Have You Believed?
"All things are possible to him who believes!"
by Keith Axsom
“All things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23). If you look this up in the Greek, “all things” means…all things! Are you experiencing a life where you are achieving all that God has put in your heart? If not, it may be that you don’t really believe.
Belief is fundamental to anything we want to operate in, or walk in, when it comes to pursuing the promises of God. It seems like most Christians have the salvation thing down, at least the part about going to heaven after we die. Most of us have no problem believing that we are going to heaven, it’s all of the rest of God’s promises that we struggle with…if we believe them at all.
Speaking of salvation, most people don’t even know what salvation really is. Salvation is not simply just going to heaven instead of hell – although that is certainly fundamental as a benefit! Salvation is what I like to call the “PHDs”, which is: preservation, healing, deliverance and soundness. That’s what it says in the Greek. In other words, salvation is not only for the “next” life, it is for this one as well.
Think of it: we believe and we are saved. Romans 10:10 “With the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”. When we believe, we become righteous…and we are saved. When we confess, the transaction which has taken place in our heart, is made manifest. You cannot be saved without believing and confessing. Both parts, believing and confessing, are necessary for us to believe. Now, we have not seen God, yet we believe. Why do we believe when we cannot see? The world says “I’ll believe it when I see it”. The Bible says “I’ll see it when I believe it”.
God’s word is true, but how many believe? If we believed God’s word, we would
1. Never be worried. “Do not worry about your life” (Luke 12:22)
2. Never be without or suffer lack: “I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1)
3. Never carry illness or disease: “By His stripes you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24)
4. Have peace with all people: “Even your enemies will be a peace with you” (Proverbs 16:7)
5. Be youthful: “your youth will be renewed like the eagles” (Psalm 103:5)
6. Have a fulfilled life: “He came to give you life, and that more abundantly” (John 10:10)
There are a myriad of promises in the bible which are yours, just for believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. But believing is not necessarily something that comes naturally. The “childlike faith” that Jesus spoke of is something that we, as adults, need to work on. Getting saved seems to be the most simple part of the equation. We confess with our mouths, and believe with our hearts…and we are saved. We did it, the transaction occurred and now we are assured of heaven.
What about the other promises? What about abundant life? What about the “PHDs”? This is where the rubber meets the proverbial road. If our minds are not renewed with the word of God, when trials come, we will not be able to stand. Without the deep roots that come from spending time in the word and fellowshipping with God, Christians (unfortunately) tend to be no different than the world.
Look at Thomas. Thomas walked with Jesus for three years, yet when it came down to it, he did not believe that Jesus had been resurrected. “Unless I see in His hands the imprints of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe”. In response to this, Jesus said a few things. First He said to Thomas “do not be unbelieving, but believing” (John 20:27). Jesus rebuked Thomas, who clearly did not display any level of spiritual maturity. Then He told him “Because you have seen me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believe” (John 20:29). I would say to you, (as Jesus requested of Thomas), have you believed? As Christians we have not seen God, and yet we believe that He died for us and that we are going to heaven. The other bible promises are a far distant second place from that one in the mind of most Christians. We are blessed if we have not seen…and yet believe! Again, have you believed?
Take prosperity for instance. What scriptures will you stand on? “He meets all of your needs through His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phillipians 4:19). So there is a promise. “He became poor that you might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Another promise (actually, a fact). It is written, so we can believe that it is true and God meant it for us. This is no different than the promise of going to heaven when we die. Now the promise needs to be confessed out loud, and spoken until we can get our souls to line up with our spirit in regards to the promise. Confession with our mouths is fundamental for us to get to the point where we believe. Look at yourself in the mirror and confess to yourself that God’s promises are for you, if that’s what it takes. Speak the word out loud, over and over again. Do it every day. If you speak the promise to the point where it becomes belief…then you will have what you say. It may take some time, but you will surely have it. But you need to be convinced that God’s entire word is true – and that it is true for you.
