CHAPTER 5
"...And shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those
things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith."
-- Mark 11:23
These interesting words are a part of the
Saviour's discourse on the power of faith. The disciples were greatly
astonished by the power manifested in the Master's words which dried up the
fruitless tree from the roots. When Jesus arrested the attention of His
disciples by this unusual miracle, He obviously intended to reveal the power of
God made available to His people through the prayer of faith. When Peter
called the Lord's attention to the withered tree He said, "...Have faith in
God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain,
Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his
heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass;
he shall have whatsoever he saith."
In order to understand truth about praying
without doubt in our hearts it is necessary to consider the Saviour's opening
statement, "...Have faith in God." The remarkable discourse following His
opening words reveals the fundamental fact relating to the prayer of faith.
Our Lord would have us see that we can possess the faith of God. He revealed
this fact when He said, "Have faith in God." It would be utterly impossible to
believe that those things which we say in prayer shall come to pass unless we
had an implicit faith in God. When Jesus said, ''...Have faith in God," He
revealed the Source of the priceless possession of the faith which enables us
to pray without a doubt in our hearts. His admonition to have faith in God
implies that all men have an inherent faith derived from God when He created
the first man in His own image. The quality of inherited faith was not
destroyed in the fall although it was greatly impaired as a result of
disobedience. Jesus disclosed the amazing fact that we can possess a measure
of the faith which Almighty God possesses in His own Divine Nature. This fact
should not seem incredible since it is true that God did impart a measure of
His own faith to man at the beginning of creation.
We do not hesitate to accept the fact that God
imparts a measure of His life and love to His redeemed people. Surely it is
not impossible for Him to impart a sufficient measure of His faith to His
people to sustain them in life in this world of doubt and disbelief. If His
people are not able to accomplish His works in the world because of the
littleness of their faith, there is no valid reason to doubt that He can and
will increase their measure of achieving faith. When the disciples said,
"...Lord, Increase our faith," we have reasons to believe that He granted their
request. (See Luke 17:5.)
The Saviour did not imply that we could possess
the same measureless degree of faith which the infinite God possesses in His
Divine Person. But He did encourage us to believe that we can receive a
measure of God's faith to enable us to accomplish His purpose in redemption.
The Saviour would have us see that we can enter into the faith of God and
become workers together with Him in achieving His eternal purpose in His
beloved Son. It is obviously true that God works in His people and through
them according to the degree of their faith. He cannot do great things unless
His people can believe Him for great things. Christ is made invincible in this
world through the unwavering faith of His praying people.
The Scriptures reveal that Christ works according
to His own faith, and His people enter into His faith and work with Him in
accomplishing His purpose in redemption. The fact that He works according to
His own faith is as understandable as the fact that a man works according to
his own faith. A man can plan to build his house long before he lays the first
stone in the foundation. He can plan for the happiness of a family before a
child is born to gladden his heart. It is also true that a man's family can
enter into his faith and assist him to achieve his purpose in life. Surely it
is possible for the redeemed family of Christ to enter into His faith and
participate in His eternal purpose to achieve the final victory over sin and
death. The Son of God is not limited by circumstances, neither is He lacking
in adequate resources to supply the need of His family on earth. Nothing shall
prevent Him from bringing many sons unto glory according to the will of the
heavenly Father.
We can pray without a doubt regarding the power
of God. We can perceive the truth about Christ's eternal verities when we
consider His statement about removing the mountain at the word of command. We
are aware that the mountain has no power within itself to obey the word of
command, "...Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea..." It is also
obvious that the mountain is not removed by the efforts of man. Therefore we
must conclude that the person speaking the words that remove the mountain has
access to a power sufficient to remove the mountain and have it cast into the
sea. The words of Jesus warrant us in saying that this power is made available
to His praying people through faith. If this is not the truth then we must
conclude that the words of Christ have no meaningful application to the
perplexing problems of daily life. We are aware that the Master's words are
figurative yet they are factual. The mountain evidently represents something
that God will remove in answer to the prayer of faith.
Let us assume that the mountain represents the
mass of human misery caused by sin in this troubled earth. It is certainly
true that no man has power within himself to remove the mass of physical and
mental sufferings caused by sin in this world. It is likewise true that no man
has the strength of will to remove the mountain of iniquity which stands
between himself and a holy God. Sin rests on his guilty soul like the weight
of the hills. A man's load of depravity gives him a heavy heart and a burdened
spirit. When we look at the mass of human suffering resulting from sin, we can
visualize the insurmountable difficulties confronting humanity in this
distressed earth. The bewildering sufferings caused by the sins of men
constitute a mountain of misery and woe more formidable and forbidding than all
the precipitous heights and impregnable rocks of earth's tallest peaks.
Christ is our only hope for deliverance in this
disconsolate world. If faith in Him cannot bring the power necessary to
surmount these difficulties, then faith has failed utterly to achieve the
victory we have a right to expect in the light of God's unfailing promises.
