The Greatest Miracle of All
Jesus said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20
After the resurrection, Jesus appeared to the disciples over a period of forty days, opening their minds to what the Scriptures said about him and about the kingdom of God. One day, he led them to the vicinity of Bethany, to the Mount of Olives.
“Then they gathered around him and asked him, ‘Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?’” (Acts 1:6). They were aware that something was about to happen. They knew the many Old Testament prophecies describing the spiritual and national restoration of Israel. Would that happen now that Jesus had risen from the dead?
But he said to them, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:7-8).
Next on God’s agenda would be sending the Holy Spirit who would come live inside them. Then they would go out as they had earlier “in Jesus’s name” to witness, heal, work miracles (Luke 10:1-24). They would make disciples, teaching all that Jesus had commanded (Matthew 28:18-20). This time they would go to the ends of the earth.
When he had given these final instructions, he lifted his hands as their High Priest and blessed them. And right before their eyes, he was lifted up until a cloud took him out of their sight (Acts 1:9).
They stood there staring at the cloud. A miracle had just happened. During the forty days since the resurrection, Jesus had appeared and disappeared. This was different.
Suddenly, two men dressed in white appeared and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:10-11).
They hurried back to Jerusalem, changed men: men with a mission, full of joy, worshiping Jesus the Christ. Fearlessly, they went to the temple praising God (Luke 24:52-53).
Just as God called the first-century disciples and called Elijah and Elisha to be his ambassadors, God calls us to bear witness too. We may not perform miracles like the Old Testament prophets or the New Testament apostles, but we are privileged to part of the greatest miracle of all: guiding someone into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Whom do you know that needs to hear the gospel and experience the miracle of salvation? In what ways are you bearing witness of Christ’s message of redemption? If you’re uncomfortable thinking about those questions, talk to God about your discomfort. Ask him to give you the courage of Elijah, Elisha, and the apostles to tell others about the love of God the Father and the sacrifice of Jesus, His Son.
DIG DEEPER:
What did the apostle Paul write about sharing the gospel in Romans 1:16-17 ? What might help you feel as he did about telling others about Jesus?
What instructions did Jesus give the disciples in Luke 10:1-12? How might those principles apply to us as we share the gospel with others?
The letter we know as the book of 2 Timothy was written shortly before Paul was martyred. What did he say to Timothy in chapter 1, verses 6-14? In what ways does that counsel encourage or challenge you?
Nancy J. Baker