Preface
Thomas has become a deified saint in the hearts of multitudes of people.
You hear them say pridefully, "I am a doubting Thomas."
They little realize what their confession means.
They have unconsciously allied themselves with the man who likely hurt Jesus from a spiritual point of view more than any other of His disciples.
Thomas' faith in the Master was based upon purely sense knowledge grounds.
He said, "When I can see the wounds in his hands, put my finger into the wound and my hand into his side, then I will believe."
I know of nothing so utterly cruel as unbelief. There has never been an armor for the heart that could shield it from the spear of unbelief.
That Roman soldier no more assuredly reached the heart of Jesus than did the unbelief of this loved man' Thomas.
Sense knowledge faith is one of the most dangerous enemies and one of the most deep-seated errors in the modern church.
The sense knowledge believer knows very little of the Pauline revelation. He lives in the realm of the senses.
He is oft-times suspicious of the man who walks in the spirit.
He is ever trying to get faith, praying for faith, but never arrives.
He knows the Bible is a Revelation from God, but he knows nothing of revelation faith.
He lives in a spiritual fog.
He is the personification of mysticism.
Chapter 14
THE THOMAS KIND OF FAITH
I never realized how many people had this kind of faith You remember the story in John 20:24-29, "But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, ‘We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and my hand into his side, I will not believe.’”
"And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then he said to Thomas, Reach hither your finger, and see my hands; and reach hither your hand, and put it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus said unto him, Because you have seen me now you believe? (margin) Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."
This is the Thomas type of faith.
It is Sense Knowledge faith.
We can believe in miracles if we can see them.
In many healing meetings multitudes have sat in amazement when they have seen the sick instantly healed.
It has given them faith to dare ask for their own healing.
This was not faith in the Word.
It is faith in what they see and hear or feel.
We see it again manifest in an instance like this: Someone comes to me sick. They are in great pain. When I pray for them the pain leaves them instantly; and they say, "Thank God I am healed."
I ask, "How do you know you are?"
And they reply, "The pain is gone."
They have no faith in the Word. It is meaningless to them. I read them Isaiah 53:4-5, and say, "Do you believe that?"
"Oh, yes; I have believed that for years."
I read it again: "Surely he hath borne our sickness and carried our pains; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted." (Margin)
"He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him: and by his stripes we are healed."
You see, this person is healed by my faith; or his faith in my faith.
They are like the one in James 5:14 who calls for the elders to come and pray over him and anoint him with oil, and the prayer of the elders heals him.
The only faith he had, was in the elders.
That is Sense Knowledge faith.
He can see the elders. He can hear them pray; can feel their hands upon his head.
The Word actually means nothing to him.
Had he believed the Word instead of sending for the elders or asking anyone to pray for him, he would have looked up and said, "Father, you laid this disease on Jesus, and it is unseemly for me to bear it. I dishonor You in bearing it. So in the Name of Jesus, I command it to leave me, and I command Satan to take it with him. I have no use for it, and I refuse to have it."
In Jesus' Name he gets his personal deliverance.
He honors the Word, and the Name.
He honors the Father and Jesus.
He has learned to take his place in Christ.
Jesus met only sense knowledge faith among the Jews.
In Matthew 8:5-13 is recorded the story of the centurion who came to Jesus beseeching Him to come and heal his servant who was sick of palsy.
And Jesus said, "I will come and heal him."
The centurion answered, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed."
He illustrates his confidence by saying, "I also am a man of authority, having under me soldiers: and I say to this one, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my servant! Do this, and he does it."
When Jesus heard this He said, "I have not found so great faith no, not in Israel."
This Gentile had faith in the Master's word that no Israelite had manifested.
In John 6:30 you catch a glimpse of the Jews' faith in Jesus. It was exactly like Thomas' faith.
"They said therefore unto him, What then do you do for a sign, that we may see, and believe you?"
When they saw the miracles they believed.
