Resurrection Life of Jesus Church

The apostle Paul does not state miracles is a gift, but describes this particular gift of the Holy Spirit as the “working of miracles.” What is a miracle? The dictionary says it is an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs. I personally believe a miracle is an act or event that takes place from a source outside the physical laws from which we operate.

With the exception of a balloon, mankind was unable to fly in the sky prior to 1900. The advent of the combustion engine provided humanity with the opportunity to build an airplane and equip it with an engine and a propeller, dragging the plane forward so that air flow around the wings provided lift to overcome the law of gravity.

Someone might have called this a miracle, but there was nothing supernatural about the airplane, it was merely using energy to overcome gravity. Thus, a miracle according to the Bible is when God uses technology from the spirit world to perform a task that is impossible in the physical realm.

THE SPIRIT WORLD
God resides in the spirit world which is a different dimension than our physical world. Jesus created the vast physical universe containing an estimated two trillion galaxies, each with billions of stars, encompassing a diameter of ninety-three billion light years.

This creation was originally populated by angels and they were given technology that is vastly superior to what Adam and Eve received. Case in point, angels can enter the physical realm from the spirit world and have the ability to be seen and interact with humans.

1. Gabriel came to earth and visited Zacharias in the temple at Jerusalem to give him a personal message from God. Luke 1:5-20

2. Six months later, Gabriel visited Mary in the city of Nazareth to inform her that she would become pregnant with the Messiah (Jesus). Luke 1:26-38

TURNING WATER INTO WINE
Not long after Jesus began His public ministry, the God-man attended a wedding in the city of Cana.

“And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.” (John 2:1-2)

Whether the wine was fermented or fresh squeezed juice is irrelevant since it has nothing to do with the extraordinary event of divine intervention when the God-man turned water into wine.

The wine ran out sometime during the celebration. This was potentially a major embarrassment for the hosts, and when Mary learned of the predicament, she asked Jesus to step in and rectify the situation. The God-man was not planning to reveal Himself at this moment in time, but Mary lovingly overrode His response, and her words show that she had every confidence in her son.

“And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.

Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. (verses 3-5)

There was no indoor plumbing with running water and each home had stone pots containing fresh water for cleaning purposes. In this particular venue, there were six stone pots, each capable of holding 18-27 gallons of water, for a total of 108-162 gallons.

“And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins1 apiece.” (verse 6)

The apostle John does not provide a detailed account of what took place at the wedding. The water pots were empty when Jesus started to take action. The God-man instructed the servants to fill them. Jesus patiently waited for the process to be

completed and then told them to get a cup, fill it from the water pot, and take it to the master of ceremony

“Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.

And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.” (verses 7-8)

The master drank from the cup and quickly realized that it was wine of the finest quality. He did not know where the wine had come from and stated it was the custom to serve the good wine initially, and then when people were intoxicated, the cheaper wine was brought out since inebriated people would not notice the difference.

“When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,

And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.” (verses 9-10)

NOTABLE DETAILS
Let’s examine the details of the miracle to show there was no deception or misdirection occurring.

1. Jesus did not touch anything; He simply spoke and people carried out the actions.

a. Jesus did not fill the pots with water.

b. Jesus did not fill the cup and take it to the master of ceremony.

2. There was no physical manipulation by Jesus. It is obvious that some unseen power converted the water into wine from the spirit world. The conversion did not take hours, days, or months. The change was instantaneous; it occurred the moment the water was poured in the pots.

3. Was it done by the Holy Spirit or by angels? We have no definitive answer; however, the most important part is that Jesus told the disciples that they would do the same works He had done.

“Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:11-15)

DOMINION OVER WIND & WATER
Matthew, Mark and Luke each recorded a miracle took place when Jesus and the apostles sailed from Capernaum to the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee and the land of the Gadarenes.

“And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.

And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.

And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.

And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.

But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!” (Matthew 8:23-27)

“And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them,

Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships.

And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.

And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?

And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?

And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mark 4:35-41)

“Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth.

But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy.

And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm.

And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.

And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee.” (Luke 8:22-26)

The Sea of Galilee is thirteen miles long and eight miles wide. This body of fresh water is seven hundred feet below sea level, and when combined with the steep cliffs and hills that surround this basin, it has all the necessary conditions for the perfect storm. The lake is surrounded by hot, humid air due to its low elevation. Cool air from the mountains rushes down and collides with the warm lake air, causing wind shear and rapid storm formation. The combination of geography, elevation, and climate creates conditions where the situation can go from calm to life threatening in just minutes.

Jesus had been in Capernaum for about two days and great multitudes had come for healing. Needing a break, the God-man and the apostles got into a fishing boat (approximately 27 feet long) and set out from the eastern shore. Jesus found a spot in the back of the ship and fell into a deep sleep.

None of the Gospel writers state how far they traveled when the cool winds rushed down the mountainside to collide with the warm lake air, and in just minutes, the surface of the water was filled with waves and white caps from the violent winds. The ship was tossed about and began to fill up with water.

Peter, Andrew, James, and John were professional fisherman. They had seen many storms, but if they were afraid, this particular storm must have been intense. The fishing boat had no motor and was vulnerable to capsizing. Jesus was woken by the screams of the men as they struggled with the waves that were swamping the boat while they unsuccessfully tried to make it back to shore.

