FAITH THERAPY 1
INTRODUCTION
SIMPLY put, therapy means the “treatment of illness or disability”. Faith Therapy then is “the treatment of the disease of lack of faith in the hearts of the people, by digging into the Word of God and working on the mind with the knowledge derived therefrom until the faith-filled heart of Jesus our Lord (or what can compare favourably to it) is achieved.
It has become very necessary that Christians of today, especially, church workers, be passed through such a therapy, so as to be healed of the cancerous disease of faithlessness. The following discussion is meant to help us achieve the said therapy.
What Is Faith In God?
Let us start by first describing someone that has faith in the heart. Such a person could be described as one who unwaveringly believes that he already has what he has desired and therefore speaks and acts as such. This is the definition of faith generally as shown in Hebrews 11:1: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Now, if such faith (as described above) is based on knowledge of, and belief in the power of God, faithfulness of God, the promise of God or the Word of God generally, it is then termed faith in God (cp Mark 11:22). On the other hand, faith in God means believing without wavering that what He (God) has declared, He will fulfill, and that He is, and able to do all things (Numbers 23:19; Luke 1:35-37; Mathew 19:26; Hebrews 11:6).
Joshua and Caleb, through their knowledge of God and belief in His promise, had faith in God, in that they saw the promised land of Canaan as belonging to the Israelites already, though the Canaanites and others were yet dwelling in the land (Numbers 13:30; 14:6-9). Abraham had faith in God, in that he believed implicitly that his children would be numerous as the stars of heaven, even though he was very old and his wife so old that even her menstruation had ceased (Genesis 15:2-6; 18:11; Romans 4:17-22; Hebrews 11:11-12).
The Lord Jesus had faith in God, in that He believed unwaveringly that God was going to multiply those five loaves of bread and two fishes after His thanksgiving, so as to feed those thousands of people (John 6:5-11). The parents of Moses had faith in God, in that they refused to obey the Egyptian King’s evil commandment of throwing the child into the river, but hid him for three months, believing that deliverance must come from God (Exodus 2:1-4; Hebrews 11:23). So much on the definition of FAITH IN GOD.
With Him, there is no impossibility (Job 42:2; Psalm 115:3; 135:6; Isaiah 43:13; Habakkuk 3:6; Matthew 19:26; Mark 14:36; Luke 1:37). At His Word, natural or scientific laws cease to hold (Mark 11:12-14, 20-21; John 11:40-44; Matthew 14:25). Little wonder then He is jealous of His omnipotence and cannot be pleased, but offended by those who will not believe Him unwaveringly (Hebrews 11:6; Luke 1:19-20). Little wonder too, those who come to Him doubting cannot receive anything from Him (James 1:5-7).
Faith, therefore, is an absolute necessity in the life of every Christian, most especially, church workers and leaders. The Lord is right now asking us the following and numerous other questions (not written here) to prove the point. How do we nullify all schemes or darts of the wicked ones, known or unknown, if we do not have faith in God? What of confronting and stopping the disease and pestilences of these last days from reaching us and our families? Can the windows of heaven open to us that spiritual and material prosperity be rained down if we believe not? How will the Hannahs and Sarahs of today and all those with deficien-cies in manhood become fruitful, if not through faith?
In ministry, can the various aspects of our collective vision be achieved unless we constantly believe God? Or how can we fulfil our individual ministries within the church without faith on a day-to-day basis? Who can preach or teach others through to salvation, sanctification, baptism with the Holy Spirit, and so on, without faith in the heart? Can devils be knocked out of the possessed except the command is given in faith? Given the chaotic socio-political and economic situation of most nations of the present world, how can missionaries enter these lands and have break-throughs? Or, how will they overcome the policies of nations that militate against their God-given visions and missions to those nations?
In any case, how can prophets not perish out of Jerusalem, except they believe they will not? What about creating the much needed in-roads into these fortified institutions of error and this end-time societies, whose minds have been blinded by the god of this world, and carrying out Gospel programmes and winning them to the Lord? Is faith not absolutely necessary in any endeavour to rescue the hearts of the teeming children and youths, caught in the evil web of immorality, addiction and other indulgences?
Howbeit, there is a limit to what this kind of faith can do. There are rather multitudes of obstacles or problems in life which “refusing to take a ‘no’ for an answer”, thoughtfulness, diligence, hardwork, plus other “life aids” will certainly not be able to remove or solve. These can be termed the impossibilities of life, small or great. The following few examples of such impossibilities will suffice. The natural man or the sinner is dead spiritually and stands condemned before God (Eph. 2:1-3; Rom 3:23; 5:12-17), and no amount of ordinary faith (as earlier described) can set him free, declare him pardoned, guiltless and regenerate him, except repentance and simple faith in the vicarious death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary (Ps. 32:1-2; Isa. 1:18; 1 Cor. 15:17-21; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9). The woman that had ‘an issue of blood twelve years’ believed in the treatment of physicians to no avail, until she encountered Jesus Christ and manifested faith in the power of God and had her problem removed (Lk. 8:43-44). No amount of thoughtfulness, perseverance and hardwork could drive out the devil from that dumb son of a certain man but Jesus’ faith in the power of God and the man’s did (Mark 9:16-27). It was faith in God (and no more) that brought divine protection against Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace for those three Hebrew youths, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego (Dan. 3:14-27).
