A Higher Form of Faith? (a theological question)

This is my last post until next Tuesday. I'm going to a Redlin Reunion in Watertown SD. I'm hoping to see Terry Redlin as well. So, until then, sayonara

I have experienced and been taught by Lutherans, Catholics, Baptists, Methodists and Pentecostals in how to pray in faith.

The reformist branches don't reach very far. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. So, pray God's will. That's a good thing if we understand the will of God. Many people pray thy will be done as a cop out and if nothing happens it's God's will. I soon found that to be a pretty insipid way to reach out in faith.

Then there is talisman faith. Baptists and Methodists use this a great deal. They tag a holy talisman on the end of every prayer and hope if they tag it on with enough gusto God would think enough of them to respond. The talisman? In Jesus Name. Not a bad thing to do. In fact it's scriptural. It's just that we tag it on the end of the prayer like putting a stamp on an envelope hoping it will get thru the heavenly post office. Our faith is in the talisman.

Now, to be absolutely clear. When I pray, I always pray in Jesus name. It's the right thing to do. It increases my faith. I also pray according to the revealed will of God. Jesus told us to do so. The problem is it has become very formulaic and automatic for much of the body of Christ to invoke those two methodologies. Not much faith goes into a prayer that prays if it be thy will and in Jesus name without the consideration of what that really means. You could just as well read from a prayer book and expect the same results.

That's the Catholic way. They invoke rote prayers with lots of repetition, appealing to saints and Mary the mother of Jesus. No power just activity. I'm not upset with all that. I can listen to the rosary and get something out of it. When I'm traveling and listen to Catholic radio I do find it soothing and engaging when they pray the rosary. I'm just not convinced how much faith is involved.

There is a story in the Bible which I think is instructive. Jesus had just given a teaching on forgiveness of sin and an admonition regarding the treatment of little children. The apostles were obviously staggered and perhaps a bit fearful of what was just said. They implore Jesus in Luke 17 verses 5-10:

The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!"

He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you.

"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' "

What does this mean? When they ask Jesus for a higher level of faith he tells them to talk to the tree to be planted in the sea. He doesn't tell them to pray that God would plant it in the sea, he doesn't tell them to see if it's God's will for it to be planted in the sea, he tells them to speak to the tree. In faith, their words.

An aside, a tree can't be planted in the sea and prosper. It will die, I say that as a plant guy. Even if it's not a salty sea like the sea of Galilee the plant cannot thrive in the water in the natural. Yet, IF we speak to the tree and it is planted in the sea it must prosper. That means impossible circumstances are made possible when we speak the very creative power of God (WORDS like He created the universe with) to the situation.

He said to them in Matthew 17:21 amp This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.

This isn't the first time Jesus tells them to talk to situations and it should respond. There are two confirming scriptural passages with identical admonitions:

MARK 11:23 NKJ "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, `Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will come to pass, he will have whatever he says.

Matthew 17:20 (New International Version)
He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

What about you, are YOU supposed to speak to your mountains or just pray about it which it the usual admonition you hear on Christian talk shows. Maybe we are not telling you the truth according to the revealed word of God. Let's look a little further.

Jesus talked to things, and taught that “whoever” could also speak to mountains. A mountain is primarily any obstacle that stands in your way. Faced with obstacles, most Christians pray to God. But Jesus told us to speak directly to the obstacle and tell it to be removed.

There is nothing wrong with discussing things with God. You should. But when something is blocking your progress — Jesus said YOU should tell it to get out of the way.

Most Christians just speak to God about the mountain, instead of following Jesus’ directions and speaking directly to the mountain. Are you just talking to God about the problems in your life, instead of talking directly to the problems and telling them to be removed?

According to Jesus, unbelief keeps us from speaking to our mountains. We need a higher form of faith.

What is the mountain in your life? What stands in the way of your progress? What holds you back from going forward and fulfilling God’s plan?

Speak God’s Word to that mountain! Speak to the devil and his forces and tell them to get out of your affairs. Speak to sickness and tell it that it can’t stay in your body. Speak to debt and financial lack and tell them to be removed from your life. Speak to doubt, fear, and worry and tell them to be gone.

