The Secret Sauce – Prayer & Fasting Part 7
We’re in our series called the Secret Sauce- Prayer and Fasting. We’re going to put a bow on this today. This is part seven that is talking about prayer and fasting, the secret sauce. We started the year with our prayer and fasting for 21 days and we’ve been talking about prayer and what that means. So if you’ve got your worship guides, pull those out, your sermon notes are available on there. You may want to follow along, or if you use the YouVersion Bible App, you can follow along on there as well. The sermon notes are available on those platforms. Everyone get your Bibles out. We believe and we’re convinced that every time we open the Bible, God wants to speak to us, Mt. Carmel Church. So we get excited about opening up and hearing what he has to say to us. So if you have your Bibles today, let’s open them up to Matthew chapter 21. Whew!
We want to take the Mystique out of having a Prayer Life
Matthew 21, we are happy about God’s word. We’ve been talking about prayer, and I’ve been giving you the basic principles for establishing prayer in your life, and maybe your prayer life is just out of the universe. It’s been fantastic. Maybe you’re a little intimidated by prayer. Maybe you’re not sure about prayer. Maybe you like God is good, God is great. I don’t even know that one, I need to learn that prayer. That was pretty complicated. You know what I’m talking about, praying about your food and yeah, let’s butcher that. Let’s rewind that. I don’t even remember what he says. Anyway, you might have your prayer life and it is whatever. We’re online, we’re recording like this is life. This is great, so but wherever your prayer life is, maybe it’s as bad as mine is. We want to take a little bit of mystique out of it and help you connect with God, Mt. Carmel Church.
We’ve been talking about some basic principles when and where to pray. Set a time and a place. I pray that you’re doing that every day. You set a time and a place that you connect with God. Well, how long do I have to do it? I don’t know how long you just start, and give him 10 minutes, or give him 15 minutes, whatever it is. You set a time and place where you pray, nothing else. Number two was about praying word-based prayers, Mt. Carmel Church. We pray God’s word back to him, not just what we want, but it’s what he’s already said to us. And then how do we pray? We pray boldly and we pray believing. We talked about Hebrews chapter 4 verse 16. It said, we, therefore, come boldly to the throne of grace. We come how? We come boldly.
God Honors Bold Prayers, because Bold Prayers Honor God
So we coming and we aren’t backing’ and down, right? Well you coming, and we coming. So we’re praying bold prayers. We’re believing that maybe you have this in your insert in your worship guide, we’re talking about how to pray bold prayers. We believe God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God. Let me say that again. We believe that God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God. It’s like praying prayers that only he can meet. So we gave this little bold prayer list for you and here’s what I’m challenging you. We talked about this on the first Wednesday. Maybe you weren’t able to be here. I spoke about Abraham and Sarah and how God told Abraham and Sarah, I remember there were 90 and a hundred years old, and he told them, he came and spoke to them, and said, “Hey, you guys are going to have a baby.” And they were like laughing. They laughed a lot. They were like…You wouldn’t be laughing if somebody told you when you’re 90 years old, you’re going to have a baby, but you’d be laughing too. So, they laughed Mt. Carmel Church. Yes, I may be crying. Cry and laugh. It’s kind of a cycle.
Anyway, so we have pray bold prayers, and here’s what I’m asking you to put on your list this year. I want you to pray, but I want you to spend some time, think about this, and I want you to write down some things that you’re believing God for, that you’re praying for, not a Christmas. This is not a Santa Claus wish list. These are things that God’s told you, promised you in his word, that you want to believe for, for your family, for your finances, for your health, whatever. I want you to write down prayers that if you told someone, it would make them laugh. That’s how bold I want you to go. That if you told somebody what you’re praying for, they’d be like, “Wow, whatever you think.” I want you to write down that coworker that no one thinks would ever get saved. I want you to write down that friend at school that no one thinks that it will ever come to church, Mt. Carmel Church.
I want you to write down that health issue or that financial issue, that marriage. I want you to pray bowl prayers, and put it somewhere where you see it sticking in your Bible because we’re coming boldly to the throne of grace. Somebody say, “We coming.” Habakkuk 1:5 says this, look among the nations and watch. Be utterly astounded for I will. This is God talking for. I will work a work in your days, which you would not believe though it were told you. I believe God saying this. Even if God told you what he wants to do in your life, you wouldn’t believe it. That’s how big God dreams. He dreams big. So he says, “This is why I want you to start praying.” So we’re excited about that and want to give you a quick heads up for next week. We’re praying bold prayers at The Roads Church.
