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1 Cor. 12:7-10 - "But the
manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:
for to one is given the word of wisdom, through the Spirit, to another
the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another the gift of
faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same
Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to
another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to
another the interpretation of tongues."
There are two principle kinds
of faith:
1. Natural faith
2. Supernatural faith
The gift of faith is not
natural faith. The gift of faith is supernatural faith.
Natural faith is much like
the faith a farmer has when he sows seed into the soil of a freshly
plowed field. He plants a seed of corn believing it will produce corn.
Natural faith is faith that
we put into action on a daily basis without even realizing it. Example:
When we sit down at the breakfast table to eat, we usually sit down in a
chair. We have faith that the chair we are sitting in will hold us up
and not crash beneath our body weight.
Supernatural faith is faith
that comes from the Lord in a supernatural way. It extends exceedingly,
abundantly above and beyond natural faith.
There are different kinds of
faith:
1. Saving faith:
Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace you have been saved by faith….” Romans
10:17: “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
2. Fruit of the Spirit faith:
Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness….”
3. Gift of faith:
Mark 11:22: “So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.”
Jesus was not speaking about natural faith. He was speaking about the
gift of faith (supernatural faith).
Saving faith (general faith)
comes before salvation.
Fruit of faith or faithfulness comes after salvation.
The gift of faith (special faith) generally comes after the baptism in
the Holy Spirit.
What is the gift of faith?
The gift of faith is the God-given ability to believe for the impossible
to come to pass at your word and to impart that faith to others.
When I look at the lives of
some of the healing evangelists in the past century, such as Smith
Wigglesworth, Kathryn Kuhlman, A. A. Allen, Jack Coe, John G. Lake and
countless others, it causes my heart and spirit to leap up knowing that
the gift of faith is still in operation today. It didn’t pass away with
the apostles. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is the
same Spirit that gives the gift of faith to those who ask Him for it.
Our Father God in heaven has
placed a beautifully arranged banqueting table, full of luscious
spiritual food, right before our very eyes. From the moment we give our
lives to Jesus, He offers us a place to sit at His table so that we can
dine with Him and partake freely of every good and perfect gift from
heaven. What I see happening in the body of Christ today is basically a
lack of knowledge on our part regarding the gifts of the Spirit. Most of
us have decided to pick and choose the gifts that we want from God’s
table. We don’t believe in speaking in tongues, so we choose the working
of miracles instead. We shove the unwanted gifts away, therefore cutting
off the blessings of God from our lives. It’s not His will that we pick
and choose only those gifts that seem good and pleasing to us. It’s His
will that we accept all that He has made available to us. As Christians,
we must all learn to walk in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. If we
don’t, we will be a weak, powerless, handicapped church. What good is a
church without power?
I’m looking forward to the
day when Christians will be true followers of Christ and imitate Him.
I’m looking forward to the day when I will see missing legs grow back to
their normal position right before my natural eyes. I’m looking forward
to the day when I will be preaching from the pulpit and people will get
out of their wheelchairs and start running around the church leaping and
dancing with joy because the Lord just gave them a miracle.
When was the last time you
raised someone from the dead? Is even the very thought of this too much
for your finite mind to comprehend or imagine? Of course it is! What we
must understand is that our God is a supernatural God who enjoys doing
supernatural things through a people who are operating in His
supernatural miracle working power. He’s the same God today that He was
yesterday. He never changes. What He did yesterday, He will also do
today. Will we have the faith to believe God to use us in ‘greater’
ways?
All three of the power gifts
(gift of faith, gifts of healings and working of miracles) work together
when raising someone from the dead:
1) Gift of faith – it takes
faith to speak to a dead man.
2) Gifts of healings – if they aren’t healed when you raise them up,
they will die again.
3) Working of miracles – if someone is raised from the dead, it is a
miracle.
Some Scriptural examples of
the gift of faith in action:
1) Mark 11:14-24 – Jesus
curses the fig tree.
Nothing happened at that particular moment, but the next day when they
passed the fig tree again, it was withered away. There are times when no
physical evidence will be seen when the gift of faith is in operation.
2) 1 Kings 18:33-35 – Elijah
on Mt. Carmel.
Elijah was so confident that he told those who were with him to pour
water on the wood.
There’s absolutely nothing
too difficult for our God! I believe that the church needs to repent
because of our lack of faith, doubt and unbelief. He has called us into
His Kingdom for such a time as this.
Will we pass up the
opportunities that He will place before us, or will we “go for it” in
the power of His Spirit? Will we pull our chairs up to the banqueting
table and partake of everything that He has placed before us or will we
just pick and choose only those things that we would like to have? If we
partake and eat, we will be transformed and changed. We will be filled
with the fullness of the glory of the Lord and we will do “greater”
works that will bring Him “greater” glory. |
