Stop Blocking Your Miracle | Sermon by Tony Evans

Trying to make sense of God and how He operates is often a fruitless exercise. He tells us that His ways are not our ways, and once we begin to surrender our logic and start trusting Him, He can start working miracles in our lives.

Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative, chaplain of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, and author of over 100 books, booklets & Bible studies. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on more than 1,300 US outlets daily and in more than 130 countries.

[Music]

your eyes a gift from God

hard to imagine life without them but

you can’t always trust what you see life

is full of things that can’t be seen

with the naked eye that’s where God

comes in we see a problem he sees a

solution we see weakness II see strength

as you’re looking for answers keep one

thing in mind you’ll need more than eyes

to see the things that matter believing

is seeing

believing is seeing experiencing the

supernatural our goal for you for us is

to not limit yourself to the natural and

miss the supernatural what I want to

talk to you about today and what I want

to challenge you with today is to stop

blocking your miracle I’d like to

suggest to us today based on the Word of

God that a lot of us haven’t seen God

come through because we’re holding God

up we are delaying or denying his

supernatural presence into our situation

and into our circumstances now let me

explain what I mean by something that is

supernatural God has natural laws that

govern the world the world works by

natural predictable laws

that’s why science is possible because

they can see the laws at work and draw

conclusions based on the consistency of

the law the Sun rises the Sun sets the

law of gravity things go up things go

down first law of second of

thermodynamics second law of

thermodynamics there are laws that are

predictable it’s the way the world works

but when I talk about something

supernatural I’m talking where God

Trump’s his own laws it is where God

overrules himself he has set the laws in

place but a miracle is when God

overrules a law he set in place in order

to accomplish something he wants to do

when you accepted Jesus Christ as your

personal Savior you entered the realm of

the supernatural which means that you

have access to that which operates

outside of the natural the problem is

that we are so tied to the natural we

often miss

resist or deny the supernatural our

story is a very familiar one in John st.

