Let’s Fix Our Gaze On The Source Of Miracles And Blessings
“Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them.
Acts 14: 15, NIV
This is what Paul said when the people in Lystra tried to worship him and Barnabas after witnessing a miracle. Because they saw a supernatural thing, they thought that the god they believed in appeared to them in human form. They thought that Paul was Hermes and Barnabas was Zeus. They bowed down to them and attempted to offer sacrifices. Because of this, in the previous verse, it was mentioned that Paul and Barnabas tore their clothes as a sign that they disagreed with what they were doing.
They reminded them that they were just humans who had weaknesses and flaws. They tried to preach the good news to them hoping that they will receive the God that they believed in. But sad to say, the people in Lystra were to focused on Paul and Barnabas and not on the message that they carry. They tried to highlight that what they were doing were worthless things in the eyes of the living God. And they also emphasized that the God they believed in was the One who created the heavens and the earth.
This verse simply reflects those moments when people would receive a miracle or extraordinary things in their lives. They tend to focus on the vessel rather than God himself. They treated Paul and Barnabas as their idol thinking that they were the source of the miracles that they witnessed. But the truth is, God is the One who performed the miracles. It was all because of His goodness and grace.
May this scripture teach us a lesson to fix our gaze on the source of the miracles and blessings. We somehow fall in the trap of idolatry because we tend to worship the vessel, instead of God Himself. Let’s choose to focus on His goodness and love, and not on the things or people that He used to bless our lives.
Prayer: Father God, thank you so much for loving us. Thank you for teaching us to set our eyes on you. We pray that you will lead us closer to your heart, so that we may not focus on the vessel. Instead, we will learn to set our eyes on you. Please continue to remind us of who you truly are in our lives. Be glorified and magnified, Lord. In Jesus’ Name, we pray, amen.