I question if a single one of the disciples that walked with the Master had anything but sense knowledge until after the day of Pentecost.
Luke 24:11 gives a picture of the disciples after Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James; and the other women with them told the disciples that Jesus had risen.
"And these words appeared in their sight as idle talk; and they disbelieved them"
They couldn't believe beyond their senses.
John 6:14 gives us another illustration. "When therefore the people saw the sign which he did, they said, This is of a truth the prophet that cometh into the world."
His words filled them with wonder or with anger, but not with faith.
They had to have some physical evidence to prove His Deity.
1 John 1:1-3 also illustrates this perfectly: "That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life (and the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare unto you the life, the Eternal Life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us); that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you also, that ye also may have fellowship with us."
That which we have seen with our eyes, handled with our hands—that is in the realm of the senses.
God sent His Son down here into the realm of Sense Knowledge, and those sense knowledge folks saw Him, ate with Him, witnessed His miracles, but not one of them actually believed He was going to rise from the dead, though He had told them so.
They didn't believe that He was going to die for their sins.
They only believed what they could see, and hear.
None of the disciples believed in His resurrection until they had some physical evidence of it.
You remember the dramatic scene of Peter and John coming to the tomb finding the stone rolled away, and the empty grave clothes. John then said that he believed. (Read John 20:1-10)
One of the gravest dangers that we face as believers is sense knowledge faith.
The thing that He demands of us is that we accept His Word as it is, the very Word of God; and that we act upon it, independent of any feeling or any evidence that the eyes can see or the ears hear.
Have you noticed carefully Romans 10:8-11?
8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
You note He is challenging us to accept the Word that we may have heard so many times that we know it from memory.
So He says, "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart: that is, the word of faith."
Next He demands that I confess with my lips, my faith in the resurrection of Jesus; He demands that I confess my salvation; and that I have become His righteousness in Christ.
I must confess this before I receive Eternal Life, before I am recreated, before I become the righteousness of God in Him,
And He says that if I do it, I shall not be put to shame.
This is acting on the Word independent of any sense knowledge whatever.
That is faith.
For me to act when I have evidence, is not faith.
I require no faith when I have physical evidence.
You see, faith is giving substance to a thing that is not.
I am giving thanks to the Father for the money to pay the bills before the money has arrived.
All I have is Matthew 6:32-33: "Your heavenly Father knows, that you have need of all these things. But seek you first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you;" and Phil. 4:19: "My God shall supply every need of yours."
That is all I have. That is all I ask.
And that Word has given me the assurance that I will get the thing that I asked Him for.
Jesus said, "Whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my Name he will give it you."
I have asked the Father in Jesus' Name, now I am thanking Him that His Word cannot fail.
In another part of these lessons you will read a little exposition on Philippians 4:6-7. Let me add a bit to it.
"In nothing be anxious."
Why should I be anxious?
Isn't He my Father?
Don't I know Him?
Didn't He say that He would look after my needs, and whatsoever I ask in Jesus' Name He will give to me?
Didn't He say, "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all things?" (Romans 8:32.)
How can I be otherwise than perfectly quiet?
The thing hasn't disturbed me.
For instance, suppose my child is very ill. Doctors have given it up, but that doesn't disturb me. I have His Word and I know Him. He can't fail me.
Didn't He say, "They that believe shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover?" (Mark 16:17-18.)
Supposing I can't get to the child, then I have this scripture: "Whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my Name He will give it you." (John 16:23.)
Do I need anything more?
Why does He say, "I watch over my word to perform it."?
Because "No Word from God is void of power."
Now you can understand the rest of this: "In everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God."
Did you notice, "with thanksgiving"?
I can't help but be thankful.
I can't help but praise Him.
Sickness or an impossible financial obligation simply gives Him an opportunity to reveal Himself as my Father, and Jesus as my Lord and provider.
If I didn't have that need, I would never know the riches of His grace; so I thank Him for every added burden that comes from the Kingdom of Darkness, for it gives Him an opportunity to reveal Himself to my heart.
