Faith's Divine Order #1
We’re going to start a new series today, and we’ll probably be on it for 4 or 5 weeks. This teaching is something that is so vitally important. Without it we’ll never walk in God’s perfect will and we’ll never walk in victory on a regular basis. So the title that I’ve put on this message is “PUTTING YOUR FAITH TO WORK.”
I) Many times I’ve heard people say, “I just don’t get this faith stuff.” And I can sympathize with them. They’re trying to believe God for a miracle they so desperately need, but they’re not seeing any results.
A) But the key to seeing the miracle-working power operate consistently in your life lies in understanding the DIVINE ORDER OF FAITH.
1) In the Word of God Paul said, “Let ALL things be done decently and in order.”
(a) God has ordained everything in heaven and on earth to operate according to a predetermined sequence or order.
(b) This is especially true where spiritual things are concerned.
(i) Heaven is a place of order.
(ii) You can even see that in the OT, the High Priest had to follow some very strict, detailed order of events before he could enter into the Holies of holy.
(iii) He had to follow God’s requirements step by step or it would cost him his life.
2) You will never see the miracles and the promises of God that will change your problem into victories until you come to understand the divine order of faith.
(a) Even in everyday live, there is an established order to follow in much of what we do.
(i) If you go to a store to buy some clothes, you don’t say, “Well, I will pay for these later.” If you do you’re going to get into trouble.
(ii) But there is an order to follow. 1st you pick out what you want. Then you give them to the cashier, and then you pay for them.
(b) The same is true with the Kingdom of God. The Lord has a set order for everything.
B) That would even include operating in the gifts of the spirit. Turn with me to 1COR 14:27-33, 40 (V 33 NIV “For God is not a God of disorder”)
1) You’ve probably seen it in the past in other meetings where someone will jump up and give a tongue and before someone could give an interpretation, another jumps up and gives another tongue.
(a) And before you know it everyone has some kind of prophetic message. The results are total chaos, and no one is blessed.
2) When you neglect God’s divine order, His blessings don’t flow and the anointing and the presence of the HS lift.
(a) Divine order is a prerequisite for miracles and blessings.
3) We can see that in Jesus ministry when He was feeding the 5000.
(a) Before the miracle could come, they had to get in order.
(b) Look at LUKE 9:12-17
(i) Can you imagine what would have happened if Jesus or 1 of the disciples would have yelled out, “FOODS HERE, COME and GET IT.”
(ii) It would have a mob and total chaos.
(c) There’s no getting around it. Follow God’s set order and you’ll get the desired results. Ignore it and you’ll end up frustrated and defeated.
4) God has a divine order of faith that will cause you to move from the area of problems to the area of victory.
(a) There are some things that you need to do, taking it step by step before your faith will produce.
(b) But if you can submit to God’s prescribed order of faith, taking it 1 step at a time; you’re going to begin to see God moving in your life.
C) Before we can get into God’s divine order of faith, we all need to see the importance of faith and get a good understanding of what faith is.
II) Turn with me to ROM 1:17
A) We are living in the very last days before Jesus returns. And Satan is doing all he can to bring havoc on the earth and trying to deceive as many has he can.
1) Never before in history has Satan lunched such a vicious attack against the children of God. He’s giving all that he has.
2) Never has it been more critical for you to know how to operate in faith.
(a) It can be the difference between life and death.
(b) It’s vitally important that you start developing your faith now.
(i) If you wait until a crisis is upon you to start learning how to live by faith, you’re in big trouble.
(ii) If you put it off until the last minuet it’s probably too late.
(a) Let me give you an example; a boxer doesn’t get into the ring without training 1st. If he waits until he gets in the ring to learn how to box, it’s too late and he’s in big trouble.
(b) The same is true with faith; we need to learn how to walk by faith now.
(c) The key to surviving and thriving in life is to know how to operate in faith.
3) 1 thing is certain; you’re going to have problems in live. It’s not just likely, it’s guaranteed.
B) Look at JOHN 16:33
1) The NIV say, “In this world you will have trouble.”
2) It shouldn’t come as any great shock when you experience different trials, tribulations and problems. Jesus said it would happen.
(a) But that’s not all he said. He went on to say, “Cheer up! I have overcome the world!”
(b) But knowing that doesn’t really do us much good, unless He tells us how he overcame, so we can do the same.
(c) We need to know what it takes to overcome poverty, sickness, disease, family problems, marital problems and what ever you can think of.
(i) In other words, don’t tell me you overcame; tell me how I can do it too.
(ii) That exactly what Jesus did.
3) 1JOHN 5:4
(a) The 1st prerequisite for overcoming is being “Born of God.”
(b) The 2nd part of the V tells us what enables us to overcome and that is OUR FAITH.
(i) Jesus overcame the world by using His faith and we’ll do it the same way.
(ii) If you’re going to overcome the world with the problems it offers you, you’re going to have to do it by faith.
(iii) In order to have victory on a regular basis you have to do it by faith.
C) God is serious about His people operating in FAITH.
1) 4 different times God declares through His Word that “THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.” (HABAKKUK 2:4, ROM 1:17, GAL 3:11, and HEB 10:38)
(a) 4 times God says the same thing. Do you get the impression that God wants us to live by faith?
2) Sometimes you’ll hear people say, “Well, I tried that faith stuff and it doesn’t work.”
(a) It doesn’t say, “The just shall try it out.” It says, “The just shall live by faith.”
(i) You don’t just dabble in faith. You live it.
III) Once you understand that TROUBLE is inevitable, and that faith is the only thing that will overcome that trouble, the next step is to find out what faith really is.
A) Many will say that it means “TRUST or BELIEVE.” And it does, but it goes deeper than that.
1) Turn to HEB 11:1-6
(a) Notice the 1st words in this V “NOW FAITH IS.”
(i) Faith operates in the realm of now.
(ii) God is a God of NOW.
(b) He didn’t tell Moses that his name was “I WAS.”
(i) He called Himself “I AM.”
(c) And that good news. If you’re sick, God says, “I AM your healer.” If you need finances, God says, “I AM your provider.”
(i) Faith is now. It operates in the realm of now. It says that your body is healed now, it says that your needs are meet now. Before you ever see it with the natural eyes.
2) The 2nd thing that this V says is that FAITH IS A SUBSTANCE.
(a) In other words it’s real stuff. It has actual existence, according to the Strong’s concordance.
3) The next thing that He says here comes from (V 3), which says, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”
(a) Everything that you see around you is the product of faith filled words.
(b) The Bible is such an enormously powerful thing.
(i) From cover to cover it contains God’s faith filled words, and those words are empowered to produce whatever you have need of.
4) Jesus said in (LUKE 8:11) that the Word of God is seed.
(a) When you pick up your Bible, you hold in your hands the seeds to produce finances, healing, salvation of your loved ones, restoration of your marriage or any else you could possibly need.
(b) Unfortunately not many are getting the seed out and planting it.
(i) Successful farming takes some effort.
(ii) A farmer’s seed does him no good as long as it lies dormant in the sack. But when he plants, he gets a harvest.
(c) Likewise, the seeds of provision in God’s Word will never produce for you as long as your Bible gathers dust on your shelf.
B) Next week we’ll start on how to plant the Seed of God’s Word to get a harvest, and how to walk in God’s divine order of faith.
WOLCC Sunday, September 28, 1997 from Creflo Dollar’s book The Divine Order of Faith. WOLCC Sunday, December 01, 2002