I CAME across a book recently which might surprise or even shock you.

Someone commented on social media recently that when it came to the call of God on their lives, they were prepared to preach the gospel, pray for the sick and the demonised but raising the dead was a no-no.

You might remember that Jesus said, ‘Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near, heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received.’

He then felt God speak directly back to him not to water down the commission to his own level of belief, but to proclaim every part of it.

I gather the man repented and in fact was used thereafter to bring a little baby back to life.

All this stirred my interest and I have since been reading a book entitled ‘The Dead are Raised’ which gives many accounts of people through the ages who have been used to bring people back to life.

As a starter, when Jesus died on the cross, hundreds of tombs were opened and people came back to life and lived thereafter for quite some time. Many of them will have been dead for a long time which seemed to make no difference. Maybe hard to believe but documented.

I then read that our patron saint St Columba was used in raising people from the dead, as well as St Patrick in Ireland. Joan of Arc raised someone back to life, St Francis of Assisi raised both people and animals back to life and in your lifetime and mine, in Mozambique more than 600 people have been raised back to life.

There are some hair-raising stories in the book which in my heart lifts my belief systems to want to see that happen across our land as a sign of just how real God is.

I have wondered for quite some time when the last person in Scotland was raised from the dead and I cannot get an answer. So maybe it is just the time for that to happen.

As God’s people we should be used to miracles and I know personally of many accounts of healing and of evil spirits cast out of people and of buildings. But people being raised from the dead? Just maybe God is asking us to raise our level of belief so that He can work these greater miracles through you and me. Are we ready for that?