Believing, It's Still Important
For many years now, we have grown disillusioned and disenchanted because of the movements that destroy our faith in the Lord. The Word of Faith movement is one such movement that has taken an out of balanced message and the results have caused the name of my Lord to be blasphemed, but not only this is true, BUT another more reaching affect has been occurring, and that is the HURT Christians as a result directly and indirectly!
The extremes have been surfacing, the EXTREME attitudes that naturally result from this un-balanced doctrine of faith. People don't believe that healing is for today because someone told them what to do, they did it, and then the laughter and mocking from the arrogant Word of Faith movement because the results they say will occur didn't happen. Then they go so far as to say, "You need faith! Your faith isn't strong enough!" Now you have another natural occurrence, these people are emotionally hurt because of this movement, and they blame all people that talk the Scriptures in the same way, a stereotyping that is understandable, BUT very wrong.
The Word of Faith movement happens to come from the Charismatic and Pentecostal segment of the church. So naturally when one is bad the other must be bad! The sad truth is clearly divisive and a cancer that threatens the very truths in God's Word. Now we have extremists claiming that Calvinists are faithless and on their way to hell while Calvinists are calling Pentecostals demon possessed fools that need a Bible transplant. Therefore, let's take a look at the Scriptures and apply some truth to our situations.
Ro 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Now there are two ways for this verse to be interpreted. First, Paul is a little bit upset because the Jew has heard the OT Scriptures, and they rejected Yashua haMashiach. However, as soon as we listen to the sarcastic approach, we must also look at the normal application of what Paul is saying. For a person to believe in something, they must have a messenger, and the messenger must have a message. If the message comes from the Scriptures, then in the message is an anointing that will cause faith to believe the message. Therefore the more we de-program from the world and re-program in the Word, our spirit is being built upon the truth. So again we see what Paul is saying! Ro 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
For the Word of Faith movement to make a big deal about faith is almost to slap the Lord in the face and tell Him that He is not able to do things correctly! Now I'm not trying to be nasty, but let's look at some more Scripture. Ro 12:3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. Mt 17:19-20 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?" So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. Lu 17:5-6 And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith." So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.
The Lord of glory has given each of us faith, and all we do is exercise that faith in His rightly divided Word to produce His desired purpose for His Word! The Word of god has a purpose and if we will align ourselves with His purpose, we'll do works even greater in number than our Jehovah Yashua! Isa 55:10-11 "For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. Jo 14:12-13 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son."
The false argument is made that Yashua is talking only to His disciples and therefore these verse have no application to us. When looking at the lack of power in the church world, the Calvinist may conclude this, and draw an emotional conclusion because of a lack of evidence. However this is a paper tiger that the Word of God not only tears apart but totally destroys with a exegeted Word. this is clearly NOT the case when we read the commission to His disciples! Mt 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. So the same things the disciples in the 1st century were taught by Jesus are to be taught to every believer. Therefore we go in that simple belief that what he said He meant and is just as true today as it was then.
Let's take a look at what the Lord did when He appeared to His disciples. People can attempt to refute belief, they can reject the definition of unbelief, they can even justify why they don't believe with their cynical comments of intellectualism, but the Word is still the Word. Just a short time ago I read a comment concerning child like faith and that person's desire to vomit if they heard about it one more time, but even the extremist's reaction of emotion to cover up their unbelief is revealed in their actions and comments. Mr 16:14 Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. Here it is the simplicity of His resurrection, but clearly the level of unbelief and the principle of rebuking that unbelief is needed when discussing any other passage in Scripture.
The truth is clear that unbelief is a serious problem. Unbelief does not even allow the Lord to do much with people. Look again at unbelief. Mt 13:58 And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief. Unbelief is honored by the Lord. People use the argument that the Lord doesn't heal today by their experience which was a time when they asked the Lord to prove He still heals. Then when they aren't healed, the assumption must be that the Word is for someone else. Thus the conclusion that the Lord only healed during the 1st century, and what is recorded about His Word was for the apostles. This is not merely false, but the leap based upon inexperience is based upon the premise of unbelief, meanwhile the Lord has chosen to move in the realm of belief, the realm of faith.
And again in Mr 6:6 And he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching. Jesus' heart is seen as He knows that things could be much different but because of the people's desire to reject based upon unbelief, endless intellectual questioning is hindering and stopping the will of the Lord. This has always been the truth about people.
People desire to be in the majority and to not be seen as one who is different. The results of this melt the hearts of people and the will of God is stopped once again. Look at this passage. Nu 13:30-32 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it." But the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we." And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. The unbelief melted the hearts of the people. The unbelief wouldn't let the will of God come to pass. The unbelief destroyed God's intentions for His people.
Unbelief is still destroying God's desire for the world, for His people, for those of His creation. God's desire is clear. 2 Pet 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. It is unbelief that stops people from having eternity in their future with the Lord.
The Lord has not and will not change. As He was in the OT, He is in the NT, and He still is the same today. It is His desire for His people to believe His Word, not intellectualize it away. It is His desire for His people to walk in His Spirit, and not the flesh. It is the Lord's heart for His people to receive the Gift of His Spirit, for His church to be empowered with the gifts of His Spirit, for His church to do His work of making disciples of all nations until He returns. Again look at what the Word says. He 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And look at this one. Mal 3:6 "For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob."
Now for those who want to question the power of God, the authenticity of His Word, the level of application of His truths should consider the logic of all this. If the Lord hasn't changed, if the Spirit of God is a Gift for those who will ask and receive Him, if the gifts of the Spirit will come from His Gift of the Spirit and healing is in those, then why doesn't the intellectual receive Him as the child of simple faith? If it is so simple to trace back the lack of receiving to the fact of unbelief for whatever reason, then one should logically change their mind and begin to accept the Word as it is written once again.
How ironic that all those who believe these truths receive and are Pentecostals, the ones who are lambasted and lampooned! Could it be the conscience is convicted? Could it be the Pentecostal represents the error of the dogmatist?
Am I saying that faith is the answer? Yes, but don't misunderstand me. I am not saying that if you have faith, then you are guaranteed your healing. I am saying that by not believing you automatically have eliminated any possibility of God's will to be done. Unbelief kills. Unbelief will destroy whatever shreds of belief you may have remaining in your life.
Accept what the Word says, don't rationalize, don't justify your position, don't eliminate passages of Scripture to support your belief, but trust the Lord and what He wrote for you. Embrace His love, His Spirit, and His Word in your life and let Jesus be Lord. Should some Pentecostal leave a bad taste in your mouth, don't let that affect the truth of the Word, and believe me that I, too, have a bad taste in my mouth.