Day 200: John 1:6–13

But to all who did receive Him, He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name (v. 12).

John’s Jesus is the same One who is meant to be ours: the preexistent, miracle working, only begotten Son of the Father of all creation. Years ago God revealed to me that I believed in my childhood church’s Christ, who (thankfully) was a Savior for sinners, but I had hardly begun to believe in the Bible’s Christ. Yes, He is a Savior for sinners and so much more! We have derived a staggering amount of our impressions of Christ from vastly incomplete if not totally unreliable sources, as sweet and respectable as they may be!

We are blessed beyond measure for every time one of these human instruments extended us reliable impressions of Jesus. I derived most of my early impressions about Jesus based not so much on what I learned at church as what I saw at church. I certainly believed Jesus saves, and that belief led me to my own salvation experience. But I believed Him for little more because I saw evidence of little more. The few marvelous exceptions marked me forever, but I wonder why so many believers believe so little of Jesus. I’m just going to say it like I see it. Either Jesus no longer does what the Bible says He did, or we don’t give Him the chance.

John went out of his way to present us an all-powerful Son of God who speaks and His Word is accomplished. A Savior who not only saves us from our sins but can deliver us from evil. A Great Physician who really can heal and a God of glory who reveals His magnificence to mere mortals. And, yes, a God of signs and wonders. We’ve already seen John testify that one of his chief purposes in his Gospel was to testify to the signs Jesus performed so that readers would believe—not in the miracles themselves, mind you, but in the Christ who performed them.

Many claim, “The day of miracles has ceased.” I don’t doubt that God may employ miracles less frequently in cultures where the Word of God is prevalent, but I know Jesus Christ still performs miracles. The first reason I know this to be true is from the claims of Hebrews: “Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb. 13:7–8 hcsb).

The second reason I know Jesus Christ still performs miracles is because I’m one of them. I’m not being dramatic. I’m telling you the truth. The only excuse for an ounce of victory in my life is the supernatural, delivering power of Jesus Christ. I was in the clutches of a real, live devil, living in a perpetual cycle of defeat. Only a miracle-working God could have set me free then dared to use me. Scripture suggests no greater work exists. According to the apostle Paul in Ephesians 3:20, God “is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think—according to the power that works in you” (hcsb). Do you see, Beloved? The most profound miracles of God will always be those within the hearts and souls of people. Moving a mountain is nothing compared to changing a selfish, destructive human heart.

Third, I know Jesus Christ still performs miracles because I’ve witnessed them. I have seen Him do things most people I know don’t even believe He does anymore. Jesus healed a woman I know personally from liver cancer and a man I know personally from pancreatic cancer. I’ve seen women bear healthy children who were diagnosed inside the womb with debilitating conditions. I was in a service with a dear friend in his eighties who has been legally blind for years when God suddenly restored a remarkable measure of his sight—right on the pew of a Baptist church! Hallelujah!

Like you, I have also seen many who have not received the miracles they hoped for. I can’t explain the difference except to say that God often defers to the greater glory. Sometimes the far greater miracle is the victory He brings and the character He reveals when we don’t get what we thought we wanted.

On the other hand, sometimes we see little because we believe little. That’s the obstacle you and I want to overcome so that we can live in the abundant blessing of Jesus Christ. When my life is over, I may not have seen Jesus perform some of the miracles the Word says He can—but let it be because He showed His glory another way and not because I believed Him for so pitifully little that I didn’t give Him the chance!

When we received Christ as our Savior, you might picture that a pipe of power connected our lives to God’s throne. Unbelief clogs the pipe, but the act of believing clears the way for the inconceivable! As much as John’s Gospel has to say about believing, I’m not sure anyone recorded a more powerful statement than Mark. He tells us Jesus said, “Everything is possible to the one who believes” (Mark 9:23 hcsb).

Through His work on the cross and His plan before the foundation of the world, Christ has already accomplished so much for your life in heaven! But if His work is going to be accomplished here on earth where your feet hit the hot pavement, you’re going to have to start believing Him—the Jesus of the Scripture.