Faith vs Faithless

TYPES OF FAITH

·        Common faith. This faith is common to all men. Every human has faith for and in something. It might be faith in one’s abilities, achievements, money, etc. For example, we all have faith that the mail will run Monday through Saturday except on holidays. That is common faith. This faith might even believe that God exists but there is no personal relationship with Him. In fact, James tells us that even demons believe and tremble.

·        Saving faith. This is the faith that we must have in order to be saved or born again by grace NOT by observing laws. It is only by faith in Jesus Christ that we can be saved so this faith is required to be a citizen of His kingdom and adopted as His child (see Eph. 2:8; Rom. 4:16).

·        Sanctifying faith. This is the faith you use every day in your Christian walk. It is implanted within you when you are born again and must be cultivated and allowed to grow in strength (see 2 Cor. 10:15; Rom. 1:17). We are to put this faith on (see 1 Thess. 5:8). We are to have steadfast faith (see 1 Cor. 15:58). This faith is so powerful that faith the size of a mustard seed will move mountains (see Matt. 17:20).

·        Gift of faith. This is a unique form of faith that goes beyond typical experience. Where sanctifying faith must be cultivated, the gift of faith is a supernatural trust that abides in you, usually temporarily, and cannot be shaken no matter the circumstances surrounding you. In fact, when operating in this type of faith, you can’t even make yourself fear or lack faith. It’s impossible. It is an ABSOLUTE KNOWING of the outcome BEFORE you see it (see 1 Cor. 12:9).

·        Faith for ministry. This faith allows you to receive and exercise the gifts and ministry that God apportions to you (see Rom. 12:3; 6-8). The faith He gives you corresponds to the role He assigns you. This means that you need to know your primary gifts and your role in the body of Christ as well as believe that you have all the faith you need to complete your role. However, I believe this faith as well as your influence can be grown. The important thing is to start where God puts you and allow Him to promote.

·        Great faith. This is my favorite because it is so simple yet extraordinary. In Matthew 8:5-13, a Roman Centurion approached the Lord to heal his servant. The Lord got up to go to his house and the Centurion stopped Him explaining that he like the Lord was a man in authority. As such, he would tell someone to do this or that, and his wishes were carried out. He showed sensitivity to the Lord as a Jew going into a Gentile’s home by letting Him know he wasn’t worthy for Him to enter his home but knew that at His command his servant would be healed. The Lord was astonished at his “great faith” and exclaimed that He hadn’t seen such faith in all Israel. The key to this man’s great faith was his understanding of authority. In America, we are so independent that submission to authority is optional. I will do what they say only if I want to, and it doesn’t mess with my agenda. No one has a right to tell me what to do. Some even glory is doing the opposite. But understanding and submitting to authority is a key to great faith. Authority is “exousia” in the Greek and means the “power to rule.” It means that the one with the power must be submitted to by others and obeyed. He recognized that the Lord was far superior to Him.

Many times when the Lord healed someone, He would say, “According to your faith…” or “Your faith has healed you” or something similar. The phrase, “according to,” means “to the exact degree or in the same measure.” In other words, the Lord was saying that to the exact degree and in the same measure of your faith, let it be. Our level of faith is the high water mark of how much of God’s power we will see demonstrated in our lives. Your faith determines what God does. Actually, your faith determines the miracle you get. And remember that faith the size of a mustard seed moves mountains.

It is also important to understand that we must have PRESENT FAITH not future faith or I Hope So Faith. Future faith is revealed in the words, “I know one day I will be healed…” or “One day I hope I am healed…” That one day is today! Hope in the Bible is expectation in the Greek, which is not the same as our culture’s definition of hope as wishful thinking. PRESENT FAITH IS TO BELIEVE THAT YOU RECEIVE THE MOMENT YOU PRAY. It is impossible to not get what you pray for unless you are praying amiss. It’s simply a matter of time.

So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them (Mark 11:22-24).

In Daniel 10:12-13, the angel Gabriel explained to him that the second he prayed, God sent him to explain things to Daniel, but he was opposed by the ruler of Persia until Michael came and helped him. This reveals that there is demonic opposition to our miracle sometimes. It is crucial that you know God’s will in His written and spoken word to have PRESENT FAITH (see Rom. 12:1-2).

First John 5:4 states that our faith overcomes the world system. That shows how important our faith is. What is in the world system? Sickness. Violence. Unrest. Fear. Lack. Hatred. Demonic oppression. The list goes on and on. But our faith overcomes all that is in the evil world system, and it is illegal for anything in the fallen world system to be present in your life as a citizen.

DEGREES OF FAITHLESSNESS

There are three main degrees or levels of faithlessness.

1.      Little faith. Several times in the Bible, Jesus rebuked His disciples for little faith. One example is the story of the storm at sea. The disciples PRAYED to Jesus (who was asleep in the boat) to help them with the storm because they were perishing. The Lord ANSWERED their prayer by rebuking the storm. You could say they were successful for they received answer to their prayer. But then the Lord turned and rebuked them for their little faith. Why? Because He had already given them authority to do the same thing. Little faith is “oligopistos” in the Greek and is defined as “puny, somewhat brief, almost, few, little, short, a season, small, and a while.” A great definition is UNDERDEVELOPED FAITH. Tests and trials strengthen our faith if we allow them to do so. We don’t need to ask for more faith. It would be like going to the gym and asking for more muscles. They would think you’re crazy and tell you to hit the gym. Little faith is typically used to relate to a specific event not ongoing persistent failure to believe. In other words, you might have strong faith in some areas and little faith in others. It can also be the result of not knowing your value to God as well as not understanding your calling and who Jesus is (see Matt. 8:23-26; 6:30; 16:5-12). The revelation you have of Jesus determines how you relate to Him and the miracles you experience. Little faith can also mean faith of short duration, which is believing for a period of time then something causing you to quit believing (much like Peter walking on water). Hebrews 6:12 explains that we are not to be sluggish or lazy because faith AND patience inherits the promises. Spiritual laziness results in unused and puny faith.

2.      Doubt. In Matthew 14:22-31, we read of the storm on the sea and the Lord walking across the water. Peter asked to do the same thing, which he did. But then he saw the waves and the storm and began sinking. The Lord mentioned his little faith then asked why he doubted. Here we see that little faith leads to doubt if not strengthened. The Lord didn’t congratulate Peter for trying because He as a Man walked in the full strength of faith so He knew Peter, His disciples, and anyone who believed in Him could too. Doubt means “two ways or twice.” It also means “to waver, hesitate, be uncertain.” It describes a person standing on a road where two ways meet and not knowing which way to choose. It is the quivering motion of a balance when two weights on either side are approximately equal. It is to be of TWO MINDS. In James 1:6-8, he explained that a man of two minds or a man of doubt would not receive anything and is UNSTABLE IN ALL HIS WAYS. I like how Zodhiates describes it as “strife within oneself.” It is a drawing back that causes God displeasure (see Heb. 10:38).

3.      Unbelief. Unbelief is outright refusal to believe God. It is important to study Hebrews 3 and 4. You will see that UNBELIEF IS THE RESULT OF AN EVIL HEART THAT WAS DECEIVED BY SIN AND HAS DEPARTED FROM GOD. It is a hardening of the heart when He speaks. It is a choice. It is a sign of rebellion or lawlessness, which 1 John 3:4 states is sin. Someone can be very righteous and religious on the outside but be full of rebellion and unbelief on the inside. It is ironic that the Pharisees, students of the law, would not believe Christ and broke the very laws they studied to have Him arrested, tried, and crucified. Sin, lawlessness, disobedience are all related to unbelief in the original Greek. PERSISTENT DISOBEDIENCE CAUSES A DEEP ROOT OF UNBELIEF THAT RESULTS IN APOSTASY and keeps you from the promises of God. Unbelief can be a demonic influence as well. I have encountered this demon before and felt immediate hopelessness and that I had hit a brick wall. After I felt slimed. I will usually go against it and pray again letting the person know so they can repent. Sometimes it releases them and sometimes they refuse to let go. In Mark 16:14, the Lord rebuked His disciples for unbelief because they didn’t believe Him when He said He would rise from the dead. The reason they didn’t believe is because they had PRECONCEIVED IDEAS of the Messiah and what His coming would look like and death wasn’t part of it. That lets us know that we must be open minded and take things to the Scriptures to verify if true. In Jesus’ hometown, He couldn’t do many miracles because of unbelief. The reason they didn’t believe was they were FAMILIAR with Him. They saw Him grow up. They knew His parents. Unbelief must be repented of and if a demon is oppressing you, you need deliverance. Ask God to show you any areas where you are hard, deceived, rebelling, lack understanding, or have become “familiar” with God in an unholy manner.

But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin (Rom. 14:23).

ACTIVATION EXERCISES

1. In the area you are focusing on in this school, mark which faith or faithlessness you are operating in.

ð Sanctifying faith                             ð Little faith

ð Gift of faith                                      ð Doubt

ð Great faith                                       ð Unbelief

2. If you are in faith, remember that your level of faith is the high water mark for your miracle. Where is your level? Circle which one?

Low

Mid

Deep

3. Have you ever operated in a gift of faith? If so, write down your testimony.
4. Has God told you to do something regarding your situation and you’ve persistently disobeyed? If so, what? Could be anything from forgiving someone, stop eating a certain food, give an offering, etc. 
5. Write down any preconceived ideas you might have regarding your situation such as how you will be healed, past experiences where you weren’t healed, etc. 
6. Are you so “familiar” with certain stories in the Bible or hearing certain things about God that you are in unbelief? What are these things? Take a moment to write down then repent and ask God to help you see things with fresh eyes of faith.