Calling Those Things

Romans 4: 17 – 21

17 (as it is written, “A father of many nations have I made you”) in the sight of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.
18 In hope against hope he believed, in order that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, “So shall you descendants be.”
19 And without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb;
20 yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God,
21 and being fully assure that what He had promised, He was able to perform.

This passage is a keg of dynamite ready to go off in the spirit of the one who can receive it. There is so much to glean from it, but I wish to focus on three points.

1. He grew strong
2. He believed the promise of God meant something and could be relied upon.
3. Speak those things

First, this passage, speaking of Abraham, says that he “grew strong”. This shows that he did not begin strong. Abraham is called the father of faith, but that faith was no more inherent to him than to us. He grew in faith. If you read the account of Abraham’s life, you will see that he was not a paragon of faith in the beginning. He learned and he grew and his faith grew with him. Notice also that he considered the “true” facts, his age and Sarah’s inability to have children, but he did not allow this to disuade him from God’s promise. It is okay to acknowledge facts, but you do not have to accept them as truth. They are only circumstantial and temporary. Abraham was able to recognize the obstacles, but he did not let them negate the promise of God. He grew such that the promise of God was bigger in his heart and mind than the facts.

Second, Abraham took God at his word. He believed that what God said, He would do. He also believed that God was able to do what He promised. When your faith feels small and weak, don’t look at it. Look at God. We measure the value and weight of our faith, but we need not. We only need to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12: 2). As we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and the Father all things, do, seem possible. If we measure the size of our faith, it always seems wanting. Our faith never looks large enough to measure up to the task. Yahweh, however, is large enough to believe in. Focusing our attention on Him brings us to a place of agreement with Him. Abraham believed that God was not a liar and would do all He promised. So, we don’t focus on the facts or the littleness of our faith but rather on the majesty of the God who promised.

Last, Paul recognized a key behavior of God’s. Namely, that God calls into being that which did not previously exist. Hence, we are back to the power of words. The simplest expression of this principle is, you shall have what you say. Because we are made in God’s image and live according to His authority, we operate in this earth as He does. The power of intentional speech is beyond what we currently understand. It is how God created the universe. Unfortunately, the influence of unintentional speech is impactful too, which is why Jesus warned us about careless words (Matthew 12: 36).

We have been given authority in the earth to call things into being as our Father does. This is one of the key things Yahweh is teaching us. What we say matters, but more than that, when we appreciate the link between speech and creation, we will use our words as a painter uses her brush. The creative power of the universe is in our mouths. We can call into being that which does not exist, and the truth is that we are affecting our health daily with the things we say. So, we must use this power, this power of God, to call health into being where it does not exist.

There is a reason Jesus taught us to “say” something to the mountain. He understands creative power and he knows that reality is shaped by what we say. That is also why he said nothing when he was being tortured and questioned. He knew he would shape destiny with his words. He had to keep silent. Likewise, we shape our destiny. We can call those things which currently do not exist into being.

Set your eyes on the promises of God and on He who promised. Gaze upon His majesty and allow yourself to grow in faith and belief as you marshal your tongue into agreement with all He says. Call yourself the healed. Call yourself strong. Be the healed and the strong of Yahweh.

Fixed Sight

Hebrews 12: 2

Fixing our eyes on Jesus . . ..

Where you look is where you will go. If, when driving a car, you look at the line on the right hand side of the road, you will tend to move your car in that direction. The same is true of life. Whatever you fix your eyes upon will be where you go.

This is a big secret to living in peace and even power. Well, it isn’t really a secret but you would think it is. We don’t talk about it nearly as much as we should. In truth, most of the time, our focus is on ourselves. If you listen to how often we use the pronoun “I” you get a pretty good idea of our mindset. Conversation is about my work, and my problems, and my projects and my . . .. It is unending.