We’re believing that we need to make room for more people. We’re praying bold prayers because we’re believing for more locations. We’re praying bold prayers to because we’re believing more people need to come to know Jesus as their savior. So here’s what we’re doing. The next two weeks we’re going to be renovating the auditorium where you’re sitting in. Now we’re making some room where we cut back the stage, and we are changing the sound booth a little bit. We’re going to be installing a new sound system, new screens, and new projectors. We believe some of these changes. We’re going to be able to get as many as 60 extra seats in this room. So we’re going to be doing that for the next two weeks. So guess what we’re going to do for the next two weeks? We’re all going to the overflow room. So if you’ve never been past the cafe foyer to the overflow room, next Sunday is your Sunday. You may want to invite somebody Mt. Carmel Church.
If you’re watching online, you need to be here next time. We’re all going to gather together in the overflow room and we’re going to pack everybody in there. We’ve got plenty of room. We’re going to make it work. It’s going to be an exciting time because then March 1st we’re going to come back in here and you’ll be like, “Whoa!” It’s going to be different. So we’re excited about that. So tell your friends, tell your neighbors, tell your enemies, tell everybody to come next Sunday. Be a part of it. If you found Matthew chapter 21 yet, we’re excited because God’s making room for more people at The Roads. We’re excited. We’ve have changes coming to Mount Carmel, too. We’ll be back in Mount Carmel tonight. We got new things coming there, so we’re just pumped about what God is doing.
Let me start. Let’s go. Matthew 21 verse 18 says, now in the morning (it’s talking about Jesus.) As he returned to the city, he was hungry and seeing a big tree by the road. He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves and he said to him, let no fruit grow on you ever again. Immediately the fig tree withered away, and when the disciples saw it, they marveled saying, how did the fig tree with her way so soon? So Jesus answered said to them, assuredly, I say to your truth, I say to you or pay attention. This is the truth. What I’m getting ready to tell you. If you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what is done to this fig tree but also if you say to this mountain, be removed and be cast into the sea. It will be done.
Praying Believing
And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing you will receive. Let’s pray. Father, I thank you for your word. I thank you, Lord that it is life to those who find it and health to all of our flesh. I pray Holy Spirit that you would just bring it to life in a way that we understand what you’re speaking to us. I pray that it will burn in our hearts today. God, Lord, you said that you will sanctify us for set us apart by your word. Your word is truth. I know what I think he said that we would know the truth and the truth will make us free, so Lord, I thank you for those watching online, those listing by CD, those watching on YouTube Lord. I praise you. Those watching right here in the auditorium that your truth will set us free today for the glory of God, Mt. Carmel Church. It’s in Jesus’ name we pray. Somebody say amen.
All right. We’ve been talking about praying bold, and praying, believing. This is the last installment on this series. We’re talking about praying believing. Look here in verse 21 of chapter 21 Jesus had just cursed the fig tree, withered away. And they asked him how did this fig tree wither away? And so Jesus answered and said to them, assured lad, say to you, if everybody says if you have faith and do not doubt. So here’s what I want you to do today. I want you to listen to it. I want you to open up your heart. My wish is for you to understand with clarity what God is saying. My part, If you’re new to me, my part as a presenter, as a preacher, as a speaker, whatever you want to call it, is to never entertain or for you to be impressed with me, Mt. Carmel Church.
If we don’t understand the Word, we can’t apply the Word
But I want for you to have this moment during the sermon when you’re like, it comes to you and it makes sense for you to understand the words. Because if we don’t understand the word, we can’t apply the word. You can be entertained by performance and it never changed your life. But I’m praying for the word to come alive in your heart where you’re like, “Oh, I get it. I get it.” So that’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to break this down and I’ll teach you a little bit about it because I want us to understand, praying. What does praying believing mean? Does it matter if I pray believing or does this matter? Just if I’m praying. So praying, believing. Here’s what he says. If you have faith and do not doubt. So the word if is conditional, I gave you the definition there in your notes according to Webster, but I also have it on the screen for you.
