The Power of Faith

“And lo a voice from heaven saying This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17

“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily verily I say unto you Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name he will give it to you.” John 16:23

“If ye abide in me and my words abide in you ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you.” John 15:7

I grew up in New York in a loosely Catholic household. Attending Sunday school as a child I was rote taught the Apostles Creed. It goes like this:
I believe in God the Father Almighty Creator of Heaven and earth; I believe in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate was crucified died and was buried. He descended into Hell. On the third day, He rose again and ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit the Holy Catholic Church the communion of Saints the forgiveness of sins the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. Amen.

All Christians believe. We believe in God and we believe in Jesus and we believe in the Holy Spirit (John 11:27). And to us is given a measure of faith (Romans 12:3). The faith we hope will overcome all of our cares. We find peace and comfort in our faith but not the power we need to overcome.

Often we’re faced with obstacles; in our own lives and in the lives around us. As Christians, we’re called to pray for ourselves and for the welfare of others. We read the Word we offer prayers and supplication and hope that God hears us and will answer us. But many times we don’t see the answers we seek. If we want to see mountains moved (literal ones or the ones present in our lives) we need to understand the power of faith that brings miracles.

The key to seeing real success is believing that the power to active faith lives in the faith OF God. That is nothing less than the faith that our Father has in HIS Son. Everything God sent Jesus to do he DID. He was utterly obedient to his Father- even unto death. “And being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the cross.” Philippians 2:8. And why did he do this? For us. It’s always about us.

The beginning of all things; the beginning of Genesis is built on 6 days of creation. The Father gave the Son work to do and the work was done faithfully to the pleasure of the Father. Read Genesis chapter 1 for yourself. Every day the Word says (God gave instructions) “And God said” followed by (the work fulfilled) “and it was so” and each time it says (the Father was pleased) ” and God saw that it was good.”  And we read on the last day among other things he created man in his own image and at the end of it all the Scriptures say He looked on everything he had made and “it was very good.” Do you see it was very good? And who was all this done for? It was done for us.

The key to seeing real success is believing that the power to active faith lives in the faith OF God. That is nothing less than the faith that our Father has in HIS Son.

To us Jesus says:

“Again I say unto you That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 18:19

“And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name that will I do that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” John 14:13

“If ye shall ask any thing in my name I will do it” John 14:14

Of Jesus God says in the Gospels:

“Behold my servant whom I have chosen; my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased:” Matthew 12:18a

“While he yet spake behold a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud which said This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.”

“And there came a voice from heaven saying Thou art my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” Mark 1:11

“And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him and a voice came from heaven which said Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.” Luke 3:22

Clearly God the Father has complete faith (confidence) in His Son. He was faithful in ALL he was given. Jesus will do whatever we ask our Heavenly Father because he seeks to glorify his Father.

“And now O Father glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.“ John 17:5

“These words spake Jesus and lifted up his eyes to heaven and said Father the hour is come; glorify thy Son that thy Son may also glorify thee:” John 17:1

“Father glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven saying I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.” John 12:28

“Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Do you see this? Let your light shine. Whatever you ask of the Father in the name of the Jesus (your good works) seeing the manifested answer through the faith of God in His Son to answer to your request they will glorify God. Our faith in God, is His faith in His Son.

Smith Wigglesworth is one of my modern day heroes. The stories of his active faith are incredible to us but perfectly normal to a man of God (“Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead?” Acts 26:8). The work that he did he knew were only possible on a line of faith above his. He tells a story in which a young mother was oppressed by an evil power. And it’s clear that the faith OF God was called for:

He was asked to pray for a young woman who was oppressed by an evil power. At the house, he was taken to the room where she was. When he saw her Wigglesworth was moved with compassion. Some of the people present were holding her down on the bed. Her husband was also there holding a little baby. The whole atmosphere was charged with satanic power. Out of the corner of his eye Wigglesworth noticed another young woman creeping out of the room. The look in her eyes was dreadful. “I knew I was facing demonic activity” he later related. “Something had to be done.” He said “My faith began to penetrate the heavens. If you want anything from God you will have to pray into heaven. That is where it all is. If you live in the earth realm and expect to receive from God you will never get anything. “I saw in the presence of God the limitations of my faith. Then there came another faith-a faith that takes the promise a faith that believes God’s Word. And from that presence, I came back to earth a different man. God gave me a faith that could shake heaven.” (emphasis mine) In that faith he wrought total deliverance for that young wife. After sleeping for fourteen hours she awoke perfectly healed because Wigglesworth had been moved from the natural to the supernatural. SMITH WIGGLESWORTH: SECRET OF HIS POWER by Albert Hibbert

The next time you face a mountain in your life. Or you are asked to help with the mountain in someone else’s life. PRAY knowing that RIGHT THEN AT THAT MOMENT the faith of God is waiting to help you. HALLELUJAH and AMEN

i-CH