Did you notice the next verse?
When I begin to thank Him and praise Him, "The peace of God which passes all understanding throws a garrison of faith's soldiers around my heart, guarding it, and guarding my thoughts so that no doubt can come."
Why, I am just as quiet as God is, because God's peace has garrisoned my heart.
Did Jesus ever get disturbed?
Was He anxious when He saw the waves dashing over the little vessel in which He and the disciples were riding?
Not a bit, He simply said, "Peace, be still."
He knew that every Word He spoke was the Father's Word; and it was the Father saying through His lips, "Peace, be still," and the waves became quiet.
When the demoniac, that fierce, dangerous man, came out and intercepted them in the Gadarenes, the Father said through Jesus' lips, "Be still; come out of Him.
And the demon said, "May we go into that herd of swine?"
Jesus answered. "Go."
Jesus was speaking the Father's Words; He wasn't excited or anxious.
He knew that what the Father said through His lips would master that demon force, or quiet that raging sea.
And that same peace of God comes into your heart that was in the heart of Jesus.
The Bitter Failure of Sense Knowledge Faith
A man said to me, "I think I am losing faith in God.
"I have had such strong faith. Why, I have been healed so many times. Every time that I have been sick and have asked prayer from my friends, I have been instantly healed; but now I have had ever so many pray for me and I get no relief.
"I tell you, I am beginning to lose faith."
I asked him "What are you losing faith in?"
He answered, "Faith in God, to be sure."
And I said to him, "Why you've never had any special faith in Him to lose. You've had many healings, but have you ever gone to Him for your own healing?"
"No, I've always had you people pray for me."
"Then all you have had is sense knowledge faith.
"You have trusted in other people's faith.
"You have been a spiritual hitchhiker ever since we first became acquainted.
"You have never trusted the Word for yourself.
"You have been a leaner rather than a burden-bearer.
"You have leaned on other people. You have never taken your place in Christ, and the hour has come when their faith can't carry you any longer. You must take your place yourself.
"Are you a son?"
"Oh, yes, I know I was Born Again years ago."
"But you have never grown any. You are but a babe yet.
"You live in the realm where you were when I first found you.
"You have never come out of the sense realm. "Don't you think now that you had better begin to study the Word?
"Take our The Bible in Light of your Redemption’ correspondence course. Get to know what you are in Christ; what belongs to you.”
"Get to know your authority over sickness and disease through the Name of Jesus."
"I thank you for speaking so plainly to me. I can see where my difficulty lies, but you see I have been so busy with my business and I have been struggling so hard to make good, I guess I have failed to get the best out of life."
"No, you have just awakened, and now you will get it. It is a short road. It is only a few blocks up, and you will be rejoicing with the rest of them having your own faith, having your own place in Christ.
"You will be praying with sick folks. Men will be coming to you and saying, 'Won't you pray for me?' or, 'I wish you would pray for my child;' and, oh, the joy that will be yours."
Sense Knowledge holds you a prisoner. One is always looking for physical evidence, and as long as one does that, faith doesn't have an opportunity to exercise itself.
You pray for something. Then you must act as though you have it. You must talk as though you have it.
You are never to go back on your prayer, never - to allow your lips for one moment to say that you are not certain that you have it, that you are not sure of your answer.
You remember Mark 11:24: "When you pray, believe that you have received; and you shall have it." That is the marginal rendering.
Then there is only one thing to do. We must begin to praise Him for it.
I remember that years ago I was praying for money to meet our rent bill. I had prayed. Then I went out on the street and I began to wonder how I could get it.
Before I realized it I had destroyed my prayer. I had nullified the Word.
I came to myself, asked for forgiveness, and then began to thank Him for it. I held myself steady and kept my heart singing songs of victory. That was the beginning of my life of prayer.
Then I remember how I grew out of that and came to the place where, when I had asked Him for something, I forgot it; I left it; I walked away from it.