It means if or allowing that on the assumption that or on condition that. So if, if you have faith and do not doubt. So it is saying if you have faith and do not doubt allowing that is in the assumption that on the condition that these things happen. So if this part has to come first, if that word, if it is a conditional statement. So if you have faith and do not doubt. So if you have what if you have everybody say faith. Faith. What does it mean if you have faith? Here’s what the word faith means: to believe, to the extent of complete trust and reliance on to be firmly persuaded. To have faith does not mean that you have what you can want, something to happen and it not be faith. Faith according to this Greek word means to believe in or trust in and to be firmly persuaded as you rely on something like you’re convinced that’s what it means to have faith.
If you are firmly persuaded, you’re, you’re thoroughly convinced of something to have a complete reliance upon. One example, and I tried to think of a lot of examples we could use. One thing might be that like something that is so common, or you’re so used to doing something that you just become so infrequent, like even flipping a light switch. How many of you when you go into a room, flip the light switch. You just assume it’s going to come on. Like you don’t sit there as you’re getting ready to switch it and go, “Oh Jesus, come on. Oh, I pray today.” We flip on the switch. We’re already halfway in the room before the bulb. You’re like, what happened? You’re shocked. Here’s the exam. Faith is when you’re shocked when it doesn’t happen. Like when that light doesn’t come on in your life, you’re trying to figure out why.
Because it always comes on, right? But that’s kind of an illustration of how faith works. He says if you have faith, so we will know faith is alive in us by our actions. How do I know if I have faith? My actions will tell me. James chapter 2 says this, verses 19 and 20, if you say you believe that there is one God, you do well, even the demons believe and tremble. But do you want to know foolish man, that faith without works is what? It’s dead. Faith without works is dead. So how do I know that faith is alive in my heart? You’re asking, “Well Chad, how do I know if Jesus said, if you have faith, how do I know I have faith?” Well, he says your actions and your words should line up with what you believe.
Faith is when my Works Support what I Say
If my actions say one thing and my words say something else that’s not in faith yet. Faith is when my works are supporting what I say. I believe if I say I believe that this is going to work out, but then I go over here and I bad mouth it and I talk about it and I say it’s probably never going to work then I’m not in faith yet. I’m in want. To make the transition into faith is when my actions start to line up and I truly treat that person like I believe by faith that they are true. I treat my marriage like I’m believing for it to be not according to how it feels. My actions have to line up. I’m just believing God thing’s going to turn around in my marriage. Okay, well how are your actions lining up? What’s your belief?
Do you go out and tell people that your spouse is terrible. I don’t know what’s wrong. So my words are my actions. So if I’m in faith, he said, faith without works is dead, so if I’m in faith, if I know faith is alive, my actions are going to support it. So he says, if you have faith, what does that mean to have it? There’s this little bit of grammar, but I think it’s important for us to understand the word have. There is a verb. If you have faith, it means to hold or possess to control over the use of. It’s a present active tense verb. So when it says you have faith, it means it is present tense, active. That means you are, actively working in it right now or you are in a state of being, Mt. Carmel Church.
You have entered a place where faith is active in your life. You’re not hoping to get it, but if you have faith, Jesus says, that means you hold it, you possess it, you have control of it in your life. This is what he’s talking about. Present tense, the act of faith. There’s not. Jesus says we have to live, present tense, the act of faith. We’ve got to have faith. What kind of faith do we got to have when I’m firmly convinced and persuaded and it’s active in my life. All right, everybody says active. That’s what have faith means. I mean, it’s has to be active. So now if he says, if we can have it, that also means it’s possible not to have it. Are you tracking with me? If he says, you have faith that means it’s possible to not have faith?
Look what it says if we don’t have it. Hebrews chapter 11 verse 6 this says, for we know, without faith it is impossible. Everyone say, “Impossible.” 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. So without faith. So it is possible to not have faith. Without faith, it’s impossible to please him. It’s impossible. You can’t do it. Now, when you read this, be careful. Maybe you’re like me when I read this initially, I think it’s impossible to please God. We think that it means in the context of either making him happy or mad. Like, if I don’t have faith, God’s going to be mad at me. That’s not what it means. It doesn’t mean that if I don’t have faith, God is going to be mad at me, or if I don’t have faith, God’s not going to be happy.
That’s not what it means. God’s already made up his mind how he feels about you, Mt. Carmel Church, whether you have faith or not.
