“And the Angel of the LORD said to Manoah, ‘Though you detain Me, I will not eat your food. But if you offer a burnt offering, you must offer it to the LORD.’ (For Manoah did not know He [was] the Angel of the LORD.) Then Manoah said to the Angel of the LORD, ‘What [is] Your name, that when Your words come [to pass] we may honor You?’ And the Angel of the LORD said to him, ‘Why do you ask My name, seeing it [is] wonderful?’ So Manoah took the young goat with the grain offering, and offered it upon the rock to the LORD. And He did a wondrous thing while Manoah and his wife looked on– it happened as the flame went up toward heaven from the altar–the Angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar! When Manoah and his wife saw [this], they fell on their faces to the ground When the Angel of the LORD appeared no more to Manoah and his wife, then Manoah knew that He [was] the Angel of the LORD.” Judges 13:16-21 NKJV
The Angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah and his wife to predict the birth of their son Sampson, one of the greatest and most notorious of all Israel’s judges.
I wonder if it were you or I this stranger appeared to with such wild predictions what would our reaction be? Would we have questions? Would we, like Manoah, want the stranger to stick around for a while so we could grill him to make sure of his credentials? Would we ask for his name? When he refused to give us a name would we be a little skeptical? Would our skepticism be burned away as the man stepped into the fire and rocketed into the air?
I wonder. I have been privileged to see miracles. I have been privileged to share the story of miracles with others. I have been saddened when rather than rejoicing with me people have opted for a more “scientific” explanation.
How often in our society have I heard “That’s not God! There’s a simple, logical explanation!”
How sad that as a culture we would rather have logic than Logos! We can’t even muster the faith of Manoah ( and folks he was not the epitome of a man of faith). I’m all for reason but when our reason separates us from the Lord it’s time to question it! Skepticism is not a fruit of the Spirit!
Reinventing the We'll 