It’s one thing to have signs follow you because you believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it is yet another thing to become a sign to your generation. Looking at the very Words of the Lord Jesus Christ in Mark 16:15-18, we see that the Lord Jesus made it so clear that the signs that follow the believer are the basic indicators and should never be an issue. “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.’” In fact, all the things listed in this portion of Scripture should never be a problem to the believer. In other words, it should be the easiest thing in the world for the Believer to function in the Name of Jesus – to cast out demons, speak with new tongues, take up serpents, be unhurt even if they drink any deadly thing and lay hands on the sick and have them recover. This is simply the lifestyle of the believer – the least expected of anyone who believes. Glory to God!
Unfortunately, today, the Church seems to function as though Jesus said “these signs shall follow the Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers of the Word who believe.” No! Let’s get it right! Anyone who dares to believer the Gospel of Jesus Christ is qualified to, in the Name of Jesus, function in this realm – it’s the least expected of the believer! The question is: Do you believe the Gospel? Are these signs following you? If you truly believe you’d act! The only proof that you really believe is acting out what you believe. Faith without works is dead just as the body without the spirit is dead. A lot of saints are not seeing these manifestations in their lives simply because they are not acting out the Word. They are too concerned about if it doesn’t work. So unfortunate! Archbishop Benson Idahosa said that he prays for the sick not because he considers himself a healing minister or giant of faith but simply to be obedient to Jesus’ command to do so! That’s a good one there. Zechariah 4:6 says “...Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts.” We must renew our minds on this matter to function in the light of it!
Lately, the Lord has been dealing with me on the subject of becoming a sign to my generation. There’s so much the Lord is doing and yet to manifest through this generation. The Lord is so passionate about having a generation of believers that is not only followed by these signs but become signs themselves! That’s right! God wants a generation of sons that become signs to their generation. The Prophet Isaiah, speaking by the Spirit, declares “Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel From the LORD of hosts, Who dwells in Mount Zion.” (Isaiah 8:18) What are signs? Signs are indictors, they are pointers showing something. Signs are a part of our everyday life – road signs, doctors look out for signs and symptoms, we use sign languages in our expressions and conversations etc. There are good signs as well as there are the bad ones. The Lord is doing an unprecedented work in the earth in these last days to usher in the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, and He is raising up sons who would be signs, indicators of what He’s about to do in order to get people ready to connect with it and not miss out.
God has always used men as signs to what was to come. For instance, David was a sign of the New Creation, Abraham was a sign of the faith life, Gideon was a sign of what God’s Super coming upon a man’s natural could accomplish, Daniel was a sign of the Kingdom of God ruling over the kingdoms of this world etc. I can go on and on. When you study the Book of Ezekiel, you’d observe that God instructed Prophet Ezekiel to communicate many things to the apostate Israelites by becoming a sign to them in many ways, same with some other prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah and Hosea. On the negative side, we have people like Nebuchadnezzar, Sodom and Gomorrah, etc. The Lord Jesus described Jonah as a sign to His death, burial and resurrection (Matt.12:39-40). He also declares thus: “For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.” (Luke 11:30). So, we see clearly that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself was a sign to this generation (Isaiah 7:14). Evidently, God must have a grand purpose in all these.
However, it might be difficult trying to grasps the entire purpose of God in using men as signs but it’s always been effective. One thing we can easily observe about all the people God used as signs of the great things He was about to do, is that they were men who dared to take God at His Word and ventured the seemly impossible, leaving a legacy for generations to come! They became signs of God’s desired manifestation to an upcoming generation! Now, the Lord Jesus was a sign and a wonder to the world during His earth walk. Acts 10:38 tells us “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.” He came to show us the way of the New Creation and tells us that we are meant for even greater works than these (John 14:12). God wants us (believers) to be signs. Signs of what? Signs of the living Jesus (Mark 16:17). The calling of the Christian is a calling to re-present the living Jesus to our world! We are to be an express reflection of the Jesus of the Bible in the same way He expressly reflected the Father during His earthly ministry (Heb.1:1-3). We can then boldly declare that these are still the days of Jesus on earth, as long as the believers are still on earth. We are RE-PRESENTING Jesus to a world desperately in need of the real Jesus. We are to continue the ministry of Jesus! We are not only meant to preach Him but RE-PRESENT Him in character and power before men. This simply means when men meet us they meet Jesus Himself! We are for signs and wonders! Signs, wonders and miracles should be part of our identity everywhere we go in the same way they were for Jesus during His earthly ministry. This would only happen when we awake to this reality, taking up our responsibilities as signs and wonders to our generation!
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