THE CERTAINTY OF FAITH
28th Feb 2018
“Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” (Romans 10:17) That “word” may come in different forms, through the written word, through dreams, visions etc. God has His personal ways of arresting our attention and communicating what is necessary in our circumstances in order to release faith.
The apostle Paul, a prisoner and on his way to Rome to be tried by Caesar, facing all sorts of opposition, intrigue and life threatening dangers had such a word. In fact the initial word in Acts 23:11 - “The Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” -was reinforced in Acts 27:32 - “An angel stood beside me and said, Do not be afraid, Paul;, You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.” He believed it and it was fulfilled.
I needed a personal word to anchor my faith in a particular situation. I had been praying with my mind, but I needed a more specific detailed direction for prayer to release the certainty of faith.
As I asked for this, a phrase that I knew was scriptural dropped into my mind by the Holy Spirit. “After you have suffered a little while” - I needed to find it which led me to 1 Peter 5:10 which states that, “after you have suffered a little while, the Lord himself will restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”
Faith was quickened in my heart. Whatever the situation looks like in the natural, I know that the Lord himself will restore, strengthen and make the specific person I am praying for firm and steadfast with a testimony of God’s faithfulness.
The Message puts it this way, “So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ - eternal and glorious plans they are! - will have put you together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.”
by Joyce Sibthorpe
