Are All Miracles From The Lord God Almighty?

A miracle is an event, act or occurrence that defies the elementary laws of the material physical sciences. Fire burns, snake bites, poisonous substances kill, a menopausal woman is past the age of child-bearing, a deaf man cannot hear, a blind person cannot see and a mute/dumb person cannot speak and the likes. But when the laws of the physical world are suspended and these inhibitions are surmounted, miracles occur. It should be understood that the material physical world is subsumed under the three other levels of existence namely: the heavenly realm, the spiritual dimension and the supernatural world. Beyond the material world of touch, vision, smell, feel and taste, the extra-material world is vast, permanent and powerful. As Apostle Paul disclosed in 2 Corinthians 4:18: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” Numerous times, most people of the world seemed to have lump the world beyond the material physical world into one entity but the World of Life demarcated that dimension into three broad and distinct levels.

The heavenly realm is the first level where the Jehovah Lord God Almighty holds court (Mathew 23:22 “And he who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it”). This Throne of God Almighty is the Third heaven which Apostle Paul was privileged to visit while alive as he disclosed in 2 Corinthians 12: 2: “I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know - God knows.” Prophet Micaiah saw this Eternal Throne in 1 Kings 22: 19 and told King Jehoshaphat and Kings Ahab: “Micaiah continued, "Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left. And the LORD said, 'Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?' "One suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the LORD and said, 'I will entice him.' 'By what means?' the LORD asked. “'I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,' he said.” 'You will succeed in enticing him,' said the LORD. 'Go and do it.” Apostle John saw this in Revelation 4:1-11 and gave a near-graphic illustration of the Throne of God Almighty in this Third heaven. There are gazillions of angels that cannot and do not have access to this Majestic Throne of the Jehovah Lord God Almighty as the Archangel Gabriel introduced himself to both Zechariahs and Mary in Luke 1: 19 and Luke 1: 26. See also Daniel 8:16. This Majestic Throne of the Lord God Almighty is where our Lord Jesus Christ as God the Son and Overcomer is seated right now at the Right Hand of the Father on High as we read in Mark 16:19: “After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.” Other relevant scriptures on this can be found in Luke 22:69; Acts 5: 31 etc. Stephen saw this open vision while he was being martyred. Now the wonderful thing is that all genuinely born-again Christians-you and I-should strive to be seated in this realm with our Lord Jesus Christ as we read in Colossians 3: 1 thus: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.” The second realm is the Second heaven and the third is the First heaven. These three domains constitute the Spirit Realm. The second dimension that is next in descending order is the supernatural realm. This is the abode of Satan and his fiendish accomplices. Satan and the demons, principalities, powers of darkness and forces of evil do not operate in the spirit realm; they operate and are limited to the supernatural realm. After the finished works of our Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary, Satan has been driven out of the heavenly realms as our Lord Jesus Christ disclosed in Luke 10: 18: He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” In Job 1:6, Satan impersonated Adam when he presented himself before the Jehovah Lord God Almighty. But in Revelation 12: 7-8, the gates of the heavens have been shut on his shit-face forever as we read thus: “And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.” We need to know and understand these basic fundamentals of the operational mechanism of the non-material physical realms before any understanding of miraculous wonders. In these three dimensions, miraculous powers can be obtained. Just as God Almighty gives gifts of miracle working from the three levels of the spirit realm so also Satan can perform miracles from the supernatural realm. Ask voodoo practitioners, white magicians, black magicians, witches and wizards and those who engage in astral projection. Just as our Lord Jesus Christ can open the eyes of the blind, Satan too can also pull the same feat. Read the story of Simon the sorcerer in Acts 8:6-15 and Elymas in Acts 13. These two Jewish émigrés believed the Good News initially but didn't have the gifts of miracles from the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12: 10a. Jannes and Jambres were two warlocks in Pharaoh's Court who successfully replicated the first four miracles that God Almighty used Moses and Aaron to perform in Egypt as preludes to the chains of miracles and wonders that followed in freeing the Israelite from Egyptian thralldom (2 Timothy 3: 8 “Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth - men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected.”). Simply because a man or woman proclaims to people that he/she is a servant of the Mighty High God and opens the eyes of the bind, makes the lame walks and performs all kinds of miracles do not mean the person is a true and genuine follower of Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus Christ warned in Mathew 7: 22-23: “Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers.” Think about that! In other words, just as there will be genuine and authentic men and women of God called into the ministry to perform miracles and all born-again Christians are supposed to demonstrate miracle working in their lives as one of the signs of being regenerated, Satan and his demons would also counterfeit and raise up fake and hypocritical miracle workers. In my forthcoming book; “The Kingdom of Satan Exposed” (the EBook Edition now on sale), we gave signs to look for in identifying fake and hypocritical miracle workers but we shall touch on few of them here in this column.

