How to Believe

From Charles Capps:

When it comes to receiving from God, the will of God must be known before faith can be released. Everything hinges on knowing what we believe and believing what we know is the will of God. In Matthew 21, Jesus gave us valuable information about receiving through faith.

Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this [which is done] to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. (Matthew 21:21-22)

When it comes to the prayer of petition, if a person doesn’t know the will of God concerning their request, they can’t possibly pray the prayer of faith concerning that matter. Faith comes from hearing and knowing the will of God. If there is a question concerning God’s will, your faith will always stop at the question mark. There are several instances in Jesus’ ministry where everyone in the multitude who touched Jesus was healed. Then in other places everyone that Jesus touched received their healing. But in Mark chapter 1:40-42, we have a classic example of how faith stops at the question mark.

And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.

The leper had great faith that Jesus could make him clean. But the phrase, If thou wilt reveals that he had a question as to whether He would or not. Jesus being moved with compassion, laid His hands on him, but nothing happened. The lepers’ faith could go no further than his knowledge of this matter. But as soon as Jesus revealed His will concerning the matter the leper received his healing. So you can see how important it is to know the will of God. Sometimes it is a matter of life or death.
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