All By Faith!

All By Faith!
By Don Vess

Rom 1:16-17 NKJV For I am not ashamed of the gospel  of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

The Amplified Bible reads like this: -I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation [from His wrath and punishment] to everyone who believes [in Christ as Savior], to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed in a way that awakens more faith]. As it is written and forever remains written, “The just and upright shall live by faith.”

Paul stated that faith is the single most important thing a believer possesses. Romans 12:3- …God has allotted to each (person) a measure of faith. But our faith can be misplaced! Where our faith lies is the most important thing. Many have faith in their religion as interpreted by religious leaders that they put their trust in. Many have faith in “nothing at all” which is a misnomer, because in believing in nothing we believe in something.

But, here is what Jesus said,
Mark ll:22-24 NASB- And Jesus answered saying to them, “have faith in God.23 Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it shall be granted him. 24 “Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, BELIEVE THAT YOU RECEIVE THEM, AND THEY SHALL BE GRANTED YOU.”

EVERYTHING WE RECEIVE FROM GOD IS BY FAITH:

Salvation is by faith: Eph 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved THROUGH FAITH; and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God.

Healing is by faith: James 5:14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for (summons, invite) the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; 15 and the prayer OFFERED IN FAITH will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed any sins, they will be forgiven him.
 
Mark 5:25-34- Woman with a hemorrhage – 12 yrs- came up behind Jesus and touched the fringe of His cloak: for she was saying to herself, “If I can only touch His garment (prayer shawl- Mal 4:2 NLT- “But for you who fear My name, the Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in His wings…) She was risking stoning if she was found out. But her faith pushed her on. She managed to make it to Jesus and the moment she touched His garment (prayer shawl) she was healed. Jesus said, “Who touched me? His disciples said, “You see the multitudes pressing in on You, and You say, “Who touched Me?” He looked around and saw the woman who had done it. She was afraid! She had broken a multitude of religious taboos but was willing to take the risks. Sometimes we have to step across traditional boundaries in faith to obtain what we need. She fell down before Jesus trembling and told Him the truth. He said to her, “Daughter, YOUR FAITH HAS made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.

We are Justified (just-as-if-I’d never sinned) BY FAITH: Romans 5:1 NLT- Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. When we grasp the fact that our sins are no longer counted against us, we have peace with God! We no longer worry about our acceptance as sons before Him.  

Eph 1:3-6 NKJV-   Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

We WALK by Faith: …we walk by faith, not by sight.
Heb. 11:1 NLT- Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

Believing is SEEING! We see through eyes of faith. Acts 16:8-10 NLT- Whey they (Paul and Barnabas) they came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. He was sitting and LISTENING AS PAUL PREACHED. Looking straight at him, Paul realized he had faith to be healed. 10 So Paul called to him in a loud voice, “Stand up!” And the man jumped to his feet and started walking.

The man had been sitting and listening to the Word being preached, perhaps for hours. As he listened his faith was being built (Rom. 10:17 KJV- Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word (rhema) of God.)

We resist the enemy, the devil by Faith: 1 Pet 5:7-9 New King James Version- casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.

The Just LIVE BY FAITH:  Hab. 2:4 …the just shall live by his faith. Faith is the thing that pleases God! Heb. 11:6 NLT …it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek Him.

I was asked just yesterday why there weren’t more miracles being seen among Christian believers? I suppose it is because of the very same thing that Jesus addressed with His disciples when they were in the boat with him in the midst of a storm and they were afraid they were going to drown. Matt. 8:23-26 NKJV-  Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. 24 And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. 25 Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!”26 But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.

Fear and faith are polar opposites! Jesus told us in Matt 28:20 … “I will be with you always!” Just as He was in the boat with His disciples, so is He with us in our daily lives. We can trust Him and have faith that no matter what circumstance or situation comes our way, he is master over it.
He has given us the Holy Spirit with His power and also given us the authority to use His name. By faith we can activate it and see the power of God manifested. Acts 3- Peter and John.

We can grow our faith by hearing (that is spiritually perceiving and activating) the Word of God. We strengthen our faith by usage of it. Believe God for the impossible, for nothing is impossible with God! Mark 16:17 Amp- These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.” 19 So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord was working with them and confirming the word by the signs that followed.]

He is still confirming His word to those who HAVE BELIEVED! Believing comes before seeing!    
                                                                                                                                       
Luke 18:8b NLT- …when the Son of Man returns, how many will He find on earth who have faith? It is clear what God is looking for in us, what pleases Him—it is Faith! 


I want to encourage you to lift your level of faith. Believe God for whatever it is that you need. So often we turn to others to meet our needs, when God has promised, Phil 4:19..My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus.

We often worry needlessly when we have the privilege of prayer and faith in God’s promises: Phil 4:6-8 Amp- Do not be anxious or worried about anything, but in everything [every circumstance and situation] by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, continue to make your [specific] requests known to God. 7 And the peace of God [that peace which reassures the heart, that peace] which transcends all understanding, [that peace which] stands guard over your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus [is yours].8 Finally, believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God’s word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart].

Prayer: Let’s exercise our faith together! What is that you need? Let’s pray and cast it upon Him!