When the devil comes knocking on your door and telling you that you have cancer or some other illness, will you believe what the doctor says, or what the word says about the situation? Since Jesus took your sickness on to Himself, then you are healed regardless of what the doctor says or what your body is trying to tell you. If you look at the natural during these times (like the devil wants you to), then you are in trouble. I prefer to let “God be true and every man a liar” (Romans 3:4). So if the word is true (which it is), then you are healed despite what the world says. This is where what you believe comes to the forefront. You can either buy into what the natural world is telling you, or you can believe the bible. This is where your “roots” will show. If you have been believing and confessing God’s word (deep roots), then you will overcome what the devil and the doctor are trying to tell you. Otherwise, you will respond the same way the world does – with fear and unbelief.
Jesus himself could not perform the miraculous where unbelief was present. When Jesus was in Nazareth, the people were offended at Him. “And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief” (Matthew 13:58). Mark 6:6 is even more telling: “and He wondered at their unbelief”. To “wonder” means to be amazed, astonished. After seeing and hearing of all the miracles, they did not believe…and Jesus, the Son of God…could do no miracle there! In fact, He was “astonished” by their unbelief. The same principal applies to us. If you are with a group of people and you are praying for healing, you need to be sure that everyone there believes the word. Otherwise the unbelief will hinder what God wants to do through the life of the believer.
One note if you are hearing this for the first time: don’t give up if you don’t see results in any certain amount of time! Don’t condemn yourself, and never, never, never give up. God has written His word personally to you so thatyou may have peace with Him, and know what your benefits are for giving your life to Jesus. Hebrews 11:6 says that you must believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. Diligence is a key, both to revelation knowledge, and to getting to the point where you are convinced that God’s word is true in general – and true for you in particular. Now is a great time to start believing.
All of the promises of God are yes and Amen (2 Corinthians 1:20)! They are all for us, every one of them. If God had not meant it, He wouldn’t have said it. We can appropriate those promises when we believe. You must renew their mind through God’s word, to the point where you only believe the word…and not what the world is telling you. Only then will you be brought to the place of triumph where God is bringing you (2 Corinthians 2:14). Do not be unbelieving, but believe!
“All things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23). If you look this up in the Greek, “all things” means…all things! Are you experiencing a life where you are achieving all that God has put in your heart? If not, it may be that you don’t really believe.
Belief is fundamental to anything we want to operate in, or walk in, when it comes to pursuing the promises of God. It seems like most Christians have the salvation thing down, at least the part about going to heaven after we die. Most of us have no problem believing that we are going to heaven, it’s all of the rest of God’s promises that we struggle with…if we believe them at all.
Speaking of salvation, most people don’t even know what salvation really is. Salvation is not simply just going to heaven instead of hell – although that is certainly fundamental as a benefit! Salvation is what I like to call the “PHDs”, which is: preservation, healing, deliverance and soundness. That’s what it says in the Greek. In other words, salvation is not only for the “next” life, it is for this one as well.
Think of it: we believe and we are saved. Romans 10:10 “With the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”. When we believe, we become righteous…and we are saved. When we confess, the transaction which has taken place in our heart, is made manifest. You cannot be saved without believing and confessing. Both parts, believing and confessing, are necessary for us to believe. Now, we have not seen God, yet we believe. Why do we believe when we cannot see? The world says “I’ll believe it when I see it”. The Bible says “I’ll see it when I believe it”.
God’s word is true, but how many believe? If we believed God’s word, we would
1. Never be worried. “Do not worry about your life” (Luke 12:22)
2. Never be without or suffer lack: “I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1)
3. Never carry illness or disease: “By His stripes you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24)
4. Have peace with all people: “Even your enemies will be a peace with you” (Proverbs 16:7)
5. Be youthful: “your youth will be renewed like the eagles” (Psalm 103:5)
6. Have a fulfilled life: “He came to give you life, and that more abundantly” (John 10:10)
There are a myriad of promises in the bible which are yours, just for believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. But believing is not necessarily something that comes naturally. The “childlike faith” that Jesus spoke of is something that we, as adults, need to work on. Getting saved seems to be the most simple part of the equation. We confess with our mouths, and believe with our hearts…and we are saved. We did it, the transaction occurred and now we are assured of heaven.