Nothing else other than faith in God could change the minds of hungry lions in favour of Daniel (Dan. 6:11-22). Sarah was barren, very old and had ceased to have her monthly periods, yet faith in God (and no more) gave her conception and a male child subsequently (Gen. 18:11; Heb. 11:11). No amount of ordinary positive thinking and talking would have made apostle Peter to walk on the sea as if it were a concrete pavement, but faith in the Word and power of Christ Jesus did (Mtt. 14:25-29).
SO THEN, FAITH IN GOD (as earlier defined) IS THE ANSWER, THE WAY, THE VERY WAY.
As students of whatever grade, the problems or obstacles (from within and without) are there, challenging us to some fights or contests. In ‘house-wifery’ as the woman attends to her family, or in midwifery as the midwife runs the maternity, the problems are there. In marriage (from knowing God’s will to the wedding proper), family building, child-bearing and child-rearing, obstacles abound. Come to business, either as buyers or sellers, manufacturers, farmers, sellers of services, and so on, the challenges are existent.
In the area of health, problems also exist. The list could continue.
These problems or obstacles in their divergent forms and magnitudes, schemed by the enemy, can be likened to the mountains and the worlds that need be removed or overcome by the Christian’s faith in the omnipotence and faithfulness of God (Mark 9:22-23; 1John 5:4-5; Zechariah 4:6-7). If he fails to acquire this faith, he may end-up living a life that is full of testimonies of, not what God has done, but of woes.
INTRODUCTION
SIMPLY put, therapy means the “treatment of illness or disability”. Faith Therapy then is “the treatment of the disease of lack of faith in the hearts of the people, by digging into the Word of God and working on the mind with the knowledge derived therefrom until the faith-filled heart of Jesus our Lord (or what can compare favourably to it) is achieved.
It has become very necessary that Christians of today, especially, church workers, be passed through such a therapy, so as to be healed of the cancerous disease of faithlessness. The following discussion is meant to help us achieve the said therapy.
What Is Faith In God?
Let us start by first describing someone that has faith in the heart. Such a person could be described as one who unwaveringly believes that he already has what he has desired and therefore speaks and acts as such. This is the definition of faith generally as shown in Hebrews 11:1: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Now, if such faith (as described above) is based on knowledge of, and belief in the power of God, faithfulness of God, the promise of God or the Word of God generally, it is then termed faith in God (cp Mark 11:22). On the other hand, faith in God means believing without wavering that what He (God) has declared, He will fulfill, and that He is, and able to do all things (Numbers 23:19; Luke 1:35-37; Mathew 19:26; Hebrews 11:6).
Joshua and Caleb, through their knowledge of God and belief in His promise, had faith in God, in that they saw the promised land of Canaan as belonging to the Israelites already, though the Canaanites and others were yet dwelling in the land (Numbers 13:30; 14:6-9). Abraham had faith in God, in that he believed implicitly that his children would be numerous as the stars of heaven, even though he was very old and his wife so old that even her menstruation had ceased (Genesis 15:2-6; 18:11; Romans 4:17-22; Hebrews 11:11-12).
The Lord Jesus had faith in God, in that He believed unwaveringly that God was going to multiply those five loaves of bread and two fishes after His thanksgiving, so as to feed those thousands of people (John 6:5-11). The parents of Moses had faith in God, in that they refused to obey the Egyptian King’s evil commandment of throwing the child into the river, but hid him for three months, believing that deliverance must come from God (Exodus 2:1-4; Hebrews 11:23). So much on the definition of FAITH IN GOD.
Faith In God: An Absolute Necessity
God is almighty. This means that He is all-powerful, having unlimited or universal power and authority. In His omnipotence, He called out the universe — the earth (and its fullness), the sun, the other planets, the moon, the stars, etc, with His Word at creation (2 Peter 3:5; Genesis 1:1; Nehemiah 9:6; Job 26:7; Psalm 102:25; 104:5; Isaiah 40:28; 45:12; 48:13 Acts 4:24; 7:50; 14:15; 17:24; Hebrews 11:3). Through His omnipotence too, all the re-arrangements and provisions that were carried out on earth at creation were done (Genesis 1:1-24).With Him, there is no impossibility (Job 42:2; Psalm 115:3; 135:6; Isaiah 43:13; Habakkuk 3:6; Matthew 19:26; Mark 14:36; Luke 1:37). At His Word, natural or scientific laws cease to hold (Mark 11:12-14, 20-21; John 11:40-44; Matthew 14:25). Little wonder then He is jealous of His omnipotence and cannot be pleased, but offended by those who will not believe Him unwaveringly (Hebrews 11:6; Luke 1:19-20). Little wonder too, those who come to Him doubting cannot receive anything from Him (James 1:5-7).
