THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF FAITH! (1)

Your breakthrough was finished from the foundation of the world (Heb. 4:2-3; Eph. 1:3; 2 Pet. 1:3). But you can enter into that rest of breakthrough in your finances, health, business, and career right now by faith only.

Today, we want to look at the different kinds of faith. There are different kinds of FAITH and these include:

1. GENERAL OR SMALL FAITH: If you are Born Again, you already have what we call general or small faith. All covenant children of God have this type of faith.

In Romans 12:3 the Bible says, “For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly …according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”

God has dealt to every Born Again believer the measure of faith. Notice that the Bible did not say ‘a measure of faith’ but ‘the measure of faith.’ This means that it is the same measure (quantity) of faith that every believer receives from God at salvation. That deposit of faith is given to you small, but God expects you to make it grow. And it is your responsibility to increase that very measure of faith that God has given to you.

How can one accomplish this? The only way to do that is by diligently learning more of God’s Word because faith begins where the will of God is known, and the Word of God is the will of God. Your faith will increase as you study/hear God’s Word. The Scriptures say, “…..for faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17).

Do you know why fear grips many people in the face of adversity? It is because their faith is small. The Bible says, “If you faint in the day of adversity [misfortune, hardship, trouble], thy strength [faith] is small [little]” (Prov. 24:10).

Here, the Bible is not talking about your physical strength or muscles; it is referring to your faith! When your faith is small, you will faint [give up] in the day of trouble.

With general faith you can receive answers to prayers.

And Jesus said unto them, “…if you have faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible to you” (Matt. 17:20; NLT).

In Mark 11:24 Jesus said, “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you desire [ask] when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”

In Matthew 21:22 the Bible says, “And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

2. WEAK FAITH: Weak faith is the result of your not exercising your faith. You exercise your faith by acting on the promise of God. When you hear the Word of God and you don’t act on it, your faith will become weak because you have not proved God. Weak faith is therefore, the result of not acting on the information that you have received.

What is the difference between small faith and weak faith? Small faith is the result of insufficient information from God’s Word but weak faith is the result of not acting on the Word of God you have received. This is just the difference!

Weak faith will cause you to stagger when trouble strikes, and as a result, fear will grip your heart, and you will be defeated by the crisis of life. Look at what the Bible says about Abraham.

“And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith giving glory to God, 21 and Abraham was fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform” (Rom 4:17-22).

When your faith is weak you will waver or stagger at the promises of God through unbelief when trouble comes. This is because you have never proven God`s Word by acting on it. Shedrach, Meschach and Abed-nego were not weak in faith when trouble showed up (Dan. 3). Daniel was not weak in faith when he came under the cross fire of affliction (Dan 6).

How else do you know when your faith is weak? When your faith is weak, you’ll begin to ask for proof before you can believe whatever God has said in His Word.

In Romans 14:1-4 Paul says, “Accept Christians who are WEAK IN FAITH, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong…”

Here Paul is speaking about IMMATURE FAITH that has not yet developed the muscle it needs to stand against external pressures. For example, if a person who once worshiped idols became a Christian, he might understand perfectly well that Christ saved him through faith and that idols have no real power over him anymore. Still, because of his past associations, he might be badly shaken if he unknowingly ate meat that had been used in idol worship.

3. GREAT FAITH: Great faith is a faith that will not give up in spite of opposition. It is faith that responds with knowledge. This type of faith is based on the amount and quality of information that you have received, accepted and endorsed.

To the woman of Canaan, a Syrophenician by birth, Jesus responded in Matthew 15:28, “O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.”

When Jesus told the woman that she could not get what she requested for, she responded with knowledge. She spoke back the words of faith (Matt. 15:21-28).

When Jesus heard her informed answer, He said to her, “…woman, great is thy faith” (Matt. 15:28). Jesus said the same thing to the Roman Centurion (Matt. 8:5-13), and is saying the same to you right now.

The more accurate the information you have is, the better (bigger/greater) your faith will be. When you don’t have enough information from the Word of God concerning a particular issue, your faith will be small. The cure to this kind of faith is simply to learn what God has said in His Word concerning that issue. Keep listening to tapes; keep studying the Word of God in that area until your thinking, ideas and perspective change!

4. SAVING FAITH: This is imparted to us through the Word of God. You get the faith for salvation in any area of your life by hearing the Word of God.

In Ephesians 2:8-9 the Bible says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

In Romans 10:17 the Bible says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

Titus 2:11-14 says, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14 Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

We know that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. But how are we to get the faith to get saved? Romans 10 tells us how.

Romans 10:8-14 says, “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation….13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?”

Men are saved by hearing God’s Word. This is because the Scriptures say, “…faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom 10:17). You can never believe and have faith in God without hearing His Word.

In Acts 10 and 11 we read about Cornelius, who although devout, had not yet been saved. He was not saved because he has not heard the Word of God [the Good News] yet. Cornelius was not saved until he heard Peter preach the Word. An angel from the LORD appeared to Cornelius (Acts 10:3) and told him where to go to get someone who could preach the Word of God on salvation to him (Acts 10:13). And if he believes that Word, he will be saved. Acts 11:14 reports that the angel said that Peter would preach the Gospel to Cornelius and his household.

“Who shall tell thee WORDS, whereby thou and all thine house shall be saved” (Acts 11:14).

                                          

This verse therefore tells us that men are saved by hearing the word - the Word of God. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). Therefore you can never believe in God without hearing the words about God.

5. THE FRUIT OF FAITH: In Greek it is called “the fruit of faithfulness.” It is for the development of the Christian character. Faithfulness is the fruit that grows in the life of a Christian to establish him in spiritual character.

In Galatians 5:22-23 the Bible says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

6. THE GIFT OF FAITH: In 1 Corinthians 12:7-10 the Bible says, “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another FAITH by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.”

This gift is a supernatural manifestation of the Holy Spirit to receive a miracle. By this gift one does not work a miracle, but passively receives a miracle. One can supernaturally, and against all odds believe God for a miracle. By this gift one is given a supernatural ability to receive a miracle from God. By this gift God honours your word [your pronouncements] as He honours His own Word.

In Jeremiah 1:12 God said, "You have seen well, for I am watching over My Word to perform it."

God watches to see that His Word is fulfilled.

In Isaiah 55:11 the God said, “So shall My Word be that goeth 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.”

This gift is not imparted to all but as the Holy Spirit wills. In 1 Corinthians 12:28 the Bible says, “And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.”

I therefore, challenge you today to deepen your knowledge in the different kinds of faith so that you can truly live a life that pleases God.

Watch out for the next edition of Good news from the Pulpit!

• Your friend: I. I. MADUBUNYI (Senior Pastor)                               July 9^th, 2017!