“And this He said to prove him: for He Himself knew what He would do.” John 6:6
Dear Ones:
In all of Jesus’ dealings with individuals, He is ever seeking to bring the to faith in God, or increase their faith. There is a procedure He follows in doing this, and we see it in Isaiah 55:11, “…So shall My word be that goes forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” The procedure is that God speaks, and calls us to believe Him according to what He has declared. To “believe” in Him according to that word will result in one of two responses, either to obey what He has said, or to commit oneself to Him to wait in anticipation for the accomplishment. Both acts, and attitudes, are examples of faith in God.
When Gideon was ordered by God to deliver Israel from the Midianites, he was faced with a logical nightmare. The Lord, by His word, had ordered Gideon to let return all his soldiers, except for three hundred. Gideon was faced with a choice of whether he was going to obey God, according to His word, or not. Faith won out, and he obeyed. However, Gideon needed to be encouraged, so the Lord provided a circumstance, whereby, miraculously Gideon overheard the account of a dream by an Midianite. In that dream, the name of Gideon was specifically mentioned as being the conqueror of the Midianites. Again, the intervention of God, (…in this case to encourage him) came by the word of the Lord to Gideon. In obedience, he took his servant, and went down to the edge of the camp of the enemy, and heard the account of the dream. This response of faith resulted in a most encouraging act of God on his behalf.
In Jesus’ day, Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue came and fell down at Jesus’ feet, to plead with Him to come and heal his twelve year old daughter who was dying. Jesus went with Him. While He was going, the procession was halted by a woman whose faith Jesus recognized, as she had been healed by Him, after touching His garment. Though Jairus was surprised by the halt, and certainly encouraged by what Jesus did, he most certainly was fearful about his daughter, and her critical condition. It is to this fear that the Lord Jesus spoke: “Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made well.” (Luke 8:50) Jairus is confronted by the words of the Lord, and he is faced with the choice of believing Him wholly according to those words, or abandoning faith. Certainly, because of the renown and reputation of Jesus, and the love that he had for his daughter, he would not hesitate, or delay, to continue the journey with Jesus. The result of this obedient faith is the healing of his daughter.
The procedure of God in bringing us to faith, or encouraging us in our faith, is to “speak” through His word, calling us to believe in Him, either by actively obeying what He commands, or committing ourselves to Him to wait upon Him, living in the expectation of the realization of what He has promised. God alone knows what He will do. Faith is that unique response that He calls us to exercise according to the word that He gives us.
Dear Father, teach us Your ways, and give us grace to respond with our whole hearts. Then we shall truly see the glory of God, and be inspired and encouraged in Thee. We praise and thank Thee in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad