In Part 2 we took a look at how faith is needed when it comes to asking and receiving from God, and that without faith (without belief, confidence, trust, hope, expectation) in God, we won't be able to fully experience all the promises He desires us to have.
In Part 3 we took a look at how, in order for faith to work, we must believe that God is able, and how we can have faith in His ability because He's still in authority.
In Part 4 we looked at how, in order for faith to work, we must believe that God is still present today and that when He was present, there was power! There were miracles! He was able to meet the needs of people! We also saw that He is the same, yesterday, today and forever - meaning that whatever He did back then, He is still well able and willing to do for us today!
For today's message, I'd like to add to the above by saying that if God is present, and if all of these things are still possible today, then why aren't some people experiencing Him as they should?
I'll aim to answer this in 2 parts. The 1st part is that even though someone can be present, they can also be ignored or overlooked. Like someone could be in your presence all day, every day, but it doesn't mean you always interact with them. You may even never interact with them; this doesn't change the fact that the person is still present....Now what if this person had something to offer you? What if it's something that could be of benefit to you? But let's say you never acknowledge this person, never take the time to speak to them, get to know them, etc. the chances are, you probably won't come to know what that person has to offer you / what's available for you to have / what they're willing to give you.
This is true of our relationship with God as well and particularly with regards to our faith in Him. It's like the example of electricity. You can be sitting at home but not making any use of it. Yet the electricity is still present, it's still available, it's ready to give power to your TV, fridge, stove, microwave, kettle, etc. but it's only until you turn the switch on that you see the power, and it's the same when it comes to our relationship with God, faith is what turns the switch on.
In the below passages we see 2 individuals who were not only in the presence of Jesus but they came/called out to Him with expectation, they were willing and ready to receive something from Him, and in both instances He acknowledged that this was a sign of faith on their part:
Luke 18:35-43
As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar was sitting beside the road. When he heard the noise of a crowd going past, he asked what was happening. They told him that Jesus the Nazarene was going by. So he began shouting, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” “Be quiet!” the people in front yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” When Jesus heard him, he stopped and ordered that the man be brought to him. As the man came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord,” he said, “I want to see!” And Jesus said, “All right, receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus, praising God. And all who saw it praised God, too.
Luke 8:42-48
As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped. “Who touched me?” Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.” But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.” Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”
Notice the passages also mention that Jesus was surrounded by a crowd, meaning there were many people there that day, yet in each of these stories, the passage only records one person having received a miracle. Many people were in His presence that day but only those who had faith received a miracle.
Could it be that this is the reason why many people can be coming to church but only some receive and others don't. Could it be that we can have an all powerful God by your side, who loves us and desires to see us walk in everything He destined for us, enjoying all of His covenant blessings, but yet due to a lack of faith on our part, we don't enjoy or receive anything from Him.
God's covenant has many blessings attached to it, the most important of all is our eternal salvation and forgiveness of sins, which is freely available to all who call upon Jesus Christ for their salvation - But yet even this cannot be received if not activated by faith. (Romans 3:23, Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 4:13-21, Romans 10:5-17).
It would be like someone having a voucher, coupon or a lottery ticket sitting on a shelf somewhere at home and never making use of it. No matter how much they believe that using the voucher will be of benefit to them, unless they actually go out and make use of the voucher, all it remains is something sitting on a shelf and the person would never get to enjoy the rewards of that item. The same with our faith in God. It's putting our belief into action.
Hebrews 11:6. But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out]
We saw again today that even though God is able, still in authority, still present today, that unless we have faith (trust, confidence, hope, expectation) in Him, we won't be able to receive His promises towards us. It's not enough to be one of the crowd that simply says they believe that there's a God but rather someone who takes a step further and says, "Heavenly Father, I believe that you're still in authority. I believe that you're still able. I believe that you're present and with me today. I choose to trust you. I choose to place my hope in you. I'm confident and expectant that you will do what you said you would. I believe in you and I thank you now for loving and caring for me as you do. Amen"
I trust you enjoyed today's message. Next time we'll take a look at the other part by asking the question, "is God still willing?"