As the Apostle Paul approached the end of his earthly life he was able to say these words: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7). The question I have to ask myself is, will I be able to say the same?
The Scriptures are very clear about the importance of faith…
…without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. —Hebrews 11:6
Faith is important to God; it pleases Him. We see here that there are two key things that we must believe about God: that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him with all of their hearts. There are great rewards in pursuing God!
The importance of faith is underlined by the fact that Jesus was always on the lookout for faith and celebrated it whenever He found it. We have the example of the Centurion who sought healing for his servant who was desperately ill. Jesus was willing to go to his home, but the centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. (Matthew 8:8) When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” (Matthew 8:10)
Then there was the Canaanite Woman who sought deliverance for her demonized daughter – Jesus seemed to be terribly rude to her, but she persisted. Finally, he said, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." (Matthew 15:28). Jesus will still be looking for faith when He returns. He asks the question: “...when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8)
When you travel to a foreign country you need to exchange your local currency into that of the foreign country in order to be able to trade. I call faith “the currency of the Kingdom”. We need it to be able to do business in the Kingdom of God, to be able to trade. It’s the means by which we’re saved, by which our prayers are answered, healing is appropriated and demonic powers are defeated. This is confirmed by the following two Scriptures:
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. —Mark 11:24
If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. —James 1:5-8
The message is clear: if we have faith in God our prayers will be answered. However, if we doubt, we should not think we will receive anything from the Lord.
I have two similar sayings which sum up the importance of faith:
“Great faith honours God and God honours great faith”
“God puts no limits on faith and faith puts no limits on God.”
Let’s not limit God to the dimensions of our finite minds!
For nothing is impossible with God. (Luke 1:37).
Notes
This is an excerpt from the book “Going Against Goliath” (How to fight cancer and win) by Philip Robson.
Available from Amazon as a Paperback, Kindle or Audiobook: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1637460317/
Available from your favourite store: https://www.kharispublishing.com/going-against
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