If it came back to my mind, I thanked Him; I praised Him for it.
Then I learned that when someone brought the subject up, to tell him that it was settled. "I have it."
Once a man said, "If you have it, then there is no need of my helping you."
I smiled and said, "I have it according to the Word, for no word from my Father is void of fulfillment; so I praise Him as though I had it now."
One day while walking down Halsey Street in Chicago I was facing a great need. I asked Him for it in that Name, and began to praise Him for it.
It seemed as though I could feel it in my pocket. I wouldn't put my hand in to verify it, but I walked down the street hardly touching the sidewalk. My heart was full of laughter.
When I reached the house where I was called upon to pray for a sick woman, the money was handed to me. It was more than I had asked for.
Jesus said in Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
The Lord knew that as I gave of what I had, His anointing in me, as I gave to this woman, He would manifest the answer to my need and it was running over.
"In nothing be anxious." Is He not for you? Is He not working for those who trust Him?
There is no ground for anxiety or fear if you know His Word.
“Whosoever believeth shall not be put to shame."
I know this to be an absolute fact.
You see, as a believing believer your heart will learn to welcome the impossible, the "beyond reason" task; for the Greater One is in you, with you, and for you.
Questions
1. What is the Thomas type of faith?
2. In James 5:14 the one who calls for the elders to come and pray over him and anoint him with oil, and the prayer of the elders heals him. What was his faith in?
3. In Matthew 8:5-13 what did the Centurion say that amazed Jesus?
4. The author questions if a single one of the disciples that walked with the Master had anything but sense knowledge until when?
5. What is one of the gravest dangers that we face as believers?
6. What is Paul challenging us in Romans 10:8-11?
7. What is NOT faith?
8. Why didn’t Jesus ever get disturbed?
9. After you pray for something what should you do?
10. What should our answer be when someone says, "If you have it, then there is no need of my helping you."?
11. “Whosoever believeth shall not be put to shame." What should that mean to us?
Thomas has become a deified saint in the hearts of multitudes of people.
You hear them say pridefully, "I am a doubting Thomas."
They little realize what their confession means.
They have unconsciously allied themselves with the man who likely hurt Jesus from a spiritual point of view more than any other of His disciples.
Thomas' faith in the Master was based upon purely sense knowledge grounds.
He said, "When I can see the wounds in his hands, put my finger into the wound and my hand into his side, then I will believe."
I know of nothing so utterly cruel as unbelief. There has never been an armor for the heart that could shield it from the spear of unbelief.
That Roman soldier no more assuredly reached the heart of Jesus than did the unbelief of this loved man' Thomas.
Sense knowledge faith is one of the most dangerous enemies and one of the most deep-seated errors in the modern church.
The sense knowledge believer knows very little of the Pauline revelation. He lives in the realm of the senses.
He is oft-times suspicious of the man who walks in the spirit.
He is ever trying to get faith, praying for faith, but never arrives.
He knows the Bible is a Revelation from God, but he knows nothing of revelation faith.
He lives in a spiritual fog.
He is the personification of mysticism.
Chapter 14
THE THOMAS KIND OF FAITH
I never realized how many people had this kind of faith You remember the story in John 20:24-29, "But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, ‘We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and my hand into his side, I will not believe.’”
"And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then he said to Thomas, Reach hither your finger, and see my hands; and reach hither your hand, and put it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus said unto him, Because you have seen me now you believe? (margin) Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."
This is the Thomas type of faith.
It is Sense Knowledge faith.
We can believe in miracles if we can see them.
In many healing meetings multitudes have sat in amazement when they have seen the sick instantly healed.
It has given them faith to dare ask for their own healing.
This was not faith in the Word.
It is faith in what they see and hear or feel.
We see it again manifest in an instance like this: Someone comes to me sick. They are in great pain. When I pray for them the pain leaves them instantly; and they say, "Thank God I am healed."
I ask, "How do you know you are?"
