Today’s Message ! You have Faith, Use it !
“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” I John 5:4 NKJV
The Bible says that every child of God defeats this evil world, and the only way we can achieve this victory through our faith.
Today we are going to keep on talking about the responsibility to believe and the responsibility that every Christian has to use their faith! I’m going to talk about the responsibility you have to make your faith grow!
Why is it that we don’t see as many miracles in churches today? When we read the Bible – it is full of miracles! God didn’t change, He is the same and I believe those same miracles are available to you today! But if we want to experience these miracles, we must understand what faith is and practice it!
Because of our lack of faith, God was prevented from acting on this earth as He used to act in the past.
It doesn’t only depend on God for Him to act here on earth.
For the Bible says “But my righteous one will live by faith”Hebrews 10:38. You have to live by your faith, not by your pastors faith, or your leaders faith.
“And without faith it is impossible to please God” Hebrews 11: 6
Would you like to please God? If you desire to please God, you need to make your faith grow!
Faith opens the door for miracles! But the lack of faith prevents miracles!
The Bible says “in Accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.”Romans 12:3
All of us received from God a measure of faith! Then you have faith.
“Your faith is growing more and more” 2 Thessalonians 1:3
Paul said to the church in Thessalonica: Your faith has grown very much! Is your faith growing ever more?
“I want to encourage you to fight hard for the faith that God gave his holy people.” Jude 1:3
Jude said you have to fight for this faith to grow! If the Apostles had strong faith, it was not because God had given an extra measure of faith to them! The Bible says that all received the same measure of faith. The faith that has been given once and for all! (To each one)
Did you know that Jesus couldn’t operate miracles in his hometown because of people’s unbelief?
“And he did not many of the miracles there because of their lack of faith.” Matthew 13:58
It does not say that he did not want to, but he was unable to do it because of their lack of faith!
And sometimes it’s easier to say: This is God’s will!
When God brought the people out of Egypt, he intended to get them to Canaan, to the promised land! But the Bible says that they did not enter because of their unbelief!
“So we see They were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.” Hebrews 3:19
Your unbelief can prevent you from entering the promise land and receiving what God has for you!
Many times we pass the responsibility of believing over to God.
Let’s have a look in the Bible to see how it’s our responsibility to believe.
17 “A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. 18 Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.” 19 “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” 20 So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. 21 Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered. “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” 23 “If you can?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” 25 When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit. “You deaf and mute spirit,” he said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.”” Mark 9:17-23, 25 NIV
The Father looks to Jesus for the deliverance of his son. Jesus was on the hill! The disciples try to set the child free, but they cannot! Jesus comes down the hill to find this all this confusion happening: Jesus asks, What’s going on?
The father says: I brought my son to your disciples but they could not set him free. The Father says to Jesus: But if you can, please do something!
“If I can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” Mark 9:23
Jesus said to the father: You came to the right place, with the wrong attitude!
You are transferring the responsibility to believe to others.
- you said my disciples could not do it!
- you’re asking if I can do it
- This responsibility is not mine nor my disciples!
- Everything is possible for those who believe. If you use your faith it is possible!
The responsibility of believing is ours, it’s yours and mine! We will not experience the best of God if we do not exercise our faith.
In Luke Jesus teaches again about the faith that moves mountains!
“The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” He replied, “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.” Luke 17:5-6
Jesus was talking about forgiveness: the disciples say to Him: ‘Lord increase our Faith’. As if it was God’s responsibility to increase their faith!
Jesus answers: If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will speak to the mountain and the mountain will obey you!
We must have faith LIKE A SEED!
Original Greek: faith with seed-like features! . He was not saying that a tiny faith will do it, that having a small faith works!
Jesus rebuked small faith several times! Do you remember? And Jesus praised people with great faith! Many times he said, ‘great is your faith!’
In another parable Mark 4 Jesus explains about the mustard seed:
“It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants” Mark 4:31-32
Jesus speaks of the multiplication power a seed has! It is small, but if you plant it, it will grow as every seed has great potential in it. We need to exercise our faith, we need to increase the measure of faith we have received!
When the disciples asked: Increase our faith, Jesus told them: you have to make your faith grow just like a mustard seed!
