FAITH IS AN ACT

Belief in the Word of God was not enough. It was a foundation upon which to build, but in itself was insufficient.

If you were to stop one thousand people on the streets of your city and take an opinion poll asking the following question, “Do you believe in God?” over ninety-five percent of them would answer “yes,” but that is not enough because the Bible tells us that even demons believe and they tremble. The Apostle Paul declares:

Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)

If the Lord had told Judah, “I have heard your prayer and I will take care of everything. You just go back to the regular routine of business as usual,” what measure of faith would that have required? Virtually none. They would have done so without a moment’s hesitation.

Every blessing that we receive from God comes to us through faith. We are saved by faith: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). We are healed by faith, we live by faith — all things come to us by faith.

I have seen so many people struggle for faith. Some feel if they tell themselves often enough that they have faith, that eventually it will become a reality. You can say, “I have faith, I have faith” from now until your last breath and it will not increase the measure of your faith.

Early in my ministry God gave me a little saying that has been an eye-opener to tens of thousands of people around the world concerning faith. It is this: Faith is a fact, but faith is an act. If you want something to repeat over and over again, try that one until it really sinks in.

Jehoshaphat could have heard the Word of the Lord through the prophet and said, “We believe.” But if they did not do what was told them, they would not be acting on their belief or their faith in the Word. They could hear his mighty prophecy and be greatly inspired knowing that the Lord had answered the King’s prayer, but if they did not act it would all be for naught.

I believe in acting on the Word. The greatest revelation in the world is worthless unless it motivates you to do something about it. I am not interested in tickling people’s ears. I want to see them so moved by the Holy Spirit that they cannot sit still, but they have to get out and put into practice what the Holy Spirit has taught them.