Fixing our eyes on Jesus means that our worlds begin to revolve around him instead of our own lives. When confronted with a question we ask what Jesus says about it instead of what I think about it. Even our dreams, goals and ambitions become a matter of inquiry instead of a prayer begging God to make things the way we want them. Being with Jesus and being pleasing to him becomes a priority. There are so many ways we can integrate our lives into his being so that we become fixated on who he is and what he has accomplished. He is our source, he is the living word and he is our redeemer. The more we meditate on these things the more we will be drawn to him.

Hearing Aide

Romans 10: 17

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

Faith is an important trait for every Christian. In fact, without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11: 6). That is a weighty statement. So, if it is important, even vital for us to have faith then you would expect the Father to provide a means by which we can obtain this mandatory commodity. Enter Romans 10: 17.  Here God is teaching us how to get faith.

Apparently faith comes from hearing. Okay, from hearing what? Many people teach that faith comes by hearing the Word of God or the Word of Christ. Absolutely there is interconnectedness between the Word of God and faith. However, there is an intermediary as this verse indicates. How do we recognize the truth of this? It is in the text of the verse. Think of it this way. If you wanted to convey that faith comes from hearing the Word, you would say exactly that but that is not what Paul wrote. He said faith comes from hearing, and then he said that hearing comes by the word of Christ. There are two steps here. So let’s take just the first phrase first and figure out what this hearing is that creates faith in us.

What I believe Paul is trying to convey to us is that faith comes through communing with God in our spirits. That takes no great logic leap. So, faith comes when we hear God speaking in our spirits. Let’s say that you have a financial need and during your quiet time with God you hear His leading or perhaps He shows you a scripture that pertains to finances. What happens to your faith? It skyrockets, right? Any time you hear God in your spirit or He speaks through scripture it brings great encouragement and renewed belief. That is what I believe Paul is trying to convey to us. It is not all that different from Isaiah 40: 31 which we looked at earlier in the week, which told us to be intertwined with God and we would soar on wings like eagles. When you hang out with God your faith just soars. It happens.

“But,” you say, “I don’t hear that well.” Right; God thought of that. Paul wrote, “[H]earing comes by the word of Christ.” If you have a Bible with references and look at the note for this phrase it will tell you that a closer translation is “hearing comes by the word concerning Christ.” What is the difference? It all has to do with John 14: 6, where “Jesus said …, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through me.’” The way to the Father is through Jesus. So, for us that means that the way for us to improve our ability to connect with the Father is through Jesus. We wish to hear God better so it is not only through the Word of God but also through the person of Jesus Christ that we can do that. Don’t miss hear me though. You cannot separate Jesus from his word. That is why the rendering that we gain faith through the word is not inaccurate. It is just incomplete. It is not through studying the Bible that we improve our relationship with the Father or our ability to hear Him but rather through the person of Jesus. Jesus leads us to the Father. His mission on earth was to reveal the Father to us and provide a way for us to be reconciled with Him. Therefore, when we need revelation or when we simply need a touch from the Father we go to Him through the person of Jesus. Jesus is our mediator. He has provided us with the means to connect with the Father in a deep way. Whatever we need, Jesus can lead us and teach us. 

The bottom line is that in order to have faith, you need to hear the voice of God. If you cannot hear the voice of God or your hearing just needs improving, Jesus is there to help you. The good news about what Jesus has done for us is the catapult to deep fellowship with him and with the Father because Jesus always points to the Father. If you look at Jesus’ earthly ministry you will see that is true. So, this is how I would restate today’s verse in order to make it more clear, “Faith comes from hearing God’s voice, and the ability to hear God’s voice comes through Jesus.” The good news about who Jesus is and what he has accomplished is an engraved invitation to the throne room of God where you can be very relaxed in the presence of your father. Good ears come through the good news and the good news is “the word concerning Christ.” Jesus is the way. His role as our high priest and as our mediator is to lead us into the Father’s presence so that we can easily hear the voice of our beloved Father. Fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith (Hebrews 12: 2) and tune your ears to God expecting to hear Him speak to you. Then your faith shall rise as upon eagles’ wings.