Encountering God's Miracles

Dr. Tony Evans says there's more to putting God first is making a religious statement.

This is the alternative Dr. Tony, author, speaker and pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas Texas and president of the urban alternative words like impossible or incurable.

Don't apply when God is part of the equation, but Dr. Evans is seeing miracles happen is in some ways up to us once joined him as he shares the stories of two outstanding women from the Bible name name name description given to her. She was a woman.

Although we know she is not the woman in Joppa named Dorcas that was a disciple and jump on the typical you of discipleship to a female in the New Testament would be incorporated into the general description but males would normatively be described. We were talking about a singular person but in this case name is given in our spiritual status is given to Tabitha was in a class by herself. Disciple Matthew on public display behind the veil become a Christian you going to closet your bathroom when nobody else is there and you can receive Jesus Christ as your personal savior and that be a private event but you can't be a disciple and be private.

You can't be a disciple and begin a disciple is not a secret agent Christian disciple is a viable Jesus Christ who recognizes and have submitted to his Lordship.

If you submitted to the Lord Lordship over your life.

You may be a Christian.

I hope you are but a disciple.

You are not because the disciple is one who, based on that baptism.

Now I'm ready to go public ready for you to know who I am and where I have taken months. You do it appropriately. You do it lovingly, but you do not do it vaguely.

You are crystal clear that you follow Jesus Christ know if you're disciple if you chosen God first. You know that God first is a convenient thing to say no if he's first. You know first when it affects your decisions so you can try out. You are disciple of Jesus Christ is not your balls. If you have not your thinking, feelings, your emotions, your perspective, if it does not overrule but if you're not yet a disciple you trust Christ as Savior. You follow Christ as Lord. So it was with.

She was a biblical verbal follower of Christ and read body weight so putting God first is not just a convenient religious statement to make. It must be a decision made by now. Point is especially resistant making that decision for Christians who resist making that decision because they going to want him to fall to the world that they have come to love and many times even when you are being and to make the decision you're going to run into conflict between the flesh and the spirit because the Bible says they war against each other whatever pulled to disciple God says in his approval to go where you want to go in the two clashing if that is good news when you're in conflict that's good news is bad news. If you make the wrong choice in the conflict, but it's good news that you have a conflict because the myth that you have a conflict means that God is talking to you that God is still still trying to pull you we still trying to move you still trying to call you what the disciple she was an unapologetic visible follower of Jesus Christ. It says this woman. This discipleship woman love God wasn't thing would be kindness and charity which she continually did notice a second accent about the first thing was a commitment to God to the disciples. The second thing is talk about what others were abounding, she would look for opportunities she was overflowing with good works, which it was overflowing with helping and a few birds of light of the people she was helping the Windows why because in biblical days, widows could do anything else for you Windows couldn't help you out because the widows were the poor people people couldn't do anything bad for Tabitha or Dorcas.

They could help her back, but says she abounded with good works on me. She was just continually looking for opportunities to do something good for somebody else.

That's a second. The second thing God asked for is to love the neighbor remember first is God secondly is loving the neighbor God saved you so that you could touch others. Ephesians 210 puts it this way, it says, by grace are you saved through faith itself is a gift of God not according words so that no one should boast but then he goes on to say about Stemple. You are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which he had created before hand that we should walk in them saved you.

Ephesians 289 so that he could use you any users you what he called good works, beneficial things you do that brings good to somebody outside of you. So the first thing is to love God and the second thing is the touch others.

The first thing is to love God.

The second thing you opportunities to overflow into the life of someone God brings your way.

Now I understand you cannot meet the needs of the body and God expect you to meet the needs of everybody but expects you to touch the life of somebody expect today what do you have for me to do so they can bring somebody across your path. We want to the touch, for good Dorcas… And she touched others who could not do anything for her in return. These were the widows.

These are the good works that God has called every believer to be engaged.

So let me ask you a question. Are you disciple's number one are you a clear follower of Christ and then secondly over the last week. Good work.

Did you perform what you did something good for somebody. God brought across your path. We storage a high course that you were able to address because of the good work that he has saved you to do. What if you missed number one in your step number two, but you looking for number three God blessed me, help me new car new house relationship. New this new that x-ray glass and wanted to step on third base in baseball. If you skip first base and second base. Dorcas love God and she did miss it if you don't get this principle to get up in the morning and said okay God recommitted myself to you for this day and you bring across my path to Goodrich you want me to do and start my heart that this is from you so that we know what into three it says it happened, verse 37.

At that time that she Dorcas fell sick and interesting. So the next time somebody comes and tells you spiritual people don't get sick you telling the story the next time somebody comes in you apologies if you wouldn't catch a cold apology you would get cancer you apologies as you would have pneumonia not to laugh now. When told one of the disciple. She did good and girlfriend got sick sick sick. This has not necessarily do with spiritual. You will a godly woman got sick as she got sick a significant love God and still be sick because we live in bodies that are deteriorating.

We live in a world sinful world has been contaminated by bacteria and viruses and sometimes how we feel. Now actions can affect that but you can be healthy, doing all the right things Jesus and still get a cold because there are some theologies out there that would live you and tell you what if you apologies as you would be sick. I God will be sick, but she got sick and she died. So now they take it to the upper room interesting. They do not bury her, but she did but they take up room. Why do they take Dorcas to the upper room. It says in verse $0.38 line. It was the job of the disciples, having heard that Peter was sent to the men imploring them. Do not delay coming to us. The disciples meant disciples to men who are in Joppa that Plato was then why and they sent a subpoena. And when Peter gets there.