And they reply, "The pain is gone."
They have no faith in the Word. It is meaningless to them. I read them Isaiah 53:4-5, and say, "Do you believe that?"
"Oh, yes; I have believed that for years."
I read it again: "Surely he hath borne our sickness and carried our pains; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted." (Margin)
"He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him: and by his stripes we are healed."
You see, this person is healed by my faith; or his faith in my faith.
They are like the one in James 5:14 who calls for the elders to come and pray over him and anoint him with oil, and the prayer of the elders heals him.
The only faith he had, was in the elders.
That is Sense Knowledge faith.
He can see the elders. He can hear them pray; can feel their hands upon his head.
The Word actually means nothing to him.
Had he believed the Word instead of sending for the elders or asking anyone to pray for him, he would have looked up and said, "Father, you laid this disease on Jesus, and it is unseemly for me to bear it. I dishonor You in bearing it. So in the Name of Jesus, I command it to leave me, and I command Satan to take it with him. I have no use for it, and I refuse to have it."
In Jesus' Name he gets his personal deliverance.
He honors the Word, and the Name.
He honors the Father and Jesus.
He has learned to take his place in Christ.
Jesus met only sense knowledge faith among the Jews.
In Matthew 8:5-13 is recorded the story of the centurion who came to Jesus beseeching Him to come and heal his servant who was sick of palsy.
And Jesus said, "I will come and heal him."
The centurion answered, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed."
He illustrates his confidence by saying, "I also am a man of authority, having under me soldiers: and I say to this one, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my servant! Do this, and he does it."
When Jesus heard this He said, "I have not found so great faith no, not in Israel."
This Gentile had faith in the Master's word that no Israelite had manifested.
In John 6:30 you catch a glimpse of the Jews' faith in Jesus. It was exactly like Thomas' faith.
"They said therefore unto him, What then do you do for a sign, that we may see, and believe you?"
When they saw the miracles they believed.
I question if a single one of the disciples that walked with the Master had anything but sense knowledge until after the day of Pentecost.
Luke 24:11 gives a picture of the disciples after Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James; and the other women with them told the disciples that Jesus had risen.
"And these words appeared in their sight as idle talk; and they disbelieved them"
They couldn't believe beyond their senses.
John 6:14 gives us another illustration. "When therefore the people saw the sign which he did, they said, This is of a truth the prophet that cometh into the world."
His words filled them with wonder or with anger, but not with faith.
They had to have some physical evidence to prove His Deity.
1 John 1:1-3 also illustrates this perfectly: "That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life (and the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare unto you the life, the Eternal Life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us); that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you also, that ye also may have fellowship with us."
That which we have seen with our eyes, handled with our hands—that is in the realm of the senses.
God sent His Son down here into the realm of Sense Knowledge, and those sense knowledge folks saw Him, ate with Him, witnessed His miracles, but not one of them actually believed He was going to rise from the dead, though He had told them so.
They didn't believe that He was going to die for their sins.
They only believed what they could see, and hear.
None of the disciples believed in His resurrection until they had some physical evidence of it.
You remember the dramatic scene of Peter and John coming to the tomb finding the stone rolled away, and the empty grave clothes. John then said that he believed. (Read John 20:1-10)
One of the gravest dangers that we face as believers is sense knowledge faith.
The thing that He demands of us is that we accept His Word as it is, the very Word of God; and that we act upon it, independent of any feeling or any evidence that the eyes can see or the ears hear.
Have you noticed carefully Romans 10:8-11?
8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
You note He is challenging us to accept the Word that we may have heard so many times that we know it from memory.
So He says, "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart: that is, the word of faith."
Next He demands that I confess with my lips, my faith in the resurrection of Jesus; He demands that I confess my salvation; and that I have become His righteousness in Christ.
I must confess this before I receive Eternal Life, before I am recreated, before I become the righteousness of God in Him,
And He says that if I do it, I shall not be put to shame.
