“Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” Mark 5:39-40.

“Just say the Word, and my boy will be healed.” Matthew 8:8.

Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves. Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? 2 Corinthians 13:5.

Today your LORD (יהוה) God says:

Jesus talked a lot about faith. And He told you that you receive according to your faith. He could work no mighty miracles in Nazareth because of their lack of faith. The Israelites I redeemed from slavery in Egypt did not get all the wonderful abundance in their lives I prepared for them in advance because of their lack of faith in My promises. And it is impossible to please Me without faith. And Jesus told you that when He returns, He will be looking for people with faith. The righteous shall live by faith. Everything in My Kingdom comes to you by faith. No other way. If you are wise, you would be interested in learning how to operate in faith.

So how do you learn the law of faith? It is a law, just like gravity is a law, and it always works if you put it to work. Many people think they have faith but they don’t. They have what Paul called “feigned faith” or fake faith. It will fool you and most other people too.  I tell you that Jesus is the author, originator, and perfecter of your faith, I tell you that He is your master teacher, and He tells you to come and learn from Him. Keep your eyes on Jesus. He will teach you how to operate in faith because that is the way He operates. I operate by faith, and seeing Him you see Me. So through imitating Him, you are actually imitating Me, He is My exact image, radiating My glory.

First, I will show you what Jesus called no or very little faith. And you may recognize yourself or someone you thought very religious in this. Once when out preaching the Kingdom, My Son told His disciples to get in the boat with Him and go to the other side of the lake. Mark 4:35; Luke 8:22. They had His Word, and He only spoke as I directed Him, that they were going to the other side. They should have trusted that. While they were traveling to the other side, however, a storm came up—a bad one, a diabolical one whipped up by your adversary who did not want them to get to the other side. Why? Just read this in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke and you will see what happened when they came ashore on the other side. There was a demon possessed man over there in the Gerasene that the devil figured Jesus would set free if He got over there; and, of course, Jesus did cast the legion of demons who had taken possession of him out of that man when they landed. Mark 5:1-20; Matthew 8:26-34; Luke 8:26-39.

The storm increased and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. Circumstances looked like they would not get to the other side. And often circumstances make people doubt My Word will come to pass. But Jesus was in the stern, asleep on the cushion (that demonstrates how a person of faith behaves in a storm, they stay in My rest and don’t get agitated by the schemes of the devil). And they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” Mark 4:37-38. Jesus awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” Mark 5:39-40. Fear and faith don’t mix. I did not give you a spirit of fear but a Spirit of power, love, and a sound mind.

My Son asked them, “Have you still no faith?” No faith. But they prayed the way many believers pray to Me every day and think it is great faith. They repeat their problem or just point it out to Me and ask Me why I am permitting it and don’t I care that they are perishing? In other words, they are telling Me to do something if I care about them. But I have done all you need already. I care so much that I gave My only begotten Son to die for you so that you who believe will NEVER perish but have eternal life. And He bore all your sins, pains, sorrows, ills, poverty, and shame. In other words, He redeemed you from the curse of the law and gave you the BLESSING of Abraham and the promise of the Spirit by faith. By faith. You have to take it by faith.

Jesus was telling the disciples instead of sitting there helpless and questioning His care, and they even had Him in the boat with them, and today Christ is in you, your hope of glory (the manifestation of My goodness, My power, and My presence), that they should have taken their dominion authority and the power of My Spirit that is in words of faith and declared that they were going to the other side and then rebuked that storm and the devil behind it, resisted him, and he would have had to flee and stop stirring up the atmosphere. All creation is waiting with eager longing to be set free by the sons of God, and that is you who believe. Jesus cares and I care and that is why I have fully equipped you to fight the good fight of faith.

And Jesus showed them how a person of faith operates in a storm, just as He did. He did not join them in their agitation (many think they are showing their friends and family they care if they get into anxiety and whining with them and keep begging Me to do something, but they are not helping at all, that is not faith and will not get any results) and cry out to Me, questioning My care of them, accusing Me of neglect, and begging Me to be good to them. That is no faith and does not please Me for then I cannot go to work for you because you are essentially declaring that I do not care for you and by your words you are acquitted or condemned. I have go with your declaration. I cannot override your will in the matter. Be bold and with confidence take hold of the life that is life indeed.