The imperishable Word declares, "...The just shall live by faith." How can we
obey this fundamental law of life unless we can avail ourselves of a power
sufficient to overcome every opposing force? We cannot doubt God's willingness
to impart to His praying saints a sufficiency of spiritual strength to cope
with the trials incident to life. The Scriptures record the victories achieved
by the saints of God who were made immortal in sacred history by their
dauntless courage and unwavering faith.
Let us pray the prayer of faith, not doubting in
our hearts, but believing that strength shall be given day by day to surmount
our difficulties in life. Let us not falter in the way as we journey toward
fadeless dawn of the eternal day.
We can pray without a doubt regarding the purpose
of God. The Scriptures reveal that it is God's eternal purpose in Christ to
save all men from all sin on the condition of repentance and faith.
Christ has faith in His own ability to accomplish
the Father's purpose by restoring a fallen man to the moral image of God.
Nothing shall prevent Him from fulfilling His eternal purpose as revealed in
the divine plan of salvation. There is not the remotest possibility that His
perfect plan of redemption shall fail. We are assured that the gates of hell
shall not prevail against Christ's invincible church, purchased by His blood,
endowed, and endued by His Spirit.
We do well to ponder Paul's immortal challenge,
"What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be
against us?" -- Rom. 8:31.
When once we have a proper concept of God's
immutable purpose as revealed in His Word, it will not be difficult to pray
without a doubt. Let us look again at the Saviour's words, "...And shall not
doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall
come to pass..." For the sake of clarity, let us underscore the words,
"...Shall come to pass...When shall those things which we say in prayer come to
pass? When may we reasonably expect every prayer to be answered? The things we
have said in prayer shall come to pass when everything spoken by the Lord shall
come to pass. When God's plan of salvation has been consummated, then all
things spoken by the Son of God, and all things spoken by the mouth of His holy
prophets, and all the things spoken in the prayers of His faithful people shall
come to pass.
The Scriptures affirm that it is God's purpose to
save them to the uttermost that come unto Him through Christ. God's utmost
ability was required to save us from the utmost extent of our sin. To be saved
to the uttermost according to the purpose of Christ, means to be delivered from
all sin in this present life, and delivered from the effects of sin in the body
and mind in the life to come.
We can pray without a doubt in our hearts
regarding a complete deliverance from sin in this present life, and it shall
come to pass. But we must patiently wait until Christ's final triumph over sin
and death before we can be delivered from the results of sin in our bodies and
minds. We can pray without a doubt in our hearts regarding our final
deliverance, and it shall come to pass according to the purpose of God. When
Christ has fulfilled His eternal purpose in redemption, then the mountain of
human misery and woe shall be removed from the earth. When we perceive this
truth as revealed in the Scriptures, we can understand that every prayer
offered without a doubt in our hearts shall surely be answered in full.
The things we say in prayer are powerless and
meaningless unless we have Christ's authority to say them. But if the things
we say in our prayers are the things which He has said, then we can pray
without a doubt in our hearts.
We find this truth revealed in the Master's words
concerning the mountain being removed at the word of command. Take note of the
fact that Jesus first spoke the words, "...Be thou removed, and be thou cast
into the sea..." Assuming that the mountain symbolizes the mass of human woe
and suffering caused by sin, we perceive that it is possible to have this mass
of human misery removed by speaking the living words of Jesus in our prayer.
It is apparent that we can enter in to His faith and engage His omnipotent
power to achieve victory over sin and death. When we pray without a doubt in
our hearts, we share Christ's faith to achieve the purpose of the Father. When
we speak His words, we have a valid reason to except the things we say to come
to pass.
Our prayers can embrace every word of promise and
every word of purpose spoken by our Lord. Our faith and prayers can join His
faith and prayers and assist Him in the final fulfillment of His Father's will
and work. When applying this gracious truth to the things which Christ has
spoken in explicit terms of eternal truth, it is not difficult to see that our
prayer of faith becomes an integral part of the whole plan of redemption. We
are assured that every word spoken in prayer shall be answered in the final
restitution of all things. It is written,
"And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom
the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God
hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began." Acts
3:20, 21
Paul vividly revealed the final triumph of Christ when he said,
"Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God,
even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and
power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The
last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." -- 1 Cor. 15:24-26
Our hope and expectation for final deliverance from all effects of evil in our
bodies and minds shall be realized when He shall come to be glorified in His
saints, and to be admired in all them that believe in that day. When He shall
appear we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. We shall share in
His final victory over disease and death. We shall hear Him say to the
mountain of sufferings, "...Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea...,"
and it shall come to pass.
In view of this consoling hope let us continue to
pray without a doubt in our hearts. Let us rest our faith on the enduring love
of Christ, asking nothing more than to be counted worthy of His pleasure
throughout all ages, world without end.
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