By Rev Sam Oye
Mark 5: 25-29
“Now, in the crowd that day was a woman who had suffered horribly from continual bleeding for twelve years. She had endured a great deal under the care of various doctors, yet in spite of spending all she had on their treatments, she was getting worse instead of better. When she heard about Jesus’ healing power, she pushed through the crowd and came up from behind him and touched his prayer shawl. For she kept saying to herself, “If I could touch even his clothes, I know I will be healed.” As soon as her hand touched him, her bleeding immediately stopped! She knew it, for she could feel her body instantly being healed of her disease!”
There are two kinds of people in any church. We have people driven by fear and those driven by faith. This is the same for many of the prayer altars and ministries we have. It’s so because there are those who will always pray by faith and there will be people who will always pray as a result of fear.
There are people driven by faith to serve God while there are others driven by fear to serve God. This applies to giving of tithes and offering in church settings. The question then is what are you driven by?
It is important to note that people driven by fear hardly achieve anything of significance. Only eternity will tell how many of us would have achieved much more if we were not driven by fear. The point is refrain from starting a thing or taking a step as a result of fear. The Bible is clear that the just shall live by faith. Nothing worth pursuing in life is easy; so, do not get burdened by fear. The worst addiction you can ever have is the addiction to quit quickly. Once you start quitting, it has ripple effects on other areas. You are either driven by fear or by faith. Those driven by fear make decisions in anticipation of unfavourable outcomes. People driven by fear hardly learn or try to take a leap of faith because they have once experience setbacks.
What is Faith?
Faith is the absolute confidence in the presence of God, absolute confidence in the person of God and absolute confidence in the power of God. Faith is the confidence in the faithfulness of God. It is seeing the invisible. They not only see the invisible, they believe the incredible and the unbelievable. This is the way faith works.
Mark 11:23-24 (KJV)
For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
People who have faith receive before they have.
Unforgettable benefits of Faith
Salvation comes through faith: There is no believer that is saved outside of faith. There is no one who cannot be saved through faith in Christ.
Ephesians 2:8 (KJV)
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.
We live by faith.
Romans 1:17 (KJV)
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
As believers, we are required to live by faith. It is how we simply live. It is how we make money, it is how we marry, it is how we solve problems, it is how we fight our battles. We live by faith.
We walk by faith. This just means we do not act because everyone does it. We do not just start a business because we have the funds, we use faith. So,
We speak by faith.
2 Cor 4:13
We have the same Spirit of faith that is described in the Scriptures when it says,
“First I believed, then I spoke in faith
You speak into manifestation that which you desire. Profess with faith that which you desire. Speak faith! Don’t allow your present situation to condition your speech and elicit sympathy. The man from whom you seek the sympathy cannot help you except he be helped first by God.
We act by faith.
James 2:18 (WNT)
Nay, someone will say, “You have faith, I have actions: prove to me your faith apart from corresponding actions and I will prove mine to you by my actions.
The formula is if you like, you have to also act what you speak in faith. The difference between those who receive and those who do not is action. Action is a very vital completion of your faith process. Take some bold steps, act on your faith.