Without Faith it is Impossible to Experience Everything God has for your Life
He loves you. He’s not waiting to see if you have faith to decide how he feels about you. He’s already convinced that he’s crazy about you. So what that means, impossible to please him, is not about whether I’m keeping him from being mad or not, but it means whether I can experience everything he wants me to experience or not. Without faith, it’s impossible to please him means, I can’t experience everything God wants to be, to have because some things that God wants you and I to experience requires faith. So without faith, it’s impossible to please him. I understand what that means now that without faith, I’m never going to experience everything that God has for my life. In other words, there are certain places in your life you’re just going to have to believe God.
You’re going to have to trust him by faith to walk in the things that God has for you. It’s going to take faith for you to step in the door. You’re not going to be able to please him. You’re not going to experience what he has for you. Does that make sense to everybody? Without him, and faith, you’re not going to be able to please him. But notice the next part he says, he who comes to God must believe. So we’re coming to God. We must believe. We can think. This verse means that if we have enough faith, then God will do something. We can think, okay, and sometimes people have been taught this and I want to correct some things that maybe been erroneously taught or erroneously understood about the kingdom of God. We’ve thought sometimes that if I have enough faith, it will get God to do something that if God didn’t do it, it’s because I didn’t have enough faith for it so he didn’t do it. I want to correct some wrong theology. It is theologically incorrect to think that what God does is tied to our faith and here’s what I want to explain. If that was the case, then we would have a say what God does or does not do. We are not that big.
Faith is the Currency of Heaven
We need to bring ourselves down a pay grade. My faith doesn’t tell him what to do. My faith doesn’t make him do. He does what he does based on his will. Faith doesn’t make him do. Faith connects me to receive what he’s already done. Faith doesn’t impress God so that he will act. God acts and allows us to receive by faith. We’ve thought sometimes if I just pump up my faith, then God will do something. No, it’s wrong. God’s deciding what he wants to do based on his heart and based on his will and based on his word. So my responsibility for faith is not to get him to do, do, but to receive what he’s already done. Let me illustrate it for you. God spoke this to me and maybe it’ll work and it’ll connect faith. Maybe you’ve heard someone say, “Faith is the currency of heaven.” Maybe you’ve heard it said like that. Let me give you an illustration. Your faith. If you were going to compare your faith to currency or money, let’s talk about the store. Let’s talk about the grocery store.
Did your money, I. E. faith, put those groceries on the shelf? So were they waiting to put the groceries on the shelf there? Were they waiting to see how much money you had before they put it out there? No. Your faith had nothing to do with what was made available or your money had nothing to do with what was made available to grocery stores. The grocery store decided what was available. Now what you do is give them money and that money allows you to take what was theirs into your possession and you can take it home. So your money didn’t provide the options, but your money makes the exchange to receive what’s already been provided.
Yeah, so now I understand this with faith. My faith doesn’t make God make things available. He makes things available by grace. He makes things available by his heart, and by his will. My faith just puts it in my cart. Yeah, you’re processing. That’s all right. It took me a while to get it to this. Imagine this. When I go to the store, I was just there. I’m pushing my cart down the aisles. The manager was not walking down the aisle with me putting stuff in my cart and saying, “This is what you will eat tonight.” He was not saying, “You need this, you need that. You need that.” He put it all out there available. She put it all out there available. But it was up to me to decide what I wanted that was available on the shelf and put it in my cart. Yes, that’s what I decided to receive. There could be things available on the shelf that I chose not to get, but it doesn’t mean it wasn’t available. Right?
There was somebody else coming behind me, they wanted that. They grabbed that on the shelf that I passed by. This is why we have to understand our faith, that whenever we come to God, that this, right here, is our grocery store of the promises of God. And so whenever we come through here, we’ve got to realize that when we release our faith to believe that we are receiving everything that God has for us. He’s not the one determining what we put in our cart. We are receiving it by faith. Is that connected with you? So too many times we think that God’s supposed to put things in our cart whenever we need to realize he puts them on the shelf.
He just puts everything on the shelf for you. He says, here it is. Now you bring your cart along and by faith you receive. It’s easy, he’s already made it available. So my faith is not making God do something for me. He’s already done it. He’s already provided for me and we’ll connect with this. I hope you see what we’re talking about. So he says, if we have faith and do not doubt. What does it mean to doubt? That means to be separated in contrary directions. You have two different opinions. James chapter 1 says that we ask in faith with no doubting for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea tossed and driven by the wind. And that person is double-minded and unstable in all their ways and let not that person think they’ll receive anything from God.
