Everybody Needs a Miracle

 I saw that phrase on a book cover. It sounded good, but I contemplated it a little longer. Does everybody really need a miracle? I mused on it further.  Before I dive into this any deeper, I need to define what is meant by the word miracle. A miracle is something supernatural, extraordinary and highly improbable. By that definition, I ask the same question. Does everybody really need a miracle?

My answer is YES! There are people who face sickness and diseases. Some things doctors and medicine cannot fix. I talked to a lady today on the phone who told me about a degenerative condition she has. She reported the doctor told her the treatments were no longer working. There is nothing else medical technology can do. She needs a miracle. 

I visited another lady today who has been in and out of the hospital for the past several months. I was hoping to find her improving. She is not getting any better. She can barely eat. She is trying to hang on  until her next doctor appointment later this week. She declared several times she has been close to going to the emergency room. We prayed for a miracle. 

I deal with people facing impossible circumstances beyond their control and ability to fix. Take financial burdens and hardships for example. No matter how hard some people work they cannot seem to get ahead. One set back after another depletes the bank account. Loss of job. Unexpected home and car repairs. Increase in utility payments, insurance premiums and grocery items all require more money. Shoe string budgets snap under the pressure of it all. These people need a miracle. 

People face relational strains. Marriages on the rocks. Prodigal rebellious children. Estranged family members. Broken friendships. Infidelity. Betrayal. All lead to divisions, severed connections, sorrow and to a lack of forgiveness. Some wounds run so deep the probability of restoration is very low. They need a miracle. 

Others fell for the lie that sin would make life better. They got caught in a bear trap they cannot free themselves from. They are enslaved to a sin that is slowly killing them. All attempts to free themselves has been in vain. Will power is weakened. Hopelessness overshadows faith leading to despair. They wonder if they will ever be free. They need a miracle. 

People all around us need a miracle. Wait a minute though. That is not everybody. Some people are healthy. They do not need medical treatment. Some people have smooth sailing in life. They do not face any impossible situations. Others have plenty of financial provision. More than they need actually. These same people may enjoy relational harmony in their worlds. On the surface they do not need a miracle. 

That brings me to another group. The group that made me affirm that everyone needs a miracle. Ephesians 2:1 informs us that all of us were dead in trespasses and sins. Dead people can do nothing to help themselves. They are without life. Powerless. All of us were born as sons and daughters of disobedience. The sin nature takes over and we rebel against God. By nature we were children of wrath. We indulged in the desires of the flesh. None of us was right with God. Not a single person. We needed a miracle. 

In steps Jesus who lived perfectly without any sin. He willingly took our punishment for our transgressions by death on the cross. [Rom 5:8-9] It should have been us hanging there. It should have been our death. Perfection died for imperfection. The Master died for the servants. The King took the punishment for His subjects. The Creator got crucified for His creation. All of us needed a miracle. 

Through the substitutionary death of Jesus, He redeemed us. He paid our ransom for sin. He declared us righteous. [II Cor 5:21] He brought us from death to life. [Eph 2:5] By His grace we are saved. [Eph 2:8-9] All of that is a miracle and everybody needs that. We know not everyone will be saved. There is no hope of heaven apart from the miracle of salvation. Many hearts are hardened and will never embrace the death of Jesus on the cross. They too need a miracle. We all need the miracle of salvation. That is why I can confidently say that everybody needs a miracle.