God Is Bigger Than Your Faith

Part 2

In our last writing we looked at how the Lord often works beyond our methods to meet us at our place of need.  My wife Teresa often says, "while prayer is necessary, we need to be careful that faith in prayer above faith in the God of prayer doesn't occur." In the same way I have seen how studying methods of faith can result in faith in faith rather than faith in God.  Last week I told the story of how God reached past my weariness of trying to get healed and healed me in a place of cynicism!  How is that possible?  I had violated a number of learned faith methods and yet was still healed by God.  There is an interesting story of a man in John chapter 5 who had suffered physical illness for 38 years.  He was lying by the pool of Bethesda with the others who were wanting healing at the hand of an angel.  When Jesus approached this suffering soul He asked an interesting question: "Do you want to me made well?"  Certainly the answer to the question is a resounding, "YES"!  Yet, he didn't say yes.  What he said sounds a lot like whining or complaining.  He gave an excuse as to why he wasn't healed.  He didn't seem to have faith.  He didn't have his thinking right.  He didn't have his confession right.  Yet...yet...Jesus healed him!!!  Here is another very interesting thing about this story.  The place of healing was at a pool named Bethesda.  Bethesda is translated, "house of kindness".  It appears the kindness here is from man toward God.  Of course we know that God responds to our kindness with His Kindness.  

Now, what am I trying to get across in these two articles?  First let me say that, of course faith in God is something that grows in our lives and there are principles of faith that brings results of healing and blessing to us from God.  But if we aren't alert we can slip into performance driven faith.  We can begin to think, "if I do everything right according to a certain teaching, I will get my answer."  That attitude could become a hindrance to receiving from God because it is a kind of faith idol that is not necessarily motivated by "kindness toward God."  We can create a "house of Bethesda" in our own lives where we see, believe and respond to God from a foundation of kindness and mercy.

I guess as I write this that I am not really talking to people who are moving in a strong faith stance toward God.  I am speaking to those who don't feel you have it together and at times you don't feel like you have enough faith or knowledge or  discipline to get your answer.  Yet, you have a belief that God loves you and wants only His best for you.  You love God with all your heart but things haven't worked quite like you thought they would.  What do you do and where do you go next?  May I suggest that you quit trying so hard to "get healed".  God wants you to simply and kindly approach him.  It might be that all your struggling and activity has somehow hindered the very thing you need, wholeness.  

God Is Bigger Than Methods

Just about the time we think we have God figured out He will break out of our box and do it another way!   About a decade ago I was suffering from a heart condition that Doctors had said only bypass surgery would make better.  I struggled in faith doing all I knew to do to get healed.  Then, in time, I gave up on faith for my healing.  Of course, when you are a preacher who prays and believes for healing you can’t tell anyone that! Finally I went to Emory University hospital in Atlanta for one more heart catheterization.  Before I went I had preached in two different churches that week and two separate ladies spoke over me in prayer that I would not have surgery.   I smiled and thanked them but deep within I knew that I would have surgery.  I was so reconciled to having surgery that the night before I left for Atlanta I shaved my chest!  I had learned that the worst part of being hospitalized for a man was suffering with the tape on your chest!

Before the heart cath was performed my heart surgeon had said that according to the previous tests it appeared to him that I would need two or maybe three bypasses.  They prepped me to go straight from the lab to the operating room if bypass surgery was necessary. I remember the procedure and the apparent perplexity in the Doctors when they finally came and told me, “Your new results don’t match your old video film of your old test results.”  I was actually, I’m sorry to say, stunned!  I asked Teresa, “what does this mean?!”  She said, “it means that God has healed you!”  Wow!  God had healed me and I did nothing right according to my faith methods.  God had just healed me because it was in His plan to do so.

About a week later I was in a restaurant back home.  I walked by an old preacher who is now in heaven.  He asked about my heart visit to Emory.  I told him what had happened, and how I was amazed that God had done it outside of my faith sphere.  He said something that I will never forget.  His words were piercing and yet challenging to my doctrine.  He said, ”GOD IS BIGGER THAN YOUR FAITH!