So it tells us when Jesus said, if you have faith and do not doubt, what is he teaching us? He’s teaching us how to receive from God. Now, this is why sometimes we’ll gravitate towards a theology or teaching that says, you know what? I just push my cart and God just puts in there everything that he wants and I’m telling you, that’s why we don’t receive everything that God has for us. We’ve got to grab it off the shelf by faith and receive it. God’s already provided it for us, but he says, “Don’t doubt, don’t doubt.” That means that I don’t vacillate between two opinions. Double-minded means I believe God will do it in one sense, and then I don’t believe he’ll do it on the other and not go back and forth and back and forth, and he says, you will not receive what God has for you because you can’t settle on one position.
We can’t be Double Minded
You’re not convinced yet. One day you think it’s going to happen, the next day you don’t think it’s going to happen. You’re double-minded and he says, you will not have present active faith as long as you’re double-minded. It’s not to beat us up, it’s to teach us what to do. But when I’m double-minded, I’m like, wow, “I have to get my mind single-minded. I have to get focused on what God says and tell that doubt to get out. I’m believing God.” He said, if you have faith and do not doubt, look at what happened. Jump down to verse 22 if you have faith and do not doubt and whatever things you ask in prayer, believing you will receive whatever things you ask in prayer. Believing, that word, believing is the same word for faith. It means to believe to the extent of complete trust. So whatever things you ask in prayer, believing you will receive. What does receiving mean again? Receiving is where you accept something where the initiative is on the part of the giver, but the transfer is on the part of the receiver. In other words, somebody makes it available. Last week I used the donuts. This week I’m talking about the grocery store. I’m all about the food.
There’s somebody who makes it available, but the transfer is on your side to receive what they’re giving you. This is what he’s telling us, whatever things. So let’s put the verse together. If you have faith and do not doubt, if you have present, active, firmly, convinced, firmly persuaded faith, and you’re not double minded, you’re not wavering, then whatever things you ask in prayer that you believe that you’re convinced of, those are the things you will receive. Those are the things you will grab hold of, the things that you aren’t convinced yet. You won’t grab hold of it even if you still want. Am I making sense to you? If I’m walking through the store and I see a new product, a new type of food, if I’m not sure how it’s going to taste, I’m probably not going to take it off of the shelf. If I go to a restaurant. I’m trying to find any way I can and I’m using food for all my illustrations because I’m hungry, Mt. Carmel Church.
Have you ever went to a restaurant and looked at a menu? Or do you go to a place and get the same thing every time you go to that same place because you know you like it. Come on, raise your hands, you know? Yeah, there are a bunch of the things on the menu. There are lots of other options. But you know, if you go there and get what you like, you know you’re going to like it. So you’re like, “Man, I hate to risk it and try something new.” What if it’s bad and you wasted your chance to get what you know you like. I can name you three or four places right now that I’ve never wavered off of the same thing because I like it so much and I’m just not sure what will happen if I risk it. And what if it’s not good?
Let’s put that to the kingdom of God. There are certain things that we’re convinced of and we’ll receive from God. There are certain things that we’re not sure about so we don’t receive it. There are certain things we know God wants us to have. We’re convinced by faith. Let me give you some examples. We’re going to receive these things. How come? It’s because we understand this. As for forgiveness of sins is concerned or salvation is concerned. Let’s bring up Ephesians chapter two and we’ll use the example about this that I think it is something we can use that will convince you. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 8, notice what it says, for by grace. Everybody say, “By grace.” By grace you have been saved through, through what? Through faith. That’s not of yourselves. It is the gift of God. By grace, you are saved through faith. So, let me ask you this question. It is a very important question. Are you ready? I’m trying to phrase it the right way so you won’t think it’s a trick question. I don’t want to make these questions hard. I want to make it easy to understand. Did God wait to save you based on your faith? How are you saved? By grace? Did God, let me say it this way, did God wait for your faith to forgive you? No, he already made up his mind to forgive you. He provided forgiveness through grace. It’s a gift to you by God. Your faith doesn’t get God to forgive you. He already forgave you by grace. But how do you, or how do I receive that forgiveness? You see, my faith doesn’t make God forgive me. My faith receives what God’s already done by grace. I’ve been saying so. If we understand that for the forgiveness of sins, how come we don’t understand that and apply that to every other area of our life
We have to Receive God’s Grace by Faith
I’m on because the gospel has been preached for so many years and so well that people believe that if I just pray, if I believe in my heart and I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord, I will be saved and they have faith in that. They just believe it. They just believe it’s possible. If I just pray, God’s going to forgive me and I’m going to be saved. Their faith grabs that off the shelf. Yes, salvation is available by grace. You have to grab it. You’re like, “Ah, I believe that I’m going to heaven.” How do you know you’re going to have it? Because I believe. How do you know you’re going to heaven? You don’t look have to me. How do you know? By faith I receive it. Understand that. Well, how about we go over to aisle three? Come on now. Some people never go past aisle three. They receive salvation, the forgiveness of sin by faith. But when God says, that’s great, but that’s just the door, right Mt. Carmel Church?