But Jesus showed them how true faith in Me works. As the Son of Man, He used the dominion authority and the power of the Holy Spirit that I have given the children of men, and He rebuked the wind and told the sea to calm down and be still. And a great calm ensued. And this amazed the disciples, though it should not have if you have read Genesis 1. I have given man dominion over the earth. Why don’t you take it? They were not even born again at that time because Jesus had not yet died for your sins, but even then, as part of the human race, they had authority over the earth, just as I gave it to the first man and women at the very beginning. Genesis 1:26-28. You don’t have to give in to the devil’s control even though Adam did. That is the default mode of no resistance and it will take you down every time. And do not blame Me for the works of the devil as if I had done them. Jesus came to undo the work of the devil. Submit to My Word (they were going to the other side), resist the devil, and he has to flee. But you can only do it by faith, and faith speaks. You believe in your heart and speak with your mouth, for a man’s mouth speaks what fills his heart.

So faith is a heart issue. Too many people are treating it as a mental intellect or mental assent issue. You don’t believe with your mind; you renew your mind and fill it with the Word so it can plant in your heart. With the heart you believe and with the mouth you confess. Romans 10:8-10.

And Jesus gave you the way faith operates: “Have faith in God (have My faith): Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” Mark 11:22-25.

Here is how to operate in faith. You believe in your heart and speak with your mouth. You rebuke and speak to problems—the mountains in your life—and cast them down. And then you ask Me for good things to rectify any damage done and pull you up out of the pit, that is, to make you whole and complete believing that I have heard you and granted your prayer and then receive it by faith as if it were a signed contract that I will perform. Faith is the title deed of things hoped for. And faith works by love, and love forgives. Unforgiveness will block your ability to receive and take you out of the faith walk.

So we looked at no faith, so do not imitate that. Now what does little faith look like? My Son also talked about little faith. He talked about how unbelievers are living with a survivalist mentality, always focused on meeting their basic needs for food, clothes and shelter. And you will find this mentality among believers who are behaving like unbelievers. You may believe in Me but if you are fearing how you will get along and provide for yourself and are always running after things to try to increase your security as if you were your own source, that is little faith. Jesus asked those filled with anxiety over having their needs met, “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” Matthew 6:30. The solution? Seek My Kingdom and My righteousness first and everything else will be added to you. Many have faith I will only provide if you do hard labor to earn your wages. And it is true I tell you not to be lazy and stand idle all day. But work is your assignment and it is so that you have something to give to others and for the work of the ministry. But I am your source. Remember Elijah at the brook of Cherith? Elijah, as My prophet, was doing Kingdom work, and when the drought with the famine it brought on hit and Ahab was seeking to take his life, I sent him to the brook of Cherith, which still had water in it and told him, “You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” So he went and did according to My Word and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. 1 Kings 17:1-6. And he stayed there until I moved him to another assignment in the home of a poor widow, who, once she obeyed the word of My prophet, was not poor anymore. Miracles of provision and healing came to her house.

And even more so with you who are born again and filled with My Spirit. Seek My Kingdom and I give provision for the vision. Remember the manna in the desert? Every day for forty years it came down on the dew fall. No toil. But I did have them all working on constructing My dwelling place.

Now look at great faith. This is about a centurion that was not under the covenant I made with Abraham because he was not a descendant of Abraham, but he got covenant results by faith. Consider what happened: when Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him, and saying, “Lord, my boy (in the Greek in which the New Testament was written, the word here is “pais” which is a boy, child, youth—a child under training) is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented.” Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” (notice, Jesus is the author and finisher of your faith who are born again, so this should be your confident response when illness comes upon you or another) (Those who believe in My Name will lay their hands on the sick and they will recover, you are empowered to do this, so why don’t you?). But the centurion said, “Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof (he was not in Covenant with Me), but just say the word, and my boy will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel. I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed.” And the boy was healed that very moment. Matthew 8:5-13.

What was it that was “great faith?” It was the same great faith My Son had—that the declaring of My Word produces the result it holds. The centurion trusted that without even Jesus coming to his house, if He just said the Word, the boy would be healed. No distance or change of time mattered. The Word would work. I send My Word to heal you and deliver you from your destructions. Psalm 107:20. It is the Word itself that contains the power of the promise it holds, like a seed has the plant within it, you need only plant and cultivate a peach seed and you will get a tree that bears peaches. And the fruit has the seed in it. And the centurion practiced this in his life, he gave the word and his servants responded. When you declare My Word all My works, which is all that is made, creation itself, responds.

Others Jesus encountered had faith, they believed Jesus could heal them if they touched Him or He touched them, but this centurion knew the power was in My Word spoken in faith by one with the authority to use it. And all of you born again believers have the authority to use My Words. “As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit which is upon you, and My Words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from now and forever.” Isaiah 59:21. Forever. You operate the same way, that is, by faith, in the third Heaven as you do in the earth.

Faith is a rest. Resting in what I said and trusting, no matter what, it will come to pass.

I love you. The Kingdom works by Kingdom laws wherever you are walking under My Lordship by receiving My Son. Now, test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves. Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? 2 Corinthians 13:5. Are you accusing Me of not caring? Or are you declaring?