Today, we are going to continue our discussions on the enemies to faith – FAILURE TO ACT ON GOD’S WORD.” Failure to act on the Word of God is a major enemy to faith.
In First Timothy 6:12 the Bible says, “Fight the good fight of faith…” Every Christian is expected to fight the good fight of faith. And to win in this battle, you MUST put action behind the Word of God you claim to believe.
For instance, in your kitchen, you must strike the match before the gas in the gas cooker can produce the flames you require to cook your food. You must put on the switch before the current in the wire can produce the light you require to light up your room. Similarly, you must put action behind the promise of God you claim to believe before you can experience the breakthrough you desire.
Failure to act on what God has said in His Word concerning your situation is a major enemy to faith. The Word of God will always work if you work it. It won’t work if you just dream it or know it. It will only work if you work it.
Knowledge must be applied to your situation in order to get the expected result, because knowledge without action will not produce the required result.
For instance, it is good you know that paracetamol can relieve that physical pain you are experiencing. But your pain will only be relieved when you have taken the recommended dose of unexpired paracetamol.
How do you work the Word of God? You work it by acting on whatever God has promised in His Word concerning your situation. You don’t obey instruction by knowing about the instruction, but by DOING what the instruction says.
Putting action behind the promise of God concerning your situation is what we call “CORRESPONDING ACTION.” This is an action that is in agreement with or that conforms to the promise of God you claim to believe.
For instance, suppose God promised in His Word that you can walk on water. The evidence that you truly believe that promise is that you’ll step out into that river to walk on water. This is corresponding action.
If you really believe what God has promised in His Word concerning your situation, you’ll act on that promise. That is the evidence that you really believe.
What is the action that will match the promise of God you claim to believe? If you are a doer of the Word of God, your actions must correspond to your confessions.
So many who profess Christ and who declare that they believe the Word of God from Genesis to Revelation are not doers of the Word because they cannot act on the Word they claim to believe. Such people are simply talkers of the Word (Matt. 7:24-26). They speak the language of Christians; they sing the song of Christians but they don’t really believe God for what He has promised in His Word concerning their situation. They will act as if they are Christians, but they reject the power that could give them their desired result. You must stay away from people like that because they are simply “actors.”
In James 2:14-17 the Bible says, “Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions (by what you do)? That kind of faith can’t save anyone...”
The Waymouth translation of James 2:14 puts it this way, “What good is it my brethren, if you profess to have faith, and yet your actions do not correspond (match, show it)?”
For instance, you say you are trusting God for your healing and yet your trust is truly in medicine and not in His Word (Jam. 5:14-16; 1 Pet. 2:24). You have not acted on His Word. There is no proof that you truly believe what God promised in His Word concerning your healing. That is to say that faith without corresponding action is dead. In other words, you believe that that physical tablet in your hand is stronger than the Almighty God.
Again, you say that you are trusting God for your finances and yet you are worrying about how you are going to pay your bills.
You say you are trusting God for protection when you go to sleep at night, but in reality you are not able to sleep because you believe the thieves must attack you in the night.
One minute you confess that the Word of God is immutable, that He watches over His Word to perform it (Jer. 1:12), and the next moment you are cancelling all that you have confessed, through your actions (no corresponding action to back up your confessions).
The bad news is that when you don’t believe God for what He has said in His Word concerning your situation, worry and anxiety will take over and bring complete unrest to your soul.
If you know that God’s Word is true and you act as if it is true, it becomes a reality in your life. Until you quit trying to believe the promise of God but step out in faith and act on the promises that God has made in His Word concerning your situation, you’ll never be able to experience victory in any area of your life.
In James 2:18 the Bible says, “But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works [corresponding action]. Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works [corresponding action].”
I can’t see your faith if you don’t have corresponding action, but I can show you my faith through my corresponding action.
The Bible said, “When Jesus saw their faith….” (Mk. 2:5). How did Jesus see their faith? He saw their faith by their removing the tiles of the roof in order to let the paralytic down to Jesus (Mk. 2:1-12).