What about the other promises? What about abundant life? What about the “PHDs”? This is where the rubber meets the proverbial road. If our minds are not renewed with the word of God, when trials come, we will not be able to stand. Without the deep roots that come from spending time in the word and fellowshipping with God, Christians (unfortunately) tend to be no different than the world.
Look at Thomas. Thomas walked with Jesus for three years, yet when it came down to it, he did not believe that Jesus had been resurrected. “Unless I see in His hands the imprints of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe”. In response to this, Jesus said a few things. First He said to Thomas “do not be unbelieving, but believing” (John 20:27). Jesus rebuked Thomas, who clearly did not display any level of spiritual maturity. Then He told him “Because you have seen me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believe” (John 20:29). I would say to you, (as Jesus requested of Thomas), have you believed? As Christians we have not seen God, and yet we believe that He died for us and that we are going to heaven. The other bible promises are a far distant second place from that one in the mind of most Christians. We are blessed if we have not seen…and yet believe! Again, have you believed?
Take prosperity for instance. What scriptures will you stand on? “He meets all of your needs through His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phillipians 4:19). So there is a promise. “He became poor that you might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Another promise (actually, a fact). It is written, so we can believe that it is true and God meant it for us. This is no different than the promise of going to heaven when we die. Now the promise needs to be confessed out loud, and spoken until we can get our souls to line up with our spirit in regards to the promise. Confession with our mouths is fundamental for us to get to the point where we believe. Look at yourself in the mirror and confess to yourself that God’s promises are for you, if that’s what it takes. Speak the word out loud, over and over again. Do it every day. If you speak the promise to the point where it becomes belief…then you will have what you say. It may take some time, but you will surely have it. But you need to be convinced that God’s entire word is true – and that it is true for you.
When the devil comes knocking on your door and telling you that you have cancer or some other illness, will you believe what the doctor says, or what the word says about the situation? Since Jesus took your sickness on to Himself, then you are healed regardless of what the doctor says or what your body is trying to tell you. If you look at the natural during these times (like the devil wants you to), then you are in trouble. I prefer to let “God be true and every man a liar” (Romans 3:4). So if the word is true (which it is), then you are healed despite what the world says. This is where what you believe comes to the forefront. You can either buy into what the natural world is telling you, or you can believe the bible. This is where your “roots” will show. If you have been believing and confessing God’s word (deep roots), then you will overcome what the devil and the doctor are trying to tell you. Otherwise, you will respond the same way the world does – with fear and unbelief.
Jesus himself could not perform the miraculous where unbelief was present. When Jesus was in Nazareth, the people were offended at Him. “And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief” (Matthew 13:58). Mark 6:6 is even more telling: “and He wondered at their unbelief”. To “wonder” means to be amazed, astonished. After seeing and hearing of all the miracles, they did not believe…and Jesus, the Son of God…could do no miracle there! In fact, He was “astonished” by their unbelief. The same principal applies to us. If you are with a group of people and you are praying for healing, you need to be sure that everyone there believes the word. Otherwise the unbelief will hinder what God wants to do through the life of the believer.
One note if you are hearing this for the first time: don’t give up if you don’t see results in any certain amount of time! Don’t condemn yourself, and never, never, never give up. God has written His word personally to you so thatyou may have peace with Him, and know what your benefits are for giving your life to Jesus. Hebrews 11:6 says that you must believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. Diligence is a key, both to revelation knowledge, and to getting to the point where you are convinced that God’s word is true in general – and true for you in particular. Now is a great time to start believing.
All of the promises of God are yes and Amen (2 Corinthians 1:20)! They are all for us, every one of them. If God had not meant it, He wouldn’t have said it. We can appropriate those promises when we believe. You must renew their mind through God’s word, to the point where you only believe the word…and not what the world is telling you. Only then will you be brought to the place of triumph where God is bringing you (2 Corinthians 2:14). Do not be unbelieving, but believe!