John chapter 11 it is the story of the

resurrection of Lazarus I’ve mentioned

that on a number of occasions but today

I want to take you on a little deeper

journey into this story now to summarize

the whole chapter is about this one

story to summarize Martha and Mary have

called on Jesus to heal their brother

Lazarus was sick Jesus has said his

sickness is not unto death and Jesus

delays going to help their sick brother

get better during the interim of Jesus’s

delay Lazarus dies Jesus shows up too

late he dies after saying he wasn’t

gonna die after they had called on him

we have to frustrated sisters Martha the

the verbal one says Jesus if you would

have been here my brother would not add

that where were you when we needed you

where were you when you call we called

on you and and you you know we heard the

sermon that things were gonna get better

and they’ve only gotten worse Martha the

quiet one just went home and started

weeping and she too said the same thing

Jesus if you would have been here

our brother would not have died that’s

the scenario of the story up until this

point and if the truth were told there

are many here today who have been

disappointed by the Lord

the Lord didn’t do what you clearly

understood he said he was going to do

when you thought he was going to be in a

hurry he’s taking his time when you

thought he answered your prayer the

answer was the opposite in fact if the

truth be told some of us believe

actually made stuff worse by his

negligence and by his delay and even by

his denial if the truth were told verse

38

so Jesus again being deeply moved within

came to the tomb now it was a cave and a

stone was lying against it Jesus was

being deeply disturbed by the pain the

anguish the emotion of what he was

dealing with in the life of Martha and

Mary in fact in verse 35 the shortest

verse in the Bible it says Jesus wept

so Jesus cried at the pain he shared the

pain of Martha Mary but let me tell you

something about Jesus’s emotions while

Jesus sympathizes with our infirmities

Hebrews chapter 4 Jesus would never let

his emotions govern his theology he

would feel it but he wouldn’t let how he

felt about it determined what he did

because his commitment to God’s truth

had to override his emotions at the

moment so he is crying with her but at

the same and he’s moved by the scenario

he’s anguished about the situation but

at the same time he now seeks to address

the problem so he comes to the tomb and

when he gets there he issues a command

verse 39

Jesus said remove the stone there is a

stone a large boulder over the cave when

lazarus body has been buried and Jesus

says remove the stone he utters a

command that involved the action Martha

mouth

because she’s the talkative one says to

Jesus Martha the sister of the deceased

said to him Lord by this time there will

be a stench for he has been dead for

days she did what most of us do when

Jesus issues a command that we neither

like nor understand she enters the

conversation with human logic please

don’t miss this everything she said was

correct Jesus heard her do what he hears

us do when we either do not like or do

not understand his instruction we argue

back with him with human logic that may

be absolutely correct your your facts

may be impeccable you are absolutely

correct Martha there for days he does

stink

Jesus responds and Jesus said to her did

not I say to you let me stop right there

can’t you hear are you not paying

attention

nothing will block the supernatural

movement of God in your life like your

logic your edumacation some of us have

educated ourselves out of the

supernatural we’re just too smart for

God too intelligent for heaven too

brilliant for the kingdom of God and so

we live with our logic and so we live

only in the natural

didn’t I say to you can’t you hear girl

what did you say there Jesus didn’t I

say to you that if you believe you will

see the glory of God did not say to you

if you believe you would see okay now

you get the exact wording of our series

believing is seeing

he didn’t say if you see you would

believe he said if you believe you would

see too many of God’s children are from

Missouri from Missouri you got to see it

first in the natural you see before you

believe in the natural not so in the

supernatural in the supernatural if you

believe you would see what would you see

the glory of God what is the glory of

God it’s God on display the glory of God

is God revealing himself as God in your

circumstance the glory of God is when

God advertises himself the glory of God

is when God puts himself or his

attributes on a billboard so you can see

God at work but you will not see it in

the physical until you believe it in the

spiritual you and I are blocking our

miracles when human logic that it even

if it’s correct Trump’s what God said

you have just done what Matthew 13 says

he did not do many miracles there

because of their unbelief so you will be

limited I will be limited we

collectively will be limited to the

natural when we do not move the stone

that is when we do not act on what

has said whether we understand it can

figure it out like it or not and that is

what often happens with Christians

limiting us to the natural because we

can’t figure out how God is gonna do

this we can’t figure out where this is

gonna come from so did not say to you

that you would see with your own eyes

the glory of the God but you won’t see

the supernatural till you believe and

you believe by doing what I told you to

do God is saying I’ll wait I’ll wait

until you decide to believe now wait

till you decide that you’re not gonna

just throw facts my way like I don’t

know what I’m talking about I created

the world and you’re gonna describe to

me biology I’m gonna tell you something

about the will of God God has a revealed

will that’s what he said in the Bible

and he has a secret will Deuteronomy

29:29

says that the secret things belong to

God he hasn’t revealed them it is you

cannot get to God’s secret will if

you’ve ignored his revealed will in

other words if he says move the stone or

whatever it is in your situation he

tells you to do but you have to see what

he’s gonna do before you move the stone

you’ll never see what he’s gonna do

because he’ll keep secret his secret

will until he sees you believe his

revealed will so if you don’t do what

you know he said he won’t show you what

he’s up to in secret in the supernatural

realm and you can’t figure it out ahead

of time cuz he’s the unfit routable God

his ways are not your ways his thoughts

are not your thoughts Isaiah 55 so you

can’t figure out well what is he gonna

do how is he gonna do this before I move

this stone let me try to figure it out

that’s an excedrin pm headache

and watch this verse 41 so they removed

the stone so there were people who were

brought alongside to help her move

something she could not move herself too

deep

that’s why you need community that’s why

you need people around you to help you

move stones you can’t move because God

won’t move until the stone is moved so

if you cannot move the stone get some

people who care about you enough who are

crying with you enough who love you

enough to put their hands on your stone

that you gotta move everyone in here

should either be getting help to move a

stone or be helping somebody else to

move a stone because if you’re helping

somebody else that means you got some

focal can help you

that’s what church is supposed to be and

so they help her move the stone yeah

it’s gonna get deeper now cuz so they

move the stone then the Bible says in

Hebrews chapter 7 verse 25 that jesus is

our intercessor the Bible says in Romans

8 27 the Holy Spirit is our intercessor

according to the will of God so it has

to be God’s will of course God doesn’t

do everything we want because we want it

but there are a lot of things in God’s

will he’s waiting to do after he seen

faith in action so he says then Jesus

said raised up his eyes and said father

I

you that you have heard me father I want

to thank you that you have heard me

let’s put it another way let me say what

he didn’t say he didn’t say father I

thank you that you are hearing me he

does not speak in the present tense he