If you say, "I just can’t believe it would do any good for me to talk to problems," that’s why you still have them.

Read what Jesus said again, and again.

When you come up against it Jesus said nothing said about praying in Jesus name, nothing about will of God. It's about speaking to situations, circumstances, diseases, finance and whatever other mountain, tree or weed is in our lives that stands between us and the destiny we carry in our being. It's an increased level of faith.

Of course we should pray. We must pray and have our faith built up, then we must speak in faith and confidence that the situation will be resolved because we speak in faith.

When Jesus came down from the mount of transfiguration there was a demon possessed boy. The disciples had been praying for him, they had been saying what Jesus said to others in mimicry. They had been tentative. The demon wouldn't come out. Jesus rebuked them for their lack of faith. He did that a great deal. He said to them in essence there is a higher level of faith when you finish praying and start commanding things to be as you say them to be. Most of us never get out of the first stage of faith and to the next level which Jesus admonished us to reach. Speak to it.


When I minister to the sick, I pray first, I prepare myself and the person I'm praying for. I want their faith and mine to be a full power before I speak to the sickness. Then at the kairos moment I speak the word of Faith. I expect people to be healed. I expect finances to come in. I expect family members to be protected. It's our destiny.

Today in a conversation with Pastor Barry Kolb he told a story which exactly demonstrates this teaching. He said:

"I was on a bus in winter in Russia. Russian and American pastors. The bus ran off the road into the ditch. It was stuck pretty well. We all got off the bus. The American Pastors were all on one side of the bus trying to figure out how to dig themselves out, what could be put under the tires, what might make it all work. They were putting their minds to it. On the other side of the bus the Russian Pastors were praying up a storm. They were getting their faith built up. Then at one moment they all got behind the bus and with one fell swoop the big old bus was pushed up on the road. Of course it was impossible. The American pastors spent the next little while measuring the depth of the rut the bus had just come out of. The Russian Pastors were raising their hands and praising God".

Some years ago I was transporting the Bishop and some other pastors back from the airport. We stopped at my house. They needed some stuff from the trunk of the car. But we had packed the trunk so tightly the trunk was stuck shut. We were all frustrated and I thought I was going to have to take it to the dealership to get the trunk to open. A young ministers wife (20 years old) said, "Let's pray and ask Jesus to open the trunk". We pastors and ministers looked at each other and said, "you go ahead". She prayed a simple prayer of faith and then said, "Trunk open". Of course you already know what happened. The trunk popped right open. I have tell this story to humiliate myself that I was one of the ministers that told that young woman to "go ahead". I didn't enter in. Lack of faith. No wait, that's not true, I had faith, in the car dealership to open that trunk.

IF (and I'm preaching to myself here too) you want a thing to happen or move in your life you must speak to the thing. Pray first, be built up by praying in the Holy Ghost then speak in faith believing. Even if you don't see it right away, believe. We need to walk by faith and not by sight. Jude 20 admonition Jude 1:20 (New King James Version) But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

The last part of Jesus' instruction, Do what you do as a servant and don't expect to get any thanks or blame for what you do. Just DO IT. When I pray for a sick or distressed person and speak words of faith over them, if they are healed all glory goes to God. If they are not healed I carry no blame. It's up to the Father in heaven. I do what I'm told. That's why you must read this last part of what Jesus said once again:

"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' "

When I speak to a mountain, when I speak to a mulberry tree in faith believing I'm just doing my duty. You go do yours and speak to those mountains in your life. When they move take no credit. Just have joy that they responded to you.

The disciples have just had the opportunity to test their faith in speaking. They come back and this dialog takes place:

Luke 10:17-23 (with my commentary)

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." (THEY TRIED IT AND THEY LIKED THE RESULTS, KIND OF PROUD OF IT ALL)

He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (HE IS SAYING AGAIN, YOU ARE DOING WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DO, REJOICE THAT YOU ARE A CALLED SERVANT OF GOD)

At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. (IT GIVES JESUS GREAT JOY TO SEE YOU AND ME OPERATE IN THIS HIGHER FORM OF FAITH)

"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." (THIS REVELATION IS ONLY BY THE CHOICE OF JESUS, IT MUST BE CAPTURED BY FAITH)

Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it."

They will. