HAVE FAITH IN GOD

WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL

APRIL 28, 2023

TOPIC: HAVE FAITH IN GOD

BY T. O. BANSO

“So Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Have faith in God’” (Mark 11:22 New King James Version).

Romans 1:17 says, “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘The just shall live by faith’” (New King James Version). Galatians 3:11 and Hebrews 10:38 also say that the Just shall live by faith. In the Old Testament, Habakkuk 2:4 says the just shall live by his faith. God wants you to have faith in Him because the Christian journey is that of faith from start to finish. Mark 11:22 says, “So Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Have faith in God’” (New King James Version). Have faith in God. Believe that His Word is true and He will do what He says He will do.

In the Old Testament, many people did great exploits through their faith in God. “Faith is the reason we remember great people who lived in the past” (Hebrews 11:2 New Century Version). The New King James Version says, “For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.” Today, believers are under a better covenant with God, based on better promises (Hebrews 8:6). Christians should walk by faith. Paul said he walked by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). In other words, he lived by believing, not by seeing, or lived by what he believed, not by what he could see.

If you’re born again, what must you do to have faith in God?

1. Feed your spirit regularly with the Word of God by attentive hearing and studying the Word of God. If you want to live a life of faith, a faith-filled life, you can’t afford to be listening to garbage or reading junk. You cannot afford to be listening to negative words and music. Don’t feed on junk.

Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (New King James Version). To continue to be filled with faith, you must regularly engage in selective hearing and reading. Consider carefully what you hear (Mark 4:24). Consider carefully how you hear (Luke 8:18). Also, consider carefully what you read.

2. Avoid faith killers. These include people, conversation, information, etc. that take you out of faith. Rather, associate with people who fire up your faith and things that do the same. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend” (New King James Version). Be careful of the people around you who’re not helping you to fan the fire of faith in you but are striving to put out the fire. “As iron sharpens iron, so people can improve each other” (Proverbs 27:17 New Century Version)

3. Confess regularly the Word of God. Speak the Word back to yourself, which goes to feed your spirit. You can only speak what you have heard, what you know, and what is in your heart.

Do you have in your heart the Word of faith or the words of unbelief? Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34 New King James Version).

Confess regularly the Word of God, not your problems, not your negative situation, not your feelings. This doesn’t mean you should deny reality. Faith does not deny reality. It acknowledges the reality but believes and confesses the Word of God. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit” (Proverbs 18:21 New King James Version).

4. Declare boldly what you believe in your heart without doubting. This is related to the last point. Your mouth and your heart are important as far as faith is concerned. “But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:8-9 New James Version).

Luke 17:6 says if you have faith as a mustard seed, you shall say to the sycamore tree be uprooted and thrown into the sea and it will obey you. According to Mark 11:23, 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. James 1:6 says we should ask in faith without doubting. There is no faith without speaking boldly. Paul says, “And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed and therefore I spoke,’ we also believe and therefore speak” (2 Corinthians 4:13 New King James Version). 

The evidence of the Word of God is superior to the testimony of your senses – your five senses. So, don’t be moved by what your adversaries and condition are telling you. Keep declaring the Word of God.

5. Walk in love. Faith works by love. Galatians 5:6b talks about faith working through love. “What is important is faith expressing itself in love” (Galatians 5:6b New Living Translation). The Living Bible says, “For all we need is faith working through love.” Also, Easy-to-Read Version renders it thus: “The important thing is faith—the kind of faith that works through love.” Walk in love. Biblical love must walk in love.

God is love and love comes from Him. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love” (1 John 4:7-8 New King Jams Version).

1 Corinthians 13:2 refers to faith without love. Faith cannot operate effectively without love. Show God’s love to people. Relate with people in love. Love is the fulfilment of the law. If you walk in love, you would have fulfilled all the laws. “Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law” (Romans 13:10 New King James Version).

Love is the greatest or most important commandment. When one of the experts in religious law asked Jesus which was the most important commandment in the Law of Moses, Jesus replied, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40 New King James Version).

Love is greater than faith. “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13 New King James Version). If you feel your faith is not working, examine your life to confirm if you’re walking in love. Don’t sabotage your faith by not walking in love.

Do you have faith in God? Jesus said to blind Bartimaeus to go his way, for his faith had healed him (Mark 10:52). Bartimaeus’ eyes were opened immediately. In a similar story in Luke 18, He said the same thing to a certain blind man whose name is not mentioned (verse 42). Instantly, he could see.

So also, Jesus told the woman with the flow of blood to be of good cheer; He said her faith had made her well (Matthew 9:22; Mark 5:34; Luke 8:48). Twelve years of affliction disappeared instantly because she had faith in Jesus.

Similarly, Jesus told a sinful woman that her faith had saved her and she should go in peace (Luke 7:50). And in Luke 17, after the only foreigner out of the ten lepers that Jesus healed had returned to give glory to God, Jesus told this Samaritan, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well” (verse 19 New King James Version).

Man is limited, but God is not. With men, some things are impossible but with God, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27). What is impossible with men is possible with God (Luke 18:27). Have faith in God. All things are possible to him who believes (Mark 9:23).

TAKE ACTION!  

If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.

Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself.  I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.

I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.

PRAYER POINTS: I rebuke unbelief in my heart in the name of Jesus. I get rid of all faith killers in my life. Holy Spirit, help me to have faith in God and be filled with faith in Jesus’ name.

(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).

T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
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Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org