What I've Found: Signs & Wonders 4 (the rest of it...)

Unusual Signs & Wonders

As the narrative of Acts unfolds we see the believers performing signs and wonders. However, on occasion some of them are given “unusual ability” to perform signs and wonders. These unusual signs and wonders are seen specifically as being given to Peter and Paul.
Only twice to we see a reference to “unusual abilities” in Acts. Once is where Peter’s shadow falls on the sick and infirmed and they are healed and people bring out their sick and informed relatives to have his shadow fall on them. The indication of the narrative is that this wasn’t a continual activity. Paul also is given extraordinary abilities in Acts 19 to the point that aprons and handkerchiefs that he touched (that touched him) where taken to heal the sick and cast out demons. Again, in all the narrative we see of Paul, only once are such unusual signs and wonders mentioned as being done through him.
The rarity of these accounts indicates to me that they are truly unusual. Yet, they happened. And, they happened, not even at a certain turning point in the ministry of the church.

Reactions

Through out the New and Old Testaments we see the same reactions that we find in Acts 2:43: awe and fear.

Awe and wonder defined….
Even as we see the words “awe” and “fear” describing the reactions to these signs and wonders, we see that the results of the awe and fear are different. I see three results to signs and wonders in the Bible: the desire to embrace what God is doing; the desire to be distant from what God is doing; and the desire to gain earthly profit from what God is doing.
1. the desire to embrace what God is doing;
2. the desire to be distant from what God is doing;
3. and the desire to gain earthly profit from what God is doing.

21st Century Church

So then, how should the 21st Century Church do about the issue of signs and wonders?