Condition of Prayer: Faith
When Jesus told His disciples, “If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him,” the disciples said “Lord, increase our faith” (Lk. 17:3-5). We sometimes use this story to talk about the need for a strong faith, but Jesus said it would not take much faith! “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you” (v. 6). The emphasis is not on their powerful faith, but in a little faith in a powerful God! That is comforting.
There are at least four things that are involved in praying in faith.
1. We must believe that God is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). An infidel should make no requests of God, and failure to pray is a step toward infidelity (Rom. 1:21).
2. We must believe what God said about prayer. Some think that since the days of miracles are over, God cannot answer prayers. Though we may not understand God’s providence, we can believe that God will answer prayers because He promised that He would.
3. We mut believe that we need what we request and that God can give it. “What– ever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mk. 11:24). James said one who doubts “is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive any anything from the Lord; he is a double– minded man, unstable in all his ways “ (Jas. 1:6-8).
4. We must ask according to His will. “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 Jn. 5:14). Our attitude must always be, “if the Lord wills…” (Jas. 4:15).
How can we pray “in faith” and yet have the attitude “if the Lord wills”? First we must examine God’s will and conform our requests to His revelation. James illustrated the power of prayer by Elijah, who prayed for a famine and then for rain (Jas. 5:17-18). God answered his prayer, not only because of Elijah’s faith but also because it was His will. Moses had written, “Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, lest the Lord’s anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you” (Dt. 11:16-17). Our difficulty is that we do not always know what God wills in a specific situation. Who has not thanked God because, on hindsight, he realized that it would have been detrimental to him if God had granted his request? One man said, “Three times I would have married the wrong woman” if God had granted my request! Second, we must realize that God “knows the things you have need of before you ask” (Mt. 6:8), and just as earthly fathers do not always grant our requests, our heavenly Father gives what we need (Mt. 7:8-11).
Our faith is not simply in the power of faith, but in the power of God. “Faith as a mustard seed” will remove mountains (Mt. 17:20). No, not literal mountains, but strong obstacles that get in our way. Are you having a problem forgiving your brother? Just a little faith in the God who “demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8), will help you over the mountain! People conscious of being forgiven should not find it hard to forgive. Are you having a problem in loving your companion? A little faith in the Christ who loved His bride and gave Himself for her (Eph. 5:25), will help you understand true love. Are you having a problem with some bad habit or addiction? It cannot be too deep-seated for the mountain-moving God!
We do need to increase our faith, but the power is not in the act of believing, but in the object of our faith. Jesus does not demand a great faith, but a little faith in a great God!
There are at least four things that are involved in praying in faith.
1. We must believe that God is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). An infidel should make no requests of God, and failure to pray is a step toward infidelity (Rom. 1:21).
2. We must believe what God said about prayer. Some think that since the days of miracles are over, God cannot answer prayers. Though we may not understand God’s providence, we can believe that God will answer prayers because He promised that He would.
3. We mut believe that we need what we request and that God can give it. “What– ever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mk. 11:24). James said one who doubts “is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive any anything from the Lord; he is a double– minded man, unstable in all his ways “ (Jas. 1:6-8).
4. We must ask according to His will. “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 Jn. 5:14). Our attitude must always be, “if the Lord wills…” (Jas. 4:15).
How can we pray “in faith” and yet have the attitude “if the Lord wills”? First we must examine God’s will and conform our requests to His revelation. James illustrated the power of prayer by Elijah, who prayed for a famine and then for rain (Jas. 5:17-18). God answered his prayer, not only because of Elijah’s faith but also because it was His will. Moses had written, “Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, lest the Lord’s anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you” (Dt. 11:16-17). Our difficulty is that we do not always know what God wills in a specific situation. Who has not thanked God because, on hindsight, he realized that it would have been detrimental to him if God had granted his request? One man said, “Three times I would have married the wrong woman” if God had granted my request! Second, we must realize that God “knows the things you have need of before you ask” (Mt. 6:8), and just as earthly fathers do not always grant our requests, our heavenly Father gives what we need (Mt. 7:8-11).
Our faith is not simply in the power of faith, but in the power of God. “Faith as a mustard seed” will remove mountains (Mt. 17:20). No, not literal mountains, but strong obstacles that get in our way. Are you having a problem forgiving your brother? Just a little faith in the God who “demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8), will help you over the mountain! People conscious of being forgiven should not find it hard to forgive. Are you having a problem in loving your companion? A little faith in the Christ who loved His bride and gave Himself for her (Eph. 5:25), will help you understand true love. Are you having a problem with some bad habit or addiction? It cannot be too deep-seated for the mountain-moving God!
We do need to increase our faith, but the power is not in the act of believing, but in the object of our faith. Jesus does not demand a great faith, but a little faith in a great God!