Mensa Otabil - Faith Comes by Hearing the Word of God
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We’ve looked at what faith can do; it can move mountains, and you need to move some mountains in your life. We’ve examined what faith is: it is the substance, the reality of the things you hope for. Today, we are looking at how faith comes. How does a person receive faith? If you have a problem in your praying, how do you receive the faith to pray for it to move that mountain out of your way?
Romans chapter 10, verses 16 and 17, state, «But they have not all obeyed the gospel, for Isaiah says, 'Who has believed our report? '» Verse 17: «So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.» So how does a person have faith to move mountains or to pray and get results? The Bible says faith comes by hearing the Word of God. It doesn’t come by squeezing your face; it doesn’t come by stomping your feet; it doesn’t come by screaming loudly to God. Much as these are not all bad when you are praying, prayer without faith is just a mere activity without results. What really gets the results is not our physical action, but a spiritual action, and it comes by faith.
And how does faith come? Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. So if a person wants to receive faith, the Word of God will become the basis for their faith. Remember yesterday I talked about how faith is like the check given to you to represent what you hope for, which is money. So faith comes by hearing the Word of God; the promises of the Word of God produce faith. When God makes a promise, it is like a check He has written to you. God says, «I will bless you»; it’s like a check of blessing. God says, «I will heal you»; it’s like a healing check. God says, «I will make you the head and not the tail»; it’s a check of promotion.
So every word of God, every promise of God, is like a check in your hand, and when you receive it, faith comes to you because you have received the promise of God. You know that now you have faith inside of you. So that which produces faith in you is not your own desire; it is the Word of God. If God says He has blessed you with all spiritual blessings, He is giving you the check to get those spiritual blessings.
As we deal with this present crisis, what faith are we going to use to overcome this virus? The faith must come from the Word of God. It’s not just willpower; it’s not squeezing your faith and saying it will not happen to me; it has to come because you receive the Word of God. So I want to give you a check from God that will guarantee you safety in this time. Where do I get the word from? It’s not from Wenzhou tables; it comes from the Word of God.
So here is God’s promise to you for this season: Psalm 91, verses 3 and 4 — «Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence; He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings, you will take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.» Surely, God says, «Surely He will deliver you,» and He will set you free from the fowler and the pestilence. That is your check, and you can cash it in this season for safety against every virus. You are protected by the Almighty God. I’ll be with you again tomorrow. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom — peace and life to you.