The Power Of Faith

The Power of Faith

{Audio: https://mega.nz/#!2dt2CIgJ!Fk614T_wlrlLdUcrKhXEIGApvQKGQ-CW-yoxiqSv64w }

Over these last several weeks we’ve been looking at the choices we have to start making, which started with our teachings on our journey towards Easter, and which roads we choose in life, and then our teaching last Sunday evening on what it’s going to take to recovery our Holy Spirit vision, passion, and guidance.

And while I’ve talked about the topic of faith quite often over the years I think it’s appropriate to address it once again, by looking at the power that faith has in and over our lives, especially during this critical time with this new pandemic that is sweeping across our nation and the world, where we need to be a people of faith, living our lives by faith instead of in fear.

There is something that we need to know as true, and that is God gives us power when we make right choices, and when we choose to live our lives in accordance with His word, will, and ways. And when we do, that is when He’ll give us additional power to live effective lives for His kingdom.

Many people, including Christians, ask, “What kind of person does God bless? What kind of person does God use? What qualities do these people possess?”

We ask these questions because deep down that’s the type of people we want to be.

God uses all kinds of people with different backgrounds, of various ages, economic status, languages, and ethnicity. But they all have this one thing in common, and that is they weren’t afraid to trust God completely, or what we call as having faith, and this faith produces enormous power for God’s greater purposes.

The Bible tells us that there’s a direct correlation between faith and power. The more faith we have in God; the more we allow God to direct our lives, then the more power and blessing we’re going to have.

We see this correlation when Jesus visits His hometown of Nazareth.

“He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” (Matthew 13:58 NKJV)

Notice the connection and correlation between God’s power and our faith! Because of their lack of faith, Jesus didn’t do the mighty miracles that He was able to do elsewhere.

The Bible, in essence, tells us that Abraham was the father of faith. The Bible tells us that Abraham was justified by faith (Romans 4:1-3), and God’s commentary on Abraham’s life shows us why. It is found in Paul’s letter to the Roman church.

“He (Abraham) did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God.” (Romans 4:20 NKJV)

Abraham never wavered in faith. God promised Abraham descendants as numerous as the sand on the seashore, or as the stars that are in the sky (Genesis 22:17), and yet it took over 25 years after this promise for Abraham to have his first child, and that was when he and his wife, Sarah’s, ability to have children was as good as dead, because Abraham was around 100 years old, and Sarah about 90.

But Abraham never wavered in his belief in God’s promise, even later on when God told Abraham to take Isaac, his only son, the one he waited 25 years for, and sacrifice Him. You see; God was testing Abraham to see whether or not he believed in the promise, or would he now vacillate in unbelief.

God never meant for any of us to go it alone in this world. God never meant for us to go through this life in our own power or with our own understanding. God has tremendous power just waiting and available for us to plug into, and faith is what plugs us into God’s power.

When Jesus told the disciples of their need to forgive those who wronged them as many times as it was necessary until the job of forgiveness is accomplished (Luke 17:4), the disciples knew that such forgiveness was virtually impossible within their own power. So they asked Jesus to increase their faith (Luke 17:5).

Today I’d like to look at four phases or steps for increasing our faith so God’s power can become evident in our lives, so we can tap into God’s power.

1. Believe God’s Dream

It all starts with a dream, or a vision if you would.

The Bible says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” (Proverbs 29:18a KJV)

This more literally translates, “Where there is no prophetic revelation of God, when there is no divine revelation, then people cast away from them all restraint going here and there without any clear meaning or purpose in life.”

It starts with a dream, with a vision, and it takes faith to see that dream or vision. So nothing happens until we believe in God’s dream, that is, His vision for our lives and for the church.