TEARING APART GENUINE AND FAKE MIRACLE WORKERS: The power to perform a miracle is a right of every born-again Christian in your personal Christian life as our Lord Jesus Christ said in Mark 16: 17-19: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." Now be careful here and do not misinterpret this to mean all Christians are miracle workers. Jesus Christ said these are “signs” that those who “go ye to the world to preach the Good News” will see as verifiable evidences to the unbelievers that indeed, these miracle workers are from the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the first thing you will notice and must look for in tearing apart fake miracle workers from those genuinely called by the Lord. The agent of Satan who parades as God's true agent or pastor advertises miracles first before proclaiming the Good News of Eternal salvation. Miracles are the by-products of salvation and not the other way round. As a matter of fact, miracles do not naturally convince people to give their lives to Jesus Christ. Many in the world prefer the miracles to Jesus Christ, even if the pastor or evangelist is a genuine miracle worker. The Israelites witnessed monumental miracles in the wilderness but still didn't believe God Almighty just as the Lord God Himself said in Numbers 14: 11 “ The LORD said to Moses, "How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the miraculous signs I have performed among them?” Consequently, miracles are not for changing the hearts of unbelievers but to demonstrate the powers of God Almighty. Satan and his demons too want to like God Almighty and so do sneak in both in the body of Christ and outside of church congregation to perform miracles to gain glory for themselves.

The second sign is the ease at which miraculous powers are performed. Any so-called man or woman of God who can perform miraculous powers at will, regularly and always is a fake prophet. Never and never will the True Jehovah Lord God Almighty be manipulated? Never and never will the Holy Spirit be controlled by human beings? God Almighty may, through His Holy Spirit refuses to perform miracles at times, in order to draw unbelievers to Him for a meaningful relationship rather than be mesmerized and wowed by His miracles. Even our Lord Jesus Christ refused to perform miracles in certain places and instances for obvious reasons: those people did not believe in Him and some wanted to be amused. See Luke 23: 8-9: “When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform some miracle. He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.” The multitude that were fed by the Lord were frantically searching for Him later not because they really believed in Him as Lord and Savior, but because of food. In John 6:26, Jesus Who is God in the flesh and knows all things unmasked their hypocrisy. “Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” I had this experience when I pastored a church in a West African country about fifteen years ago. Of course, every servant of the Lord desires miracles in his/her ministry and so in our gatherings, I constantly prayed to the Lord for these miracles as affirmations of His imprimatur and calling. But suddenly, I discovered most worshipers preferred to come at the tail end of the services, because they were expectantly waiting for miracles. I got it and stopped using the gift because: “The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. (1 Corinthians 14: 32). Some people only come to see and witness miracles as if they were going to circus shows, instead of coming to listen to the Word of God and develop lasting personal relationship with the Lord of lords and King of kings. Another sign to look out for is the longevity and durability of the miracles. Do the recipients of miracles from any man or woman of God experience permanent healing or miracle? When Satan performs a miracle, he leaves the person for a while and comes back with more deadly ailment or affliction. Satan and his demons, including their human agents are master manipulators and chronic deceivers. They do not leave their victims affliction-free and can't guarantee long-lasting freedom, because they too are chained and in eternal bondage. Satan and his servants cannot proclaim like our Good Lord God Jesus Christ in John 8: 36: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Any church where healing or miracle takes place and few days or months later, there is remission or a higher burden is most likely be Satanic. Deceptive miracle workers brag and boast about their satanic powers. They love the limelight, the media and showmanship. They like the plaudits, the publicity and adulation rather than drawing attention to the Giver of the gift; Jesus Christ, they are their own gods. But the genuinely-called miracle worker adopts the humble attitude of John the Baptist: “He must become greater; I must become less” (John 3: 30). When satanic miracle worker calls or pronounces the Name that is above all names, watch out for what comes out of their mouths. They mumble Jesus but the full Name of the Savior; “Jesus Christ” is always heavy in their mouths. Why? They are afraid because their master, Satan is watching. Another sign is their personal lifestyle. Are they flamboyant and ostentatious? Are they loud and publicity-conscious? Do you see them going about with retinues of goons, bouncers, hangers-on and bevy of bodyguards and protocols? Is it extremely difficult to have audiences with these men and women of God? Do they demand extraordinary amounts of money for speaking engagements? Please watch out for these wolves in sheep clothing. Another sign that is discernible in the private lifestyles of these so-called miracle workers purportedly from the Sovereign Lord God is the price tag affixed to their miraculous handkerchiefs, miracles water etc. These are amulets which demons attached themselves to as ignorant and beguiled victims scramble for the so-called miracles. Yes, they may obtain temporary reliefs from their problems but they have unwittingly sold their souls to Satan, the master deceiver. When you go to these so-called miracle workers, do they mention familiar names as the architects of your earthly problems? “Oh, it has just been revealed to me that your father-in-law (and usually it is your mother-in-law, son-in-law, auntie etc.) that is behind your afflictions, ailments etc.” you hear from these charlatans. These sheep in wolves' clothing operate like voodoo and magical arts practitioners except you see them either in white garment or holding the Bible. Never in the operation of the Holy Spirit does He reveal the names of so and so as the harbinger of any human being's problems and predicaments. It's rare for this is an exception rather than the rule. The first time the Holy Spirit gave me a specific name of a satanic agent was when the Christian Brother was arguing with me and denying the person I was describing to him in his family. Suddenly, the Holy Spirit gave me the name of the person and the brother shouted. All human beings have one enemy: Satan, period! Albeit Satan uses close relatives, neighbors etc. as their agents and succeed in deflecting our attention. That aunt, sister-in-law, cantankerous boss, cranky neighbor etc. are not the real people behind your predicament because; as 1 Peter 5: 8 admonished us: “…Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Any man or woman of God who gives the names of people as your enemies is a demonic agent.