This is acting on the Word independent of any sense knowledge whatever.
That is faith.
For me to act when I have evidence, is not faith.
I require no faith when I have physical evidence.
You see, faith is giving substance to a thing that is not.
I am giving thanks to the Father for the money to pay the bills before the money has arrived.
All I have is Matthew 6:32-33: "Your heavenly Father knows, that you have need of all these things. But seek you first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you;" and Phil. 4:19: "My God shall supply every need of yours."
That is all I have. That is all I ask.
And that Word has given me the assurance that I will get the thing that I asked Him for.
Jesus said, "Whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my Name he will give it you."
I have asked the Father in Jesus' Name, now I am thanking Him that His Word cannot fail.
In another part of these lessons you will read a little exposition on Philippians 4:6-7. Let me add a bit to it.
"In nothing be anxious."
Why should I be anxious?
Isn't He my Father?
Don't I know Him?
Didn't He say that He would look after my needs, and whatsoever I ask in Jesus' Name He will give to me?
Didn't He say, "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all things?" (Romans 8:32.)
How can I be otherwise than perfectly quiet?
The thing hasn't disturbed me.
For instance, suppose my child is very ill. Doctors have given it up, but that doesn't disturb me. I have His Word and I know Him. He can't fail me.
Didn't He say, "They that believe shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover?" (Mark 16:17-18.)
Supposing I can't get to the child, then I have this scripture: "Whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my Name He will give it you." (John 16:23.)
Do I need anything more?
Why does He say, "I watch over my word to perform it."?
Because "No Word from God is void of power."
Now you can understand the rest of this: "In everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God."
Did you notice, "with thanksgiving"?
I can't help but be thankful.
I can't help but praise Him.
Sickness or an impossible financial obligation simply gives Him an opportunity to reveal Himself as my Father, and Jesus as my Lord and provider.
If I didn't have that need, I would never know the riches of His grace; so I thank Him for every added burden that comes from the Kingdom of Darkness, for it gives Him an opportunity to reveal Himself to my heart.
Did you notice the next verse?
When I begin to thank Him and praise Him, "The peace of God which passes all understanding throws a garrison of faith's soldiers around my heart, guarding it, and guarding my thoughts so that no doubt can come."
Why, I am just as quiet as God is, because God's peace has garrisoned my heart.
Did Jesus ever get disturbed?
Was He anxious when He saw the waves dashing over the little vessel in which He and the disciples were riding?
Not a bit, He simply said, "Peace, be still."
He knew that every Word He spoke was the Father's Word; and it was the Father saying through His lips, "Peace, be still," and the waves became quiet.
When the demoniac, that fierce, dangerous man, came out and intercepted them in the Gadarenes, the Father said through Jesus' lips, "Be still; come out of Him.
And the demon said, "May we go into that herd of swine?"
Jesus answered. "Go."
Jesus was speaking the Father's Words; He wasn't excited or anxious.
He knew that what the Father said through His lips would master that demon force, or quiet that raging sea.
And that same peace of God comes into your heart that was in the heart of Jesus.
The Bitter Failure of Sense Knowledge Faith
A man said to me, "I think I am losing faith in God.
"I have had such strong faith. Why, I have been healed so many times. Every time that I have been sick and have asked prayer from my friends, I have been instantly healed; but now I have had ever so many pray for me and I get no relief.
"I tell you, I am beginning to lose faith."
I asked him "What are you losing faith in?"
He answered, "Faith in God, to be sure."
And I said to him, "Why you've never had any special faith in Him to lose. You've had many healings, but have you ever gone to Him for your own healing?"
"No, I've always had you people pray for me."
"Then all you have had is sense knowledge faith.
"You have trusted in other people's faith.
"You have been a spiritual hitchhiker ever since we first became acquainted.
"You have never trusted the Word for yourself.
"You have been a leaner rather than a burden-bearer.