I want you to go to aisle three and see what else I have for you. Or maybe open curtain number three. Or curtain number four. Let’s make a deal. Too many times in our life, we don’t go past that though. We’ve got faith to receive that, but we think that everything else, is just up to God to give us, and I’m telling you, there is more to it that we have to receive through faith. Let’s bring up the scripture. Let me show it to Romans chapter 1 verse 16 says, for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for it is the power God unto salvation, to everyone who women are. No, no, no. Surely that’s right to everyone who, so salvation is limited to who? To those who are that limited to them because it’s not available or is it limited to them because they don’t receive?
They believe salvation is available to everyone, but not everyone’s going to receive it. Not everyone’s going to believe it. Salvation to everyone who believes for the Jew first and also to the Greek. Go to the next verse, verse 17. For in the gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed. Hold up, revealed, what does that mean? Revealed is revealed. The righteousness of God is revealed. What does that mean? I keep asking and Chad, you’re not answering me. What does it reveal? It means it’s already there. You just haven’t seen it yet.
The righteousness of God is revealed from faith. Hold up. I hope you’re catching this. I’m dropping bombs here. I just want you to pick up on this. See, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith by faith. It’s not that my faith makes God do for me. It’s my faith that causes me to see what he’s already done. I’m going to see more of what God has already provided for me when I trust him by faith. If I don’t believe there’s anything beyond aisle two, he can’t show me aisle three he can’t show me all 27. It’s revealed from faith to faith because it is written the just shall live by faith. So how are we going to experience everything God has for us? By faith, you’ve got to believe it. Most of the time, and I get it, I realize I’m not speaking to everybody because not everybody is going to engage in this.
Most people will fall back to the theology of just, you know what? If God wants me to have it, then I’ll have it and I don’t have any responsibilities here whatsoever. That’s much easier. It’s a much easier way to live. I have no responsibilities in my life. If God wants it to happen, it’s going to happen. If he doesn’t want to happen, it’s not going to happen. So we will just default into that and call ourselves good, but we will never experience everything that God has for us because we’re not walking by faith. That’s not to condemn us, and not to make us feel bad about ourselves, it is to give us the formula, the pattern, to experience everything that he has for you. Let me close with this. Let me give you a couple of examples. The woman in Matthew chapter 9 with the issue of blood.
She said she came behind Jesus and touched the hem of his garment for she said to herself, if only I may touch his garment. Notice how she, in faith, notice her actions and her words. If only I may touch his garment. Notice how she was persuaded. Notice how she was convinced and what she says, I shall be made. Well, was she in faith? Did her actions prove it? She pushed through the crap and she said to herself, if I only may touch him and it’s gone. No, it’s what she didn’t say. She didn’t say, well, I’ll go through and I’ll touch his garment. We’ll just see what happens. No in faith. She said this is what’s going to happen when I touch the hem of his garment. I shall be made whole. Well now whether you believe that or not, she believed it.
She walked through that. She pressed through the crowd. She went down on the bottom shelf of the store and said, “I’m going to pull me some healing out.” Did she get it? Look at what it says. Jesus turns around and when he saw, he said, be of good cheer daughter. Your faith has made you well. You’re like, “Oh, see, see right there. Her faith caused Jesus to heal her.” No, no, no. It didn’t. No, it didn’t. Because if you read this another place in the Bible, Jesus said he didn’t even know who it was. He asked, “Who touched me?” So it wasn’t her faith that caused him to heal her. Her faith tapped into what was already available, Mt. Carmel Church.