Today you may be struggling with “trying to get fixed” in some way.  Maybe like the woman with the issue of blood, you have tried it all.  May I suggest that you quit struggling to get healed and simply lift your eyes to Jesus and his never ending, never judging mercy.  Just look to Him in your simplest and what may seem your weakest way and see how He responds to your childlike faith.

Peacemakers

A good friend of mine once said, "we are supposed to be bridge builders, but remember that bridges are walked on!" Often being peacemakers involves some abuse.  Yet, reconciliation is a part of our ministry as followers of Jesus.  He said to us in Matthew 5:9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God."  It's just part of our job!

Serving as a pastor for most of my life I have sat with many confused people who, often after my counsel, went to be a peacemaker and left attacked and wounded. They limped back to my office to ask, "what happened?"  It didn't seem to work.  We need to understand our part in the peacemaking process. We can only do our part of extending the olive branch of peace and reconciliation.  We can't make forgiveness and a desire for reconciliation appear in the heart of the other person.  We can only do our part. The Bible tells us that if we have an offense against someone we must go to them and try to get it right. It also says that if we know that a person has an offense against us, once again it's on us to go to them.  We can only do our part out of obedience.  We like to think that obeying the Lord and going, and it's a very hard thing to do, guarantees that the other person will be gracious and appreciate our efforts.  Not always!  I remember going to one man once and humbly asking for forgiveness and expressing a desire to be reconciled.  He turned on me like a wild animal and I actually thought he was going to attack me physically.  He said, "stay away from me!" He went to his grave never changing. How did I live with it?  I learned that once I did my part I was free!  While he wasn't free, I was free because I had sincerely obeyed the Lord in the matter.  Here is a wonderful verse.  Rom. 12:18 "if it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men."  Did you get it!  "As much as depends on you..."God only requires us to obey His word and do our part. The outcome in the matter does not determine our outcome in life. 

All of this means that I have had to learn to live extending a lot of grace to people.  Forgiveness and dropping the charges are powerful and liberating activities. Where are you in all this today?  If you haven't chosen to forgive, do so now.  If you need to go to someone in a effort to bring peace and reconciliation, do so now.  If you have already gone to someone and they rejected your efforts, let it go and do so now!  Remember, the Lord only requires to live peaceably with all men, "as much as depends on you."

Spiritual Prayer

I remember how I used to struggle with the Apostle Paul's words in I Th. 5:17, "Pray without ceasing". What did that mean?  How could you get anything done if you prayed 24/7?  The phrase, "without ceasing" means "uninterrupted".  I have come to learn more and more about the abiding presence of God and spiritual prayer.  Spiritual prayer is a word I have coined to distinguish between soulish prayer and spiritual prayer. Paul also tells us that we can "pray in the Spirit and pray with our understanding". There is a definite distinction between the two.   That particular verse is speaking of prayer in the Spirit which is followed by an understanding of what we prayed in the Spirit earlier.  That interpretation is not necessarily instantaneous or even perceived as an interpretation.  It could be days later.  The fact that there is a distinction in prayer between the Holy Spirit praying through us (Rom. 8:26) and praying with our mind or soul is proof that the origin of prayer could be either us or God.  Many of our prayers that begin with us, regardless of how sincere we may be, are soulish  and self-centered.  Prayers that originate in the Spirit are pure and according to the will of God.  How then can we pray more from the Holy Spirit's inspiration and less from our own religious duty.  It has to do with maintaining an unbroken fellowship  or as we learned earlier, "uninterrupted" connection with God.  This level of communion is something we can learn and deepen as we practice a God awareness.  Obviously, we all have to work and function out in the workplace.  We can't come across as weird or super-spiritual or we work against our purpose of bringing Jesus to others.  There is a place of unbroken communication between your spirit and God's Spirit!  Even when you aren't aware, it's happening!  Often I will wake in the night our early morning and realize that Bible verses or songs are going on inside me.  I have experienced this many times.  It means that even though I'm asleep my spirit man is connected to God and involved in worship and prayer.  What is my purpose is this writing?  I want to encourage you to learn to live with a God  awareness or consciousness!  Your life is not all natural as the world around us.  The people that you know what are not followers of Jesus live in the two dimensions of body and soul.  We have the added dimension of a living spirit which has been quickened and living in a cohabitation with the Holy Spirit.  Enjoy your walk as one filled with the Holy Spirit!