Faith, therefore, is an absolute necessity in the life of every Christian, most especially, church workers and leaders. The Lord is right now asking us the following and numerous other questions (not written here) to prove the point. How do we nullify all schemes or darts of the wicked ones, known or unknown, if we do not have faith in God? What of confronting and stopping the disease and pestilences of these last days from reaching us and our families? Can the windows of heaven open to us that spiritual and material prosperity be rained down if we believe not? How will the Hannahs and Sarahs of today and all those with deficien-cies in manhood become fruitful, if not through faith?
In ministry, can the various aspects of our collective vision be achieved unless we constantly believe God? Or how can we fulfil our individual ministries within the church without faith on a day-to-day basis? Who can preach or teach others through to salvation, sanctification, baptism with the Holy Spirit, and so on, without faith in the heart? Can devils be knocked out of the possessed except the command is given in faith? Given the chaotic socio-political and economic situation of most nations of the present world, how can missionaries enter these lands and have break-throughs? Or, how will they overcome the policies of nations that militate against their God-given visions and missions to those nations?
In any case, how can prophets not perish out of Jerusalem, except they believe they will not? What about creating the much needed in-roads into these fortified institutions of error and this end-time societies, whose minds have been blinded by the god of this world, and carrying out Gospel programmes and winning them to the Lord? Is faith not absolutely necessary in any endeavour to rescue the hearts of the teeming children and youths, caught in the evil web of immorality, addiction and other indulgences?
Ordinary Faith Contrasted With Faith In God
As earlier stated, ordinary faith (commonly seen, usual) means closing the eyes to the obstacles or problems and seeing the goals achieved. A lot of people manifest this ordinary faith (not necessarily in God) on a day-to-day basis, without even knowing it is called faith. They look the obstacles of problems in the face (as it were), refuse to take a ‘no’ for an answer, press for the developments of science and technology and the advancements through same, as well as the success-stories of multitudes of people.Howbeit, there is a limit to what this kind of faith can do. There are rather multitudes of obstacles or problems in life which “refusing to take a ‘no’ for an answer”, thoughtfulness, diligence, hardwork, plus other “life aids” will certainly not be able to remove or solve. These can be termed the impossibilities of life, small or great. The following few examples of such impossibilities will suffice. The natural man or the sinner is dead spiritually and stands condemned before God (Eph. 2:1-3; Rom 3:23; 5:12-17), and no amount of ordinary faith (as earlier described) can set him free, declare him pardoned, guiltless and regenerate him, except repentance and simple faith in the vicarious death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary (Ps. 32:1-2; Isa. 1:18; 1 Cor. 15:17-21; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9). The woman that had ‘an issue of blood twelve years’ believed in the treatment of physicians to no avail, until she encountered Jesus Christ and manifested faith in the power of God and had her problem removed (Lk. 8:43-44). No amount of thoughtfulness, perseverance and hardwork could drive out the devil from that dumb son of a certain man but Jesus’ faith in the power of God and the man’s did (Mark 9:16-27). It was faith in God (and no more) that brought divine protection against Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace for those three Hebrew youths, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego (Dan. 3:14-27).
Nothing else other than faith in God could change the minds of hungry lions in favour of Daniel (Dan. 6:11-22). Sarah was barren, very old and had ceased to have her monthly periods, yet faith in God (and no more) gave her conception and a male child subsequently (Gen. 18:11; Heb. 11:11). No amount of ordinary positive thinking and talking would have made apostle Peter to walk on the sea as if it were a concrete pavement, but faith in the Word and power of Christ Jesus did (Mtt. 14:25-29).
SO THEN, FAITH IN GOD (as earlier defined) IS THE ANSWER, THE WAY, THE VERY WAY.
Faith In God For Our Day-To-Day Living
Life is punctuated with obstacles or problems, posing challenges to us time after time. This is because the whole world lies in socio-political and economic evils (1Jn. 5:19). So then, if a child of God, swimming against the current of evil will succeed in life, retaining his faith and status quo before God, he must have faith in God permanently enshrined in the fabric of his heart (consider Mark. 11:22; 2 Chronicles 20:20; Luke 8:50; Ephesians 6:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:8; 1 Timothy 1:19; 6:12; Hebrews 10:22).As students of whatever grade, the problems or obstacles (from within and without) are there, challenging us to some fights or contests. In ‘house-wifery’ as the woman attends to her family, or in midwifery as the midwife runs the maternity, the problems are there. In marriage (from knowing God’s will to the wedding proper), family building, child-bearing and child-rearing, obstacles abound. Come to business, either as buyers or sellers, manufacturers, farmers, sellers of services, and so on, the challenges are existent.
In the area of health, problems also exist. The list could continue.
These problems or obstacles in their divergent forms and magnitudes, schemed by the enemy, can be likened to the mountains and the worlds that need be removed or overcome by the Christian’s faith in the omnipotence and faithfulness of God (Mark 9:22-23; 1John 5:4-5; Zechariah 4:6-7). If he fails to acquire this faith, he may end-up living a life that is full of testimonies of, not what God has done, but of woes.
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