in these difficult end times.