Believers in the first church were proof-producers. When they went into a city, it was not just for preaching and teaching. Almost anyone can learn how to instruct someone else in the faith. These believers ministered the manifested power of God and produced the proof that Jesus Christ was still alive and their Lord was the true God.
That was the task of the early church. They had to convince a world that--although they had seen Jesus hungry, tired, weary, thirsty--He was truly the Son of the living God. They had to prove that although the people saw Him die, He was still alive. How did they do this?
-They produced the proof. -The Lord worked miracles through them that turned entire cities upside down.
-They went beyond blessing the people to demonstrate God's power.
Signs and wonders accompanied their ministries, just as Jesus had promised. The first such recorded incident after Pentecost was the healing of the lame man at the Gate of the Temple. This man had been lame from the time of his birth, yet:
...Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee; In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. (Act 3:6-9)
And you wonder why the people took notice? You question how the church grew daily in New Testament times? When the lame walk, the deaf hear, the blind see, and the sick are healed, do you think your community will take notice of what is happening at your church?
When people heard Jesus was in a house in Capernaum, a huge crowd gathered together. There was no publicity sent out, no media blitz. People heard about the miracles, and they came to experience the works of God (Mark 2).
Jesus is in your house! You have within you the same power Moses had when he stretched the rod of God across the Red Sea. You have the same power as Joshua, when he instructed the people to advance into the flooded Jordan River. You have the same power resident within you as did the Apostle Peter.
The miracles recorded in the Bible weren't Moses' miracles, Joshua's miracles, or Peter's miracles. They were God's miracles! God will work through you in the same way to produce the proof of His power to a lost and dying world. No matter what your destiny-- whether a preacher, businessman, or politician--you are called to be a proof-producer.
PRAYER:
My FATHER, My God, this year let my life reflect the blessing of the Lord, I shall not be static, I decree PROGRESS, FAVOR, HONOR, AND INFLUENCE are my portion. My life is SALTED, My speech is SALTED, My Home and Business are SALTED in the name of Jesus.