Sometimes, there are questions for which we don’t have answers. We worry about them and spend days trying to find solutions. But some questions require answers that only God can prepare. He allows certain situations to arise so that His answers can provide clarity and reveal His purpose.
Tamar decided to act in response to the unjust treatment she received from her father-in-law, Judah. She knew what she was about to do would be considered a grave sin, and she risked being condemned by Judah. Yet, to protect herself from her predicament, she came up with a solution. When Judah confronted her with accusations, Tamar had specific items in her possession to serve as evidence, answering his accusations and reminding him of his actions.
In the same way, God prepares specific answers to respond to certain questions. Let’s look at Exodus 13:9: “This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the Lord is to be on your lips. For the Lord brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand.“
In this verse, God instructs the Israelites to remember the festivals He established as signs and reminders. He says, “When you celebrate these festivals in the future, your children will ask, ‘Why are we doing this?’” And God’s answer is, “Tell them how the Lord delivered you.” These festivals, signs, and reminders were placed in the lives of the Israelites to answer questions from future generations.
Maybe this generation is the generation that asks a lot of questions. Inspired by science and technology, this generation has a tendency to ask a lot of questions. As believers, do we have the answers? Do we have God-given signs and reminders to show them? Giving theological and logical answers sometimes won’t be enough. Moses asked God how to respond to people who didn’t listen to him or believe that God had sent him. God gave him signs and wonders to show them.
Let’s turn to Ruth 1:19-20: “So the two women went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?” “Don’t call me Naomi,” she told them. “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter.”“
When Naomi returned to Bethlehem after losing her husband and sons, the people asked, “Can this be Naomi?” Naomi’s name means “pleasantness” or “delightful.” In a way, they were asking, “Naomi, you left Bethlehem in the hope of escaping famine. Did you find the pleasantness you sought? Is this the delightful state you were hoping for?” Naomi’s response was poignant—she called herself Mara, meaning “bitter.”
In our lives, there may be times when people ask difficult questions, and we may feel defeated, left with no choice but to admit, “Yes, I have become bitter.” They may question our ambitions: “Weren’t you striving to grow? Have you achieved what you desired?” In those moments, we may find ourselves without answers.
But let’s turn to Ruth 4:17: “The women living there said, “Naomi has a son.” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.“
The same people who once asked questions began to find answers on their own. They exclaimed, “Naomi has a son!” When this son, Obed, was born to Ruth and seen in Naomi’s hands, the people who doubted her identity as Naomi—“pleasantness”— started affirming it. They recognized that she was indeed worthy of her name. Obed, whose name means “worshiper of God,” became a sign of God’s restoration in Naomi’s life. In the same way, God often uses signs and wonders to answer those who question us.
Certain signs are given to avert danger. For example, God marked Cain to protect him from harm. Similarly, in the end times, we see marks that guarantee safety for God’s people. Today, we too bear spiritual marks—symbols of God’s covenant with us—that tell the enemy our story and prevent harm.
However, not all signs and wonders are meant to bring relief or be a cause for boasting. Sometimes, they come with challenges and hardships. God often called His prophets to perform difficult tasks to convey His message to His people.
Ezekiel and Jeremiah were both prophets who were commanded by God to perform challenging tasks. Ezekiel was instructed to lie on his side for a symbolic period to represent the sins of Israel. Similarly, Hosea was commanded to marry a prostitute as a powerful illustration of God’s love for His unfaithful people. These seemingly strange and difficult actions were chosen by God as a means of conveying profound spiritual truths to the nation of Israel.
Therefore, when God chooses to use someone’s life as a sign, it may involve suffering and hardship. Such a life can serve as an answer to others’ questions, demonstrating God’s work in tangible ways. It’s important to remember that not all signs and wonders are dramatic or awe-inspiring. Sometimes, the most significant signs are subtle and may even seem counterintuitive. Nevertheless, they serve as undeniable proof of God’s presence and power.
Even the devil can prepare certain signs and illusions to satisfy our questions, but we must be cautious and not believe them.
Genesis 37:31 -34: “Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood.They took the ornamented robe back to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe.” He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.” Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days.”
Joseph’s brothers sold him to traders, but they anticipated the inevitable question their father would ask: “Where is Joseph, the one who used to see visions?” To satisfy Jacob’s question, they dipped Joseph’s multicolored(ornamented) robe in blood and presented it to him, asking if it was his son’s robe. This created the illusion that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal.
In our lives, we too face similar questions: “What has become of the vision God gave me? When will His promises be fulfilled? Why are these things happening?” At such times, Satan often brings a “robe dipped in blood” as an answer—a deceptive sign designed to extinguish our hope.
The brothers of Joseph didn’t want Jacob to cling to any hope of Joseph’s return. They could have offered various excuses, such as, “He is lost,” or “We have not seen him,” but these explanations would have left room for Jacob to believe that Joseph might someday come back. Instead, they created a false narrative, trying to eliminate all hope by making Jacob believe that Joseph’s death was certain.
The devil works in similar ways in our lives. He seeks to stop us from asking questions, thinking, or hoping for good things. He tries to plant images—like the blood-stained robe—that are so vivid and gripping that they dominate our minds, robbing us of hope. Such deceptive signs can be so powerful that no words of comfort or encouragement seem to help.
Genesis 45:25-27: “So they went up out of Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. They told him, ‘Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt.’ Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them. But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived.“
The false sign Joseph’s brothers showed Jacob had such a strong hold on him that even when they later told him Joseph was alive, he didn’t believe them. It was only when Jacob saw the carts Joseph had sent that he began to believe.
The deceptive signs of the devil may have killed your hope and left you feeling lifeless, but when God starts to show His signs, everything changes. God’s signs revive lost hope and bring restoration. Just as Jacob saw the carts sent by Joseph and his spirit was revived, God’s wonders in your life will rejuvenate your hope and renew your strength.
As the Bible says, “The spirit of Jacob revived.” Signs and wonders from God have the power to revive lost hope in people’s lives.
Signs and wonders are not in vain; they are meant to revive hope in people’s hearts. They serve to erase the deceptive images planted by the devil in their minds. Jesus said that signs and wonders will accompany those who believe.
Mark 16:17-18: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name, they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.“
In His name, many signs and wonders will take place. Why? Because they answer the questions of those who seek, protect people from dangers, and break the bondages and illusions created by the enemy.
We must learn to wait on God for His signs and wonders. At the same time, we must make a firm decision not to believe in any image or illusion produced by the enemy. The signs and wonders of God are prepared specifically to address the questions of those who seek answers, to strengthen the weak, and to restore hope to the hopeless. Signs and wonders will accompany those who are kept in the QUIVER OF GOD.
