“Jesus said to them, ‘Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not understand the Scriptures or the power of God?’”
There are two things you must understand as a leader in the body of Christ… “the Scriptures” and “the power of God.” Jesus’ condemned the cherished beliefs of a popular aristocratic sect of Jewish leadership when He claimed they knew nothing of “the Scriptures or the power of God.” The Sadducees ridiculed the notion of a bodily resurrection and denied the existence of angels. They were religious skeptics, the deists of Christ’s day. They understood neither “the Scriptures” which taught life after death nor “the power of God” which made possible life after death.
I once drove away from church leaving my Bible on top of my car. I made my way to the freeway entrance and headed home on Highway 26. The next time I saw my Bible was in the rear view mirror flying and flopping through the air. I pulled off at the median ditch on the north side of the busy freeway and ran back to fetch “the Scriptures” which had come to rest on the center dividing line between both lanes of eastbound traffic. This was my favorite, fully underlined and highlighted NIV Bible with personal margin notes. I wanted it back. I knew where it was. I could see it just thirty feet beyond my reach. Cars were whizzing by at speeds exceeding sixty miles an hour. I quickly understood the helplessness of my position. If I ventured into traffic, I could easily be killed or cause a serious accident. I could not take that risk, yet I wanted my Bible.
God knew my dilemma, so I offered a prayer for help…
What happened next was miraculous. At the instant of my “Amen,” I heard a high pitched, whirring sound in the distance. To the west I saw the flashing lights of an ambulance under the Murray Boulevard overpass rushing in my direction. All traffic slowed to a stop and moved to either side of the highway. The ambulance sped by and I walked easily onto the freeway. I bent to pick up my Bible then stood to face the traffic God stopped just for me. I waved at the east bound motorists and ambled my way off the freeway and back to my parked vehicle with precious cargo in hand. It was miracle! A modern day parting of the Red Sea!
That day I experienced both “the Scriptures” and “the power of God.” What an exhilarating combination!
“Jesus, that is not my Bible. It’s Yours. You know I want it back but I cannot retrieve it by myself. I am willing to let it go and walk away. If you want me to have my Bible back then make that possible by Your power. Intervene on my behalf. Otherwise, I will say good-bye to my Bible and drive home now. Amen.”
What happened next was miraculous. At the instant of my “Amen,” I heard a high pitched, whirring sound in the distance. To the west I saw the flashing lights of an ambulance under the Murray Boulevard overpass rushing in my direction. All traffic slowed to a stop and moved to either side of the highway. The ambulance sped by and I walked easily onto the freeway. I bent to pick up my Bible then stood to face the traffic God stopped just for me. I waved at the east bound motorists and ambled my way off the freeway and back to my parked vehicle with precious cargo in hand. It was miracle! A modern day parting of the Red Sea! That day I experienced both “the Scriptures” and “the power of God.” What an exhilarating combination!
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