NEXT WEEK: We shall examine the Gift of Prophecy. What is prophecy and who is a prophet? Just as we have done so far with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit we have examined in this column so far, we shall also search scriptures on how Satan and his demons can mimic the True Lord Almighty in prophetic utterances.

LETTER OF THE WEEK:
Dear Sir: Permit me to take your back to the Old Testament days in the Holy Bible. Achan, the son of Karmi was a character from the tribe of Judah who stole and brought accursed objects into the Israelites' camp as against the Lord's command. He brought untold hardship and monumental disgrace to the indisputable champions –the Israelites by his distasteful action. Similarly, Jonah was also a bible character of disobedience and utter wickedness- who was deployed on a rescue mission to a city called Nineveh but made his way for Tarish as against God's clear instruction. Jonah knew God for who He was- a merciful God but couldn't live with the reality of God's pardon for the condemned and God forsaken Ninevites (at least in Jonah's thoughts). Jonah caused his co-passengers a huge loss due to his disobedience.

This is a follow up to my “An Open Letter to President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan” published here penultimate week. I decided to follow up with this article and sincerely pray the boys will do the needful to bring this article to Mr. President's attention; after all, if it was a caustic insult on the Presidency, the trio of Messrs. Labaran Maku, Reuben Abati and Doyin Okupe would have taken their turns to reply with the velocity characteristic of light in needless and over the time-abused privilege to rights of reply.

Here is my view, Nigeria has seen and had the worst of Achans and Jonahs in governments since independence from up to now. These characters are cankerworms and caterpillars destroying our collective harvest as a people .They have done so much damage to the Nigerian project more than a colony of termites could do to prized wooden furniture.

The Achans and Jonahs of our time are men and women who are recycled by successive governments perpetuating and wrecking havoc on the Nigerian state. With Achans in our camp, corruption and serological fraud will persist. With Jonahs on board our safety is comprised and safety guards can't be relied upon.

These men and women speak in new tongues while hiding the venom in their mouths, they are thorns in our flesh and have caused us unquantifiable pains .This minority group is causing the vast majority sleepless nights. They have become islands of knowledge unto themselves discounting the wisdom of ages. How do you identify the Achans and the Jonahs in Jonathan Administration? We don't need a DNA probe for complimentary identification. All that is required is a brief recourse to their historic past activities and connect the dots of their dishonest dealings, stealing, numerous atrocities, outright disregard for unity and progress of this country. Many of the Achans and the Jonahs are political gigolos and rent-boys while female counterparts are modern-day courtesans. What next after identifying the Achans and the Jonahs in the current Nigerian government? Of what relevance is this article to governance in Nigeria? Let's be clear, this piece of writing isn't one of empty ripples-generating articles crafted to draw unnecessary attention to create a spot of relevance in the Nigerian already heated political space rather it is a critical look at the current condition of the Nigerian state while suggesting relevant solutions to address the undesirable situation.