Our Faith Doesn’t Make God do, It Merely Receives what has already been done
Our faith doesn’t make God do. We’re not in control of God. We’re not bossing God around. We’re not telling them what to do when we want him to do it. Our faith is receiving what’s been available to us through the blood of Jesus and by him dying on the cross. For us, it’s more than the forgiveness of sins. He’s got a whole store of stuff for us. We just have to receive it by faith. Last thing, Mark chapter 9 right? Mark chapter 6, sorry. Jesus goes to his hometown. What could rob us, what could keep us from receiving? He says a prophet is not without honor, except in his own country and among his relatives in his own house. Now, he could do no mighty work there. Notice, It doesn’t say that he would do. No, he says he could do no mighty work here.
Except he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. Verse 6 and he marveled because of their unbelief. He marveled because of their unbelief. What stopped Jesus from doing everything that he wanted to do? What stops those people from experiencing, everything that Jesus wanted them to experience? It was their unbelief. According to Jesus, that village, he came to heal. Everyone in that village. He had just come. If you read back here, just come from a place where everybody was healed, but he comes to his hometown, and because familiarity sets in, they were double-minded on one side.
Here’s what happens. You have to watch this. Here’s how we have to watch double-minded. On one side, they heard this was the Messiah, the son of God. On the other side, they heard, that’s Joseph’s boy. That’s Mary’s boy. I remember him when he was 12 years old working in Joseph shop. He built me a chair that fell apart. I remember that. I believe old Jesus made chairs held together. I’m just kidding, but whatever, but you don’t have to say it on that part. They wanted to believe that he was the son of God, but on the other side, they believed he was the son of Joseph. They were double-minded because they were double-minded. Jesus said I can’t do much because you don’t believe that I’m the answer to your problem, Mt. Carmel Church.
I want to heal you, but you think I’m just Jesus, son of Joseph. I’m Jesus, son of God. How we see him is how we’ll receive from him. Let me close with this. I was reading through the Bible this week. I read through the Bible every year and I came through my reading. I was reading about the book by Job. I was finishing up the book of Job and I found this scripture in Job chapter 40 and I came to this scripture and, and when I came to it, God said, “That’s you.” And I said, “No, no, no, no, it’s not Lord.” And he said, “Yes it is.”
Here’s what it says. This was after setting it up for you. This is after Job had been telling God how right he was and how righteous he was. And I’d been doing everything right, and I got up and served people and I have helped people. I’ve done everything right. I’ve never done anything wrong. But God, you’re falling asleep at the wheel. You’re not holding up your end of the bargain. I’ve held up my end. But how come you haven’t held up your end? Remember that? So he’s telling God how to do his job and here’s what God says to him. Job chapter 40 verse 8, he says, would you indeed know my judgment? Would you condemn me that you may be justified?
I read that and the Lord said “That’s you.” I said, “Whoa, whoa.” He said, “When something doesn’t go your way and it doesn’t work the way you want it to work, you’re very quick to defend yourself and throw me under the bus.” Later on the scripture, Job says, Lord, (I’m going to paraphrase), I’m a bum,” Mt. Carmel Church.
Ah, there you are. Your works are too wondrous for me to know. In other words, “God, I’m sorry that I accused you of wrongdoing. Your ways or something beyond me.” Because God starts asking me, “Where you there when I created this for you? And when I created that?” Here’s what I’m telling you. Too many times we defend our faith. We say we’re fine. God’s falling asleep and God’s speaking to our hearts. He’s saying, “Listen, if you prayed for something, believing for something and it didn’t happen, do we start examining God?” No, we start examining ourselves. We don’t start blaming God. We don’t say, “Hey God!” You have to think how come you didn’t look at yourself and say, “God, alright, teach me. What do I need?” Because there could be something that we don’t know and that is beyond us. And I came to encourage somebody, not to beat you down, but tell you, “Hey, pray to believe again.”
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Thanks so much for watching with us. We love our online Mt. Carmel Illinois Church and Norris City Illinois Church family and we invite you to connect with us. We have a few different ways you can do that. Our website is theroads.church. We are on social media as well.
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