"You have leaned on other people. You have never taken your place in Christ, and the hour has come when their faith can't carry you any longer. You must take your place yourself.
"Are you a son?"
"Oh, yes, I know I was Born Again years ago."
"But you have never grown any. You are but a babe yet.
"You live in the realm where you were when I first found you.
"You have never come out of the sense realm. "Don't you think now that you had better begin to study the Word?
"Take our The Bible in Light of your Redemption’ correspondence course. Get to know what you are in Christ; what belongs to you.”
"Get to know your authority over sickness and disease through the Name of Jesus."
"I thank you for speaking so plainly to me. I can see where my difficulty lies, but you see I have been so busy with my business and I have been struggling so hard to make good, I guess I have failed to get the best out of life."
"No, you have just awakened, and now you will get it. It is a short road. It is only a few blocks up, and you will be rejoicing with the rest of them having your own faith, having your own place in Christ.
"You will be praying with sick folks. Men will be coming to you and saying, 'Won't you pray for me?' or, 'I wish you would pray for my child;' and, oh, the joy that will be yours."
Sense Knowledge holds you a prisoner. One is always looking for physical evidence, and as long as one does that, faith doesn't have an opportunity to exercise itself.
You pray for something. Then you must act as though you have it. You must talk as though you have it.
You are never to go back on your prayer, never - to allow your lips for one moment to say that you are not certain that you have it, that you are not sure of your answer.
You remember Mark 11:24: "When you pray, believe that you have received; and you shall have it." That is the marginal rendering.
Then there is only one thing to do. We must begin to praise Him for it.
I remember that years ago I was praying for money to meet our rent bill. I had prayed. Then I went out on the street and I began to wonder how I could get it.
Before I realized it I had destroyed my prayer. I had nullified the Word.
I came to myself, asked for forgiveness, and then began to thank Him for it. I held myself steady and kept my heart singing songs of victory. That was the beginning of my life of prayer.
Then I remember how I grew out of that and came to the place where, when I had asked Him for something, I forgot it; I left it; I walked away from it.
If it came back to my mind, I thanked Him; I praised Him for it.
Then I learned that when someone brought the subject up, to tell him that it was settled. "I have it."
Once a man said, "If you have it, then there is no need of my helping you."
I smiled and said, "I have it according to the Word, for no word from my Father is void of fulfillment; so I praise Him as though I had it now."
One day while walking down Halsey Street in Chicago I was facing a great need. I asked Him for it in that Name, and began to praise Him for it.
It seemed as though I could feel it in my pocket. I wouldn't put my hand in to verify it, but I walked down the street hardly touching the sidewalk. My heart was full of laughter.
When I reached the house where I was called upon to pray for a sick woman, the money was handed to me. It was more than I had asked for.
Jesus said in Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
The Lord knew that as I gave of what I had, His anointing in me, as I gave to this woman, He would manifest the answer to my need and it was running over.
"In nothing be anxious." Is He not for you? Is He not working for those who trust Him?
There is no ground for anxiety or fear if you know His Word.
“Whosoever believeth shall not be put to shame."
I know this to be an absolute fact.
You see, as a believing believer your heart will learn to welcome the impossible, the "beyond reason" task; for the Greater One is in you, with you, and for you.
Questions
1. What is the Thomas type of faith?
2. In James 5:14 the one who calls for the elders to come and pray over him and anoint him with oil, and the prayer of the elders heals him. What was his faith in?
3. In Matthew 8:5-13 what did the Centurion say that amazed Jesus?
4. The author questions if a single one of the disciples that walked with the Master had anything but sense knowledge until when?
5. What is one of the gravest dangers that we face as believers?
6. What is Paul challenging us in Romans 10:8-11?
7. What is NOT faith?
8. Why didn’t Jesus ever get disturbed?
9. After you pray for something what should you do?
10. What should our answer be when someone says, "If you have it, then there is no need of my helping you."?
11. “Whosoever believeth shall not be put to shame." What should that mean to us?