We are so blessed in Nigeria with world-class thinkers, technocrats, seasoned administrators and academia but this blessedness hasn't translated into any social good. This is sad. Now what do we do with the Achans and the Jonahs in the current Nigerian government? It's very simple. Just as Joshua the servant of God and the entire nation of Israel chased out and stoned Achan to death-just that we will not stone them lest we will be charged for murder -we will put up some holy anger and cast them out only in our daily prayers but also with our votes at the forthcoming elections. Mr. President should also be sincere for once and for the sake of the citizens of this beloved country send the identified Achans packing of his executive camp and throw the Jonahs off the deck for safety of the Nigerian state. I insist that the agents that wrecked past Nigerian governments can't metamorphose into agents of fortunes in the present government without precision surgical procedure. Let's inject fresh blood and innovative ideas for a change. Good hands must be on deck to build a sustainable Nigerian project.

Long live Nigeria!
*The writer, Mr. Olanrewaju Daodu is Regional Representative of Alternative Lifestyle Communication in Nigeria.

WORLD PROPHECY: This is huge! Something of global importance, an earth-shattering event and a cosmic occurrence is in the offing in the world. I don't know what it is but the Holy Bible has predicted it and we shall all see it with our very eyes soon. This event is part of end-time prophecy and it's about to take place very, very soon in the next 12 to 24 months. I don't know what it is; I repeat again, I wasn't shown what it is but again, it's HUGE. The whole world will be shocked; from the rising of the sun to the setting of the sun; from the East to the West; from the South to the North, the planet earth is about to witness a catastrophic event. The Divine Hand of God Almighty, the Creator of the heavens and the universe, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is about to intervene in the affairs of humanity. The world media, the commentariat, the scientists, the astrologers, the men and women of earthly wisdom and their ilk will be talking their heads out but will not be able to explain but those who know the True God will be unshaken and unperturbed. What is it? I wasn't shown but was only told (Luke 21:11 & 25).

I have been repeating the above prophetic words almost a year since this column debuted and as events unfold around the world, I will not comment on the unfolding drama in Syria. We shall see.

MY COLUMN ARTICLE IN ABIYAMO.COM
CELEBRATED NIGERIAN-AMERICAN AUTHOR, ACADEMIC, SCHOLAR AND POLEMICIST, DR MOSHOOD ADEMOLA FAYEMIWO BASED IN CHICAGO WRITES EXLUSIVELY FOR ABIYAMO.COM BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2013: Nigerian-American author, scholar, writer and polemicist; Dr. Moshood Ademola Fayemiwo based in Chicago in the United States of America writes/blogs for www.abiyamo.com beginning October 1, 2013. His column; Wisdom Notes will look at the issues of life and the ontological nuances of the journey of life from existential perspectives. Every week, join him on issues bordering on the epistemological inquiries of human existence and the dialectical analyses he brings from his unique apologetics' perspectives. Born and raised in Nigeria where he grew up, Moshood now lives in the United States. A former newspaper publisher/editor in Nigeria, he's a prolific writer and an author. An alumnus of the University of Lagos, Nigeria, here he earned a B.Ed. in Social Science/Education, Fayemiwo went on to acquire three master's degrees; MA in Mass Communication from the University of South Florida; MS in Information Science & Public Policy, MA (Combined Honors in History & English from the State University of New York. He holds a Doctorate in Public Policy and Administration and currently a JD Candidate in Law. Author of Who's Who of Africans in America and five published books, he was a contributing editor/writer for newspapers in New York and Florida and writes a weekly column for the Charlotte, North Carolina-based online newspaper, Nigeria World, the NY-based Diaspora Scope, the MG Media Group in The Netherlands, and a syndicated writer in several media platforms. A member of several professional organizations; he is listed in Worldwide Who's Who Directory and is CEO, Alternative Lifestyle Communication, DBA, Chicago. He has several publications to his credit, including his latest: “Aliko Mohammad Dangote; the Biography of the Richest Black Person in the World.” His next book: “The Kingdom of Satan Exposed: Activities of Principalities and Demon Worship in our World Today; Inside the World of Witchcraft, Voodoo, Warlocks and Spiritual Warfare,” is forthcoming.

***************************
We are delighted to have Dr. Fayemiwo at Abiyamo.com Please look forward to his incisive analyses on the issues of life and the raison d'etre of human existence as he engages the readers of this soar-away blog www.abiyamo.com on different issues of life.–Editor, www.abiyamo.com

*Dr. Fayemiwo, author of the most recent book: “The Kingdom of Satan Exposed” and CEO, Alternative Lifestyle Communication, Chicago will be teaching Biblical Exegeses this fall semester at the Kingdom Bible College and Seminary Tucson, Arizona, USA.