speaks in the past tense so let’s talk

about the doctrine of tenses because

tenses matter when Jesus said to the to

the Jews before Abraham was I am

that tense matters not I was I am which

was the name God gave Moses that I’m God

I am that I am so tense as matter he

says thank you Father that you have

already heard me which means whatever

he’s getting ready to talk about he has

previously discussed God you and I

discussed this earlier stay with me man

we can’t get ahead of that discussion

back in chapter 11 verse 2 and the

sister sent word to Jesus saying Lord

behold he whom you love is sick Lazarus

but when Jesus heard this he said this

sickness is not to end in death but for

the glory of God so the Son of God may

be glorified by it so let’s look at what

happened here I thank you Father that

you’ve already heard and we’ve already

talked about this in other words when

they sent word to me about the need of a

miracle you and me daddy

had a meeting and in our meeting when we

discussed this

we agreed that when we saw faith we were

going to do a supernatural work we you

and I have already had this meeting but

even though you and I have had the

meeting

in the spiritual realm they’re not gonna

see what we agreed on in the physical

realm until the bridge of faith is built

so that my intercession for them becomes

you bringing to pass what has already

been agreed on so why is that important

for you to know that your supernatural

miracle whatever is in God’s will to do

has already been agreed on in the

spiritual realm that means you do not

have to beg God to do something that is

in his will to do he is like you waiting

on God if he’s agreed to it it’s him

waiting on you to move the stone so he

can let you see what was already

previously agreed on it’s called the

intercession of the Son and of the Holy

Spirit bringing into the physical realm

what has previously been agreed on in

the spiritual realm once faith has been

exercised even if it has to overrule

logic and correct logic this is the

intercession of God what a great truth

that God stands like a defense attorney

between the client and the jury to plead

your case about something that’s already

been agreed on in the spiritual realm

that’s why the Bible says he’s already

been to the end and that he backs up to

the beginning so he already knows where

this thing is going but faith activates

it in your experience are you trapped

does the scenario stink is the only hope

for this thing a resurrection you

qualify for the supernatural

watch this when he had said these things

he cried out with a loud voice Lazarus

come off notice the specificity of the

crime not y’all come forth because then

everybody from the graveyard would have

got up what he requested was the

specific answer to the specific request

not a general answer that applies to

everyone when you did a miracle you

didn’t talk about everybody you talk

about it’s me it’s me it’s me o lord

standing in the need of prayer you you

need him to call your Lazarus not just

some vague answer or by the way that’s

how you know it’s God when he calls it

by yo named Lazarus a specific answer to

a specific need in a specific situation

predicated on a specific request Lazarus

come forth now watch this watch this

watch I want you to miss this get ready

close it out here but don’t miss this

cuz it says the man who had died came

forth bound do with hand and feed with

wrappings and his face was wrapped

around with a cloth jesus said to them

unbind him and let him go okay watch

this now it says he came forth but he

didn’t come forth walking he came forth

shuffling because he was still tied up

said he was tied up around his legs

around his head around his head he was

still wrapped in death cloth so watch

this now he was alive but he was not

liberated cuz he was still tied up now

he had a miracle the miracle was what

was dead is now alive

so he comes walking out cuz he’s

panicked but guess what Jesus that he

called this small group he said I want

y’all to untie his legs and I want you

to unhook his arms I want y’all to

unwrap his head because I want the other

folk to participate in my miracle God

just that want to do miracles that

excludes you he wants to do miracles

that include you you are part of the

miracle he did enough to get it going he

says I want y’all to finish it all so

that you can see how I can use people in

the lives of circumstances to do what

they can do I’ll get him alive y’all can

at least unwrap them away you and I are

participants that’s why second

corinthians chapter 6 says we are

workers together with him he will do

what we can’t do

he wants us to do what we can do so that

we become partners in the supernatural

miracle working process and it closes by

saying and many believed on him so let

me tell you something God doesn’t do

miracles just to show off he doesn’t do

the supernatural to flex his muscles he

does the supernatural so that his name

will be known many believed on him

that’s the problem with a lot of folk

coming to church looking for a blessing

they looking for what God is gonna do

for me I want a new house new car new

clothes new this you know do something

for me bless me I want my blessing I

want my blessed my blessing and then

after God does something he gets no

notification no glorification he’s not

witnessing you’re not talking about him

you’re not giving him the credit you’re

not responding and giving you’re not

doing you’re not doing anything you just

talking about Joe blessing he doesn’t

just bless you

for you he blesses you for his name his

glory your impact your testimony your

ministry not the redeemed of the Lord

say so when you get your supernatural

you better open up your mouth and you

better declare the greatness of your God

because only your God can go into your

grave and raise you up and give you life

you better give him the glory due his

name

may I employ you to stop blocking your

miracle that’s exactly what Martha was

doing when her brother Lazarus died

Jesus delayed his visit she said and

marrying her sister said to if you would

have been here the beauty just shown up

then we would not have had to go through

this pain of the loss of our brother

Jesus goes with with him to the tomb and

says remove the stone and that’s when

Martha went illogical

she gave Jesus a lesson in mortuary

science she says she’s been dead for

days he’s rotten rigor mortis has set in

so he stinks Jesus has to give her a

clarification he said did not I say to

you that if you believed that you would

see in other words I didn’t ask you for

your logic I didn’t ask you for your

human understanding or human

I asked you to do what I asked you to do

because true faith acts like God is

telling the truth

even when you haven’t seen the result of

his request yet

that’s because leaving precedes see so

he told her you will not see what I want

to do behind the stone until you do what

I told you to do with this thing a lot

of us are blocking our miracle they’re

keeping the stone in front of what God

wants to do because we’re going to watch

it we’re using our education our

background our success and our income

and we are blocking what God wants to do

in the spiritual realm we’re keeping the

Lazarus’s of our lives

trapped because we are too smart too

sophisticated too technologically

advanced to take God at His Word and

simply

faithfully ball it balls out it acting

like God is telling the truth acting

like it is shown even when it’s not so

the motive that it might be so simply

because God said so so I want to employ

you again stop blocking your miracle I

don’t know what God and you need God to

do in your life but make sure you’re not

standing in the way

done by refusing to do a Swedish

for most Christians acting on your faith

can be scary because it means trusting

something your eyes can’t always see

Tony Evans reminds us that what we see

with our eyes is not as reliable as what

God reveals through his spirit today’s

message is part of an eight part

teaching series both believing is saved

and you can obtain your copy by making a

donation of any amount of Tony Evans

done today

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