Faith Always Work - So What's Wrong With Me? Posted On January 22nd, 2012
Brethren, if we know that faith is a reality that should work every time, then why does it seem many times like it's not working? Why is it that many times the sick are prayed for and they don't get well? And many Christians continue to make requests to God but never receive? If your request is aligned with God's Word, and it is to advance His kingdom, and you are not living in sin, and you still don't have answers, then it's likely a faith problem. To answer the questions above, you have to understand in simple detail how faith works.
Faith inherently works by invoking the creative power of God to your reality. In this world, faith requires substance and evidence to manifest (Heb 11:1). Substance is “hupostasis” in Greek, meaning the ground work that needs to be done before you can receive. It usually is an action required on your part - for example, praying about a matter before receiving results, forwarding a CV before getting a job, etc. Evidence is “elenchos” meaning the receipt of the thing you are expecting but not yet physically seen. How can this be? Just in same way you make a purchase of heavy equipment and you are issued a receipt and then you go ahead to arrange for delivery, faith works likewise. Many people do well by making sure their faith has substance and they use specific scriptures as evidence and rightfully so (2 Tim 3:16) but fall short of believing. They think they believe but really they don't.
Believing is probably the most important aspect of the faith cycle and it is only proved by the reflex actions you take that others see after making your request known to God. Evidence requires believing just like the man's spirit has a soul; you cannot separate the two. When you pay for a heavy item, you know and believe you will get a receipt. If you didn't believe, you would have walked away from the cashier immediately you make your payments, but you don't! Why? Because you need your receipt before you can get your delivery. Again, faith is likewise.
In Mk 11:23-24, the LORD Jesus said whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe that you have received it, and then you shall have it. Very interesting. In Mk 9:23, He even said all things are possible to him that believes. What a powerful revelation that believing unlocks all impossibilities! Believing that you receive is the ‘evidence of things not seen' referred to in Heb 11:1 and it's the ‘receipt' that we mentioned earlier. Believing that you receive is the evidence that you have faith and your reflex actions thereafter is the proof of that belief. If your reflex actions are inconsistent with your faith, you have not believed. We will write to you on how to believe in our next letter. So then, our prayer focus really should be: Lord, how do I believe?
