In the first missionary journey Paul and Barnabas went to Lystra. There they preached the gospel. One man was sitting who was crippled from his birth. Most probably a polio victim. He has not walked since birth. That man listened intently to Paul’s preaching, which was noticed by Paul. When he discerned through the Spirit of God that he had faith to be healed; he said: “Stand upright on your feet.” Instantly he was healed. However, they misunderstood the miracle and upgraded Paul and Barnabas to Hermes and Zeus, Greek gods. (Acts 14: 8-12) In fact, the miracle did not bring the intended result.
1) Mighty miracle: The men in Lystra intently listened to the message. Perhaps they understood too, as the crippled man did. Then they saw the miracle of crippled man walking.
2) Mistaken Identity: Source of power was their question. There was a legend that Zeus and Hermes once came to Lystra, as humans and none in the city recognized them. They were refused hospitality. One old couple entertained them. In anger, the gods destroyed the whole city and saved only the old couple. Because of this legend, they did not want to miss another opportunity of gods’ visit to their city. So, they showed excessive hospitality to Paul and Barnabas. They could observe power at work but could not understand the source of power.
3) Mistaken worship: They informed the priest of Zeus, who came with buffalo for sacrifice and garlands to honour the city gods. For them worship was sacrifice and feast. There was a majority consensus that the honoured guests were indeed god and should be worshipped.
4) Mischievous turn: Paul and Barnabas tore their clothes and forbade them to do that. Misled by Jews, they were stoned by the mob. It left Paul almost dead.
5) Marvellous God: God’s ways are amazing. In this melee was a young man Timothy who came to know Lord Jesus Christ and committed his life for mission. (Acts 16:1) Not the miracle, the suffering brought Timothy to the Lord.
Am I obsessed with miracles or diligently seek truth?