The Audacity of Faith

God... calleth those things which be not as though they were (Romans 4:17).

What does that mean? Why Abraham did this thing: he dared to believe God. It seemed an impossibility at his age that Abraham should become the father of a child; it looked incredible; and yet God called him a "father of many nations" before there was a sign of a child; and so Abraham called himself "father" because God called him so. That is faith; it is to believe and assert what God says. "Faith steps on seeming void, and finds the rock beneath."

Only say you have what God says you have, and He will make good to you all you believe. Only it must be real faith, all there is in you must go over in that act of faith to God.
--Crumbs

Be willing to live by believing and neither think nor desire to live in any other way. Be willing to see every outward light extinguished, to see the eclipse of every star in the blue heavens, leaving nothing but darkness and perils around, if God will only leave in thy soul the inner radiance, the pure bright lamp which faith has kindled.
--Thomas C. Upham

The moment has come when you must get off the perch of distrust, out of the nest of seeming safety, and onto the wings of faith; just such a time as comes to the bird when it must begin to try the air. It may seem as though you must drop to the earth; so it may seem to the fledgling. It, too, may feel very like falling; but it does not fall -- it's pinions give it support, or, if they fail, the parent birds sweeps under and bears it upon its wings.

Even so will God bear you. Only trust Him; "thou shalt be holden up." "Well, but," you say, "am I to cast myself upon nothing?" That is what the bird seems to have to do; but we know the air is there, and the air is not so unsubstantial as it seems. And you know the promises of God are there, and they are not unsubstantial at all. "But it seems an unlikely thing to come about that my poor weak soul should be girded with such strength." Has God said it shall? "That my tempted, yielding nature shall be victor in the strife." Has God said it shall? "That my timorous, trembling heart shall find peace?" Has God said it shall?

For, if He has, you surely do not mean to give Him the lie! Hath he spoken, and shall He not do it? If you have gotten a word -- "a sure word" of promise -- take it implicitly, trust it absolutely. And this sure word you have; nay, you have more -- you have Him who speaks the word confidently.

"Yea, I say unto you," trust Him.
--J. B. Figgis, M. A. 

For some time now, it has become the practice of believers to search for empirical and pragmatic evidence that what God has promised will take place. Believers have become driven by circumstance and blocked in by uncertainty. God has made precious and powerful promises to the believer and His impeccable character and integrity ensures that His word will never fail (Isa. 55:11).

When God promised Abram that He would be the father of many nations, He changed his name to Abraham (Father of a Multitude). Names had power in those times. Every time someone called Abraham by name, he was reminded of the promise. Every time Abraham introduced himself, he was reminded of the promise. God has given you a name as well. He has named you conqueror (Romans 8:37), royal priest, a chosen generation, a peculiar (uniquely special and gifted for purpose) people, and a Holy nation (1 Peter 2:9), beloved (Daniel 10:11; Songs of Sol. 2:16), sons & daughters (2 Corinthians 10:18), friend, (John: 15:15), masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10), and Treasure (Deuteronomy 7:6).

The Bible says that Abraham did not “stagger” (waver in unbelief) at the promises of God, but grew stronger in faith, giving glory to God. One of the greatest ways you glorify God is by properly engaging your struggles. When people are looking at you and asserting that you should be moaning and crying, but you a smiling and praising, you glorify God. When people think that all of the pressure that you are under should have caused you to lose your mind, but you remain at peace, you glorify God. When everything says give up there is no hope, but you stand anyway, you glorify God.

God has given a testimony of your faithfulness to the enemy (Job 1:1-12) and now He wants to know: Can He trust you with TROUBLE? You see, He knows that you will give Him praise when the new car is in the garage. He knows that you will smile when the marriage is rolling along smoothly He knows you will speak highly of His name, but what will happen when the vicissitudes of life roll into your paradise? What will you do when delay seems perpetual? How will you respond to the incessant attacks of the enemy? This is what will determine the magnitude at which you glorify our God.

One the greatest testimonies about Abraham, if not the greatest, was His faith. He believed God for the impossible and God accounted (credited him with Divine righteousness) is as righteousness (Gen. 15:6). Understand this; some of your greatest and most powerful testimonies will not be where you stood victoriously on the mountaintop. No, it will be the recollection of how you endured delay, withstood the pernicious attacks of the enemy, coped with abandonment and loneliness, and persevered through heartache and disappointment.

