Do You Really Have Faith?

Do You Really Have Faith?

Sunday, March 17, 2019

By Rev James May

Let us begin this morning by reading a very familiar verse to anyone who is a Christian. I know you’ve read this very often and yet its true meaning is often elusive, leaving you to think about what it says, and to consider how it really works in your life. I, for one, have given this simple verse a lot of thought. I have searched deeply for the full revelation of what it means, and I must admit that there is yet a lot to learn about it, and I have begun to understand one thing that is for certain. No matter how much I learn of it, no matter how much I understand of its manifestation, no matter how much I exercise it, there is always a greater depth of understanding and manifestation that is still to be revealed to me.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

The 11th chapter of Hebrews is then filled with examples of this thing called “faith”, and as I look at those examples, faith is revealed to be the central reason for either success or failure in the life of every one of us. We either succeed because of faith, or we fail because of the lack of faith.

But it is not faith alone, or should I say, it is not faith in faith that makes the difference. What really matters is where, or upon whom is your faith placed? How does faith manifest itself in your life in such a manner that it proves that it exists in you?

When it comes to faith, and the manifestation of God in our lives, faith can become something of a bragging point. We can begin to believe, and even claim to have more faith and be stronger than anyone else, as though we have some magical power of faith that moves God like no one else can do. But Paul, the Apostle, says that this is not right in the eyes of the Lord.

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Even in the early church the claim to fame of having great faith became a real point of contention because some began to think they were “more spiritual” than others and that made them of greater importance because they were blessed with a greater measure of faith than others.

The Apostle Paul tells us that faith is nothing more than “trust”. In other words, how much do you really trust God? We all have a certain amount of trust for it is a God-given measure for every one of us. But how much we trust then depends upon our perception of Who God Is and what we believe about God’s dealing with ourselves on a personal basis.

The thoughts come to mind like, “I see God moving in someone else’s life to do great things, but will God move in my life the same way?” I hear people saying that, “I must be lacking in faith, or lacking in trust in the same measure that someone else may be, because I see God moving in them in such a special way, and I see God using others, but not me; and I see God’s anointing upon my brother and sister, but where is that anointing upon me? What am I lacking? Why is my faith, or my trust, not as strong?”

If you’ve ever asked those questions in your heart, then it’s not a lack of faith that you have, but it’s a misunderstanding of how faith works, and it may come from a lack of trust in the Lord and his word.

I believe that if I were to ask every one of you right now, “Do you really trust God, and Do you really believe that he will fulfill his word and his promises”, that there would not be one person in this room who would not say strongly that “Yes, I do believe! And Yes, I do trust God!”

With that being your answer, why then do you question whether you have the faith to move mountains? Why then do we begin to think that we have not what it takes to raise the dead in the name of Jesus, or see miracles, signs and wonders in the name of Jesus, or why are we often feeling so much like we lack the faith we need to be like those early Apostles and disciples who saw God move in such miraculous ways?