“You have to contend for the faith which was given once and for all” Jude 1:3 But many are waiting on God to do something!
They are waiting for an angel to come down from heaven to bring a faith package to them. You have received a measure of faith and in order to make your faith grow, you have to use the little faith you have received! “You have Faith, Use It” . Miracles happen when you use the faith you have!
“And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak” 2 Corinthians 4:13
Bible faith is made up of two main components, believing in the heart and saying with mouth.
Jesus said : “if you have faith like a mustard seed you need to say to the mulberry tree”
Faith comes by hearing and it is released by speaking.You must have both believing and speaking in order for your faith to work.
We see these same principles mentioned again in Romans in reference to salvation:
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” Romans 10:9-10
We get saved by believing and speaking and we’re supposed to continue to live our lives while exercising these same principles.
Mark 11:23 is very enlightening: For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Mark 11:23
Jesus did not say you would have whatever you believe, He said that you will have whatever you say (when you believe it in your heart).
Until your saying agrees with your believing, you aren’t exercising Bible faith or the faith that receives! It’s not enough to simply agree with the doctrines of the Bible, nodding your head in agreement as the preacher preaches on one of the powerful doctrines of the Bible is not enough. It’s what you’re saying day in and day out about that doctrine that determines what you receive.
You Have Faith, Use it, Faith Speaks !
Testimony: Years ago in Brazil I experienced a miracle – I had a motorcycle and the motorcycle ran out the fuel. I had no money to buy petrol. It was a Sunday and I had to go to church and I had to get a friend to bring him to church.
I remembered that Jesus said that “everything is possible for the one who believe and speak”. I prayed, put your hand on the motorcycle tank and the tank fills with petrol and I drove for to my friend’s house , collected him and he accepted Christ and born again that day.
I have also failed with my faith , but didn’t give up ! I fight for my faith by reading the Bible, praying, fasting, devoting myself to God!
I had to battle, I had to make my faith grow and I’m still doing it.
If we do not make an effort to increase our faith, we can miss out on what God has for us. You need to use the faith you have! You need to put your faith into action! I want to challenge you to use your faith this week! In any situation that might arise! When someone tells you they are sick, in pain, in trouble, you will ask them, can I pray for you?
The more you use your faith, the more miracles you will see. The more you do exercise, the more weight you lose, but if you do not exercise, you do not lose weight!
Faith is like a muscle – the more you use it, the more it increases in size!
While it does not grow, you still have to use it no matter the size it is!
Jesus said to that man: All things are possible to him that believes.
We all have faith. How do we use the faith we have? Jesus gives us the answer in His mustard seed analogy. He said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say…”. Just stop right there! The amount of the faith is not nearly as important as what you are doing with it. If you have faith and you are not saying, it’s not working! It doesn’t matter how much faith you have, for it to work, you have to speak. If you have faith, you can say, If you have faith you must say, if you have and you don’t say, it won’t work. Faith speaks! That’s what faith does.
But there are 2 problem with Christians:
1- they are too lazy to seek Good ! 2- they have no patience !
“We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised. Hebrews 6:12, 15
1- Lazy – people have time for everything but when it’s time to go to a meeting they are too tired, when it comes to prayer meeting they’ve no time.
2- Many Christians don’t want to wait , they have no patience !
We can’t be happy by living in the natural, the normal life. You have Faith, use it, Faith Speaks !
I want to challenge you to use your faith this week! In any situation that might arise!
The question is not what are you believing, the real question is what are you saying. You can have your believing 100% right, but if you’re not speaking your faith, it won’t work. You can not live in victory and talk defeat. You can not live in power and talk weakness. You can’t receive healing and speak sickness and disease. Faith believes and speaks!
Why do you need to use your faith ? Not only to receive blessing !
But in order for The Name of Jesus be Glorified ! For the people in Monaghan and Ireland and all over the world to know that Jesus is Alive , He lives in us and He is Lord of this Church ! He will receive all the Glory for all the miracles performed here!
Not everyone that I pray for is healed, but I have seen more results day by day. I will keep on growing and fighting for my faith. This is what you need to do. I want to challenge you to use your faith! Even if it’s small! Battle for your faith! Believe in the supernatural! Believe in miracles!
May the Lord bless you.