Matthew stated that Jesus woke, stood up amidst the tempest, and speaking loudly enough so that the disciples could clearly hear Him, commanded the wind to die down and the waters to become calm, revealing His authority over nature.

Then as the wind subsided and the surface of the water became like glass, Jesus looked at the men in the boat and questioned their unfounded fear. They knew by this time that Jesus was the Messiah, and He wondered why they lacked faith when God was riding in the boat with them?

Instead of being joyous that the fierce storm was subsided and they were safe, the disciples became afraid of Jesus and wondered how it was the God-man could control nature, so that even the wind and the waves obeyed Him. They realized at the culmination of this event that what they had just witnessed was a manifestation from the spirit world. A display of power had been unleashed that no mortal man possessed.

POWER OF THE SPOKEN WORD
It is obvious that when Jesus rebuked the storm, some unseen supernatural power was simultaneously released to terminate the howling wind and the boisterous waves. Jesus never told the apostles how it was done, but we can conclude it was the work of the Holy Spirit or angels tasked by God the Father.

“Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.

I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. (John 5:19, 30)

SPIRIT WORLD IS NOT MAGIC
We know that God the Father resides in a place called “heaven.” It is a real place and the city of God can also be found there. God the Father has a throne room from which He reigns and exercises power to do whatever He desires. The temple in the city of God is built with material that only exists in the spirit world.

When a Christian dies on earth, the soul and spirit are taken to heaven. I would not be surprised to discover that spirit bodies resemble the physical body in many ways. We are eternal spiritual creatures housed in a mortal physical body during our time on earth. John’s description of life in heaven confirms this belief. We find men and women standing in front of God’s throne and worshiping Him.

“After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.

And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying,

Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest.

And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.

They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.

For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. (Revelation 7:9-17)

TECHNOLOGY AND POWER IN THE SPIRIT WORLD
When Jesus created the physical universe, it is a scaled down version of the spirit realm. Adam and Eve were created and placed in the Garden of Eden. They had no power tools and were ignorant about electricity. After they rebelled against Jesus, the human race was marred by sin. Lucifer and his fallen angels started introducing technology that rapidly elevated mankind’s progress.

Humanity learned to mine ore, turn it into weapons that were used to subjugate different people groups and our killing proficiency increased over time. When we discovered electricity and how to use it, it led to the combustion engines, electric motors, computers, laparoscopic surgery, etc. This technology is crude compared to what exists in the spirit world. There is currently a race to master quantum computing and artificial intelligence, but what we are doing is merely discovering what already exists in the spirit world.

If Adam had seen a modern jetliner fly across the sky, he would have called it miracle (magic) that something so big could stay in the air. When we see power display from the spirit world, we too call it a miracle (magic). The fact is that these miracles are based in technology, but they are so incredibly advanced that it is impossible for humanity to distinguish them from miracles (magic). That lack of such distinguishability should be an indicator of just how advanced the spirit world is when it comes to technology.

Angels were created with supernatural powers that humans do not possess. They can operate in the spirit world and the physical world. They have the ability to be seen by humans, but for the most part, they are invisible to us.

CONCLUSION
The miracles Jesus performed when He turned water into wine and when He stopped a raging storm with just a few words were carried out with power from the spirit world. The Holy Spirit has unlimited power since He is God. Angels have been given certain amount of power and equipment that is beyond what mankind can imagine, and when they operate on earth – invisibly for the most part – humanity sees the results.

1. The servants at the wedding witnessed the water poured into the pots and wine being served.

2. The apostles in the fishing boat saw the waves and felt the boisterous wind.

Halfway through His earthly ministry, Jesus commissioned the twelve apostles to preach, heal, and cast out demons. This was carried out by the spoken word of the apostles. The Holy Spirit ensured that people were supernaturally touched when the men spoke and laid hands on the sick and afflicted.

“And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.” (Matthew 10:1, 7-8)

Luke recorded that Jesus also sent out seventy other men who were part of His entourage and they too had the power to speak healing and cast out demons.

“After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.

Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.

Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.

“And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.

And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.

Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:1-3, 17-20)

Before Jesus was crucified, He told the disciples that they would also be able to do the different miracles He had done. The God-man deputized every believer to copy His actions.

“Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.

Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” (John 14:8- 14)

In the Great Commission, Jesus made it clear the apostles were to recount all the things He had done on earth and teach men to do likewise until the second return.

“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

SUMMARY
When I rededicated my life to Christ in 1965 and joined a Southern Baptist Church, I was told that the Bible is the Word of God and its words were absolute truth.

I read about the miracles that Jesus had done and how the apostles continued to pray for the sick and cast out demons after the Day of Pentecost. When I sought clarification from the church leadership, I was told those miracles were no longer needed since we have the Bible. There was no teaching about the spirit world; supernatural events recorded in the Bible no longer existed.

Just get saved, read the Bible, pray, and repent if you sin. Those were my instructions. When seeking information about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, I was told it was a one- time event for a specific time period and doesn’t happen anymore. It was sometime later that I came to the awful realization that I had joined a powerless church.

• What is the state of your Christian life?
• Are you powerless?
• Have you been baptized in the Holy Spirit?
• Are you moving in the supernatural?