In James 2:19-26 the Bible says, “Do you still think it’s enough just to believe that there is one God? Well, even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror! Fool! When will you ever learn that faith that does not have corresponding action is useless? Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was declared right with God because of what he did [corresponding action] when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, he was trusting God so much that he was willing to do whatever God told him to do. His faith was made complete [perfect] by what he did—by his actions. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, so God declared him to be righteous.”
So you see, we are made right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. Notice that his faith was co-operating with his actions, and by his actions his faith was made complete.
Acting on God’s Word will perfect your faith. How? Now listen, when your confessions of faith and your action have the same amplitude, they are said to be in resonance or agreement. They can add up to produce a much bigger effect than any of them alone can ever produce. This final effect is called a synergistic effect.
They can interfere with each other either constructively or destructively. When they interfere with each other constructively, a synergistic effect appears. When they interfere destructively with each other, the result is a straight line which represents no effect.
Examples of people that acted on the promise of God they claim to believe abound in the Scriptures: A typical example is the case of the woman with the issue of blood who obtained her healing on the platform of faith (Mk. 5:25-34). She was indeed a doer of the Word! She acted on what she believed.
In Mark 5:25-34 Jesus said to the woman with the issue of blood, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction."
Of the 7 steps she took in order to receive her miracle, the most relevant to our topic is her acting on the Word of God. She acted on the Word of God and this is what is called corresponding action.
She left where she was and went to the healer. She did it. This is the evidence of the thing she had not seen. At this point she was able to call those things that be not as though they were (Rom. 4:17).
Your action defeats you or puts you over. According to your action, you’ll receive or you’ll be kept from receiving.
On the way to your miracle, you may have a number of obstacles to overcome. This woman had a number of obstacles to overcome. She did not pray that God would remove the obstacles. She got up and walked over the top of them all.
In those days, a woman with an issue of blood was regarded in the same category as a leper and was not allowed to mix with the public, according to the teaching of her religion. But her actions said, “Religion or no religion, I’m going to get my healing.”
Also, in that day, women did not have the liberty to mingle publicly. Again her actions said, “Custom or no custom, I’m going to get my healing.”
When she got there, a multitude of people crowded between her and Jesus. Her weakened physical condition would have been enough to cause her to give up. But her actions said, “Crowd or no crowd, I’m going to get to Jesus to get my healing. And she elbowed her way through.
This woman’s actions demonstrated her faith. Her action was an evidence of her faith. She took a step of faith because faith without works (corresponding action) is dead (Jam. 2:26).
Now listen, daughter Jesus said, “THY FAITH hath made thee whole” (Mk. 5:34). Notice that it was her faith (not her grammar, not her connections, not her crying ability, not her nationality) that caused that power to flow out from Jesus Christ to her. You can’t link up with God except through faith. Faith brings you to the realm of the supernatural. Faith transports you to the realm of the miraculous.
In Mark 5:30 Jesus immediately knowing in Himself that power (virtue, ability) had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My clothes?" And the disciples replied, “Thou seest the multitude thronging (crowding around) thee, and sayest thou, Who touched Me?”
Many people touched Jesus that day, some through curiosity, some accidentally, and some to see if something would happen. But no power flowed until there came a touch of faith! The very moment there was a touch of faith, the power flowed out from Jesus to destroy the yoke upon the life of that woman. Hallelujah!
When you link up with God through faith, virtue is instantly released into your situation and surely solution to your problem follows. This woman knew how to tap into the healing power of God. It is like plugging into an electric outlet. If you can learn how to plug into this supernatural power, you can put it to work for yourself, and you can also be healed of any disease, sickness or condition. This plugging in is possible only by faith. Faith is acting on God’s Word. When you turn the switch of faith on your miracle is there.
Therefore, if you want that reproach in your life to be permanently rolled away right now, you must choose to put action behind what you believe by acting on God’s Word. Act on His promises today and then rest on His power and faithfulness.
Watch out for the next edition of Good News from the Pulpit!
- Your friend: I. I. MADUBUNYI (Senior Pastor) Mar. 8th, 2020!
Promise of God: This week, “God will undo all that afflict you and give you fame instead of shame” (Zeph. 3:19-20).
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