Dr. Rick Wallace 

It is when you understand that God is your Shield and exceedingly great Reward (Gen. 15:1) that you will realize that there is no struggle or obstacle that God will not bring you through. As they say, “If He brought you to it; He will bring you through it.”

Faith does not require empirical evidence, it is not daunted by delay, it is not exhausted by external pressure, it does not become confused by false testimony, and it does not become frustrated in the face of resistance. Faith says simply, “If God has said it is so, then it is so!” Faith stands alone, believing. Pastor Steven Furtick says that faith is audacious. Faith dares to believe God for the impossible. In fact, I believe that those believers that truly ascend are those that search for the impossibilities in their lives so that the power of God can be revealed through them. Yes, faith requires that you step out on what seems to be nothing, but God is the master of the universe, which He created from nothing. He will take your faith and your nothing and perform the supernatural. ~ Dr. Rick Wallace

Praying in Faith

"Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are" (James 5:17).

Thank God for that! He got under a juniper tree, as you and I have often done; he complained and murmured, as we have often done; was unbelieving, as we have often been. But that was not the case when he really got into touch with God. Though "a man subject to like passions as we are," "he prayed praying."  It is sublime in the original--not "earnestly," but "he prayed in prayer." He kept on praying. What is the lesson here? You must keep praying.

Come up on the top of Carmel, and see that remarkable parable of Faith and Sight. It was not the descent of the fire that now was necessary, but the descent of the flood; and the man that can command the fire can command the flood by the same means and methods. We are told that he bowed himself to the ground with his face between his knees; that is, shutting out all sights and sounds. He was putting himself in a position where, beneath his mantle, he could neither see nor hear what was going forward.

He said to his servant, "Go and take an observation." He went and came back, and said--how sublimely brief! one  word--"Nothing!"
What do we do under such circumstances?

We say, "It is just as I expected!" and we give up praying. Did Elijah? No, he said, "Go again." His servant again came back and said, "Nothing!" "Go again." "Nothing!"

By and by he came back, and said, "There is a little cloud like a man's hand." A man's hand had been raised in supplication, and presently down came the rain; and Ahab had not time to get back to the gate of Samaria with all his fast steeds. This is a parable of Faith and Sight--faith shutting itself up with God; sight taking observations and seeing nothing; faith going right on, and "praying in prayer," with utterly hopeless reports from sight.

Do you know how to pray that way, how to pray prevailingly? Let sight give as discouraging reports as it may, but pay no attention to these. The living God is still in the heavens and even to delay is part of His goodness.  --Arthur T. Pierson

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What was James' reasoning for pointing out the fact that Elijah was a man just as we are, with the same passions and proclivities? It was simple, faith has no partiality in its power and desire to perform. James was telling his readers that the only thing that separated Elijah from those that accomplish little in the way of prayer and faith was his perseverance in prayer, which was a testimony to the depth of his faith. Elijah was not deterred by delay.

Elijah was not daunted by the circumstances of the moment. He was not inclined to give up at the negative report of sight. Sight said nothing, but Elijah persisted in prayer. Sight gave no confirmation of anticipation being fulfilled, but Elijah kept believing. Sight could only perform within its human limitations, but faith was powerful enough to bend the facts of natural limitations and obtain that supernatural expectation. Faith sees beyond the limited perspicacity of human rationale.

Dr. Rick Wallace

In fact, though Elijah built an eternal legacy, he was no different than any of us, except that his faith was settled in God, and he refuse to believe anything other than what God had promised.

I know that it can be easy to rely on your sight. You see the impossible in front of you. The task is daunting and your hope begins to wane, but God is faithful and able to perform all that He has promised; even in the face of what your sight has revealed. God specializes in the impossible. The audacious faith that was expressed on Mount Carmel by Elijah was not exclusive to Him, but is accessible to all willing to execute its power without wavering.

In order to experience the impossible you must be willing to face the impossible, believing that God can transform the impossible into the accomplished. ~ Dr. Rick Wallace