HAVE FAITH IN GOD

HH, Sir Godfrey Gregg D.Div

The more you drink in of the Bible, the more deeply you will realize the importance of faith. “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

So you cannot please God without real faith. And, generally speaking, the Bible makes it clear that God will not hear and answer your prayers unless you come to Him in faith: “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let, not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord” (James 1:6–7).

Like the other keys, we are to examine, building faith is accomplished by truly surrendering to let Jesus Christ live His life in you through the Holy Spirit! “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). So all of us need to constantly read the Bible, and drink in of the examples of faith and obedience set by the great men and women of God. In this way, we “feed” on Jesus Christ (John 6:57). We come to think like He thinks, wants what He wants. And, through the Holy Spirit, He increasingly lives within us as we grow spiritually. Thus united with Christ, we can have total confidence that God the Father will hear our prayers. And this absolute, unwavering confidence in God is what faith is!

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VISION: SEEING BEYOND THE PRESENT

Note carefully this vital teaching of Jesus Christ with respect to prayer and faith: “Have faith in God. 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. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark 11:22–24).

By continually drinking in of the Bible and praying for faith, you will find that your faith will increase more and more. Understand that living faith is produced by God’s Holy Spirit within us (Galatians 5:22–23). And Jesus said: “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:13).

God wants to give you these things if you humbly ask for them. So pray to Him continually to give you the faith you need. Learn to believe in the promises of God. Learn to believe that God is real—that He has perfect wisdom, perfect love and perfect power. Realize that He will keep all His promises! Learn to imitate Abraham, the father of the faithful (Romans 4:16), for he “did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform” (vv. 20–21). This is real faith. This is the attitude you must have to receive genuine answers to your prayers.