Peter mercifully sends the ball out of the room. He kneels down any praise see if anybody's in the room watching Peter do his thing then maybe the temptation to worship Peter wants to make sure that only God gets the glory, because the room any praise because people recognize that you have the power to do this is bigger than him.

Prayer is not forcing God to do what he does not plan to dispatch does not make God do anything God has a will and he determines what is going to and not going to do because he's so as not forcing anything. Prayer is prayer is releasing what he decided to do paid a price and then says arise. Tabitha and she opened her eyes and saw Peter and set up. He gave her his hand raised her calling the saints and widows. He presented her life is that he or she is measure question. Do you even have a Peter is there somebody in your life when you are so low you can cry out for yourself because you have died because things are so low. Is there a Peter who you know can make contact with God when you can use data. Peter using somebody in your life who can cry out to God when you can even do it for your cell and a miracle happened. It says and it became known all over Joppa. Verse 42, and many believed in the Lord know what happened.

God let the lady Dr. Ray do a miracle so that he would get even more glory. Okay, God, let's things happen negatively so that when he shows up in the context of his he will get even greater long-range. That's why so they would be put on a bill and it would be clear, the God of the Bible. This because God knows all things for his only doctrines will explore the encouraging story of another remarkable woman when he comes back in just a moment with part two of this final message in a series divine encounters and that makes today your last chance to take advantage of our special offer for those who can help us keep Tony's teaching on the station as a way of saying thanks for your contribution will send you a copy of his brand-new book kingdom encounters. It explores the unique ways you can move beyond just reading about God to actually experiencing him, especially when you feel alone abandon when life seems to be closing in around you and is a special bonus we are bundling the book along with the full-length versions of all eight lessons in Tony's current teaching series divine encounters, including quite a bit of bonus material. We didn't have time to bring you on the air. Just make your donation online@tonyevans.org or call 1-800-800-3222 let one of our resource team members help you all have her contact information for you again after Dr. Evans rings as part two of today's lesson right after this. How do you share the gospel with confidence. Once God's plan for our communities. Why does the Old Testament matter to your faith today.

Those are just a few of the questions you get answered when you enrolled in the Tony Evans training center and interactive online study experience with Dr. Tony Evans you can grow in your knowledge of God's word and learn to advance his kingdom agenda in your life. Visit Tony Evans training.org to get started today. That's Tony Avenue and straining.org first chapter 1, you know her name is. The problem is like a different, let me show you why in verse five, but the Lord had closed her womb. In verse six because the Lord had closed her because the law closed her womb blocking you from getting that new job did not raise the law that relationship seek know the Lord doing to be biological when actually it was theological shut this thing down and she was perturbed, said and he went on watch this for years. Look at verse seven it happened year after year she kept going to church often as she went up to the house of the Lord. She was being provoked and she went and she couldn't even eat this the sling was emotionally trying to she couldn't get pregnant and then was making fun of her because she couldn't get pregnant and so she's got big size and she's the does the longing for child and the talking and she lost her appetite is negative for woman whose longing to have a child. In verse 10, she is greatly distressed.

She prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly never prayed and cried.

You print serious. This is not now I lay me down the slippery Lord my soul to keep distance.

This is wailing before God and what's making a well before God. How little things of God to get better and better is getting worse and worse and she still going to church and guess what all God.

Verse 11, she made a vow and said, old Lord of host. She still committed to God even as she struggled you will indeed look on the affliction of your maidservant and remember me and not forget your maidservant, but will give your maidservant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and a Ranger shall never come to his. She is so last. She's crying so loudly that now she makes beautiful mobile now she makes about how specific she up until this point all we told her she could get pregnant now. She says I want to get pregnant I want a boy I want a boy but if you get me a boy.

I'm going to get back to you for service in the Lord you are serious about proving written. I will pray it says in verse 19 families early in the morning and worship God first and returned again to the Houston ring and kind. I have relations with his wife and the Lord remembered that's interesting. It came about in due time and can see that she gave birth to a son she named him Samuel because I asked him, Lord.

She made about when she was so desperate that if the Lord would answer the prayer she was going to turn her son over to the Lord, the Lord will everyone earlier when she was not at the point of the sheet from the child what he wanted and needed from the child which was the child to be in his relations also that she was willing to give her what she was asking for to get pregnant.

Boy, that if you get out to give me that much marching down to the plate.

Your plan with what I want to be willing to give up boy I get to do it by making fishing villages that I'm going to call them names because I am a boy the Lord. It was clear so verse 20 is dedicated to the Lord as long as he lives. You see is really to the spiritual revival so they needed a spiritual profit and he wanted Hannah to deliver this profit, but he could only get this profit when she was enough to be willing to give them a fair that's not fair. She got to give up her son is not fair why God being so mean. Okay, look at closing chapter 2 verse 21 the Lord visited Hannah and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters and the boy Samuel grew up before the Lord. Okay, really gone from none the six girlfriend couldn't get pregnant when God one. I made it known to place the New Testament was talking exceedingly about belief about you asking for their only when you live commitment driven to come back in a moment with some great insight on what to do when it seems that God is simply not answering your prayers. First, as I mentioned earlier today is your last chance to take advantage of our current double resource package. Tony's new book kingdom encounters plus all eight full-length messages on CD and digital download from his teaching series divine encounters.

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Again, that's 1-800-800-3222 God always hears our prayers, but that doesn't mean he always likes what he hears tomorrow. Dr. Evans will begin a new series, Forrester takes an in-depth look at prayer right now though he's back with a final comment to close out our time today. Maybe somebody else in a state of depression suppress because nothing is God is not answering the prayer is taking too long, God has not taken that God hadn't said no you keep going because God is bigger and bigger and bigger.

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