I’ve often quoted Hebrews 11:6 where it says in part, “without faith it is impossible to please God”. So faith must be present in every believers life. In fact, having faith in God is the very definition of a believer. But did you know that our level of faith, or lack thereof, can have a direct effect on whether our prayers are answered? My guess is that you do. But in case I’m mistaken, the story of Jesus healing the blind beggar may help you understand the importance of our engaging our faith when we expect God to move on our behalf. In Luke, chapter 18, verse 42 it says:
“Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.”
It was the blind beggars faith that brought about healing. Jesus was the vessel used to perform the healing, but he said that it was the beggar’s faith that healed him. There are several other accounts where healing was reliant on the recipient’s faith. There is an account in Matthew where two blind men came to be healed. Jesus said to them, “according to your faith will it be done to you.” What if the men in Matthew and the blind man in Luke didn’t have faith? I believe that they would not have been healed. I say all of this to encourage you to build your faith. If you want the Holy Spirit to intervene on your behalf; if you want your prayers answered; or if you are crying out to God for deliverance, you must have faith. Otherwise, you shouldn’t expect anything from him because more often than not, there will be a direct connect between your faith and the move of God.
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Much like everything else when it comes to our Christian walk, our level of faith makes a huge difference. In Matthew, Jesus said that if we have the faith of a mustard seed we can say to a mountain move from here to there and it will. How is your faith? If you are in need of a move from God, often times it is your faith that will get his attention. I believe in prayer chains, the laying on of hands by fellow believers and the fervent prayers of the saints, but we should all be secure enough in our own faith that should we hear the words, “according to your faith will it be done to you,” we won’t be left disappointed. So I would encourage you to believe. Rely first on your faith. Walk close enough to God that like the blind man, it will be as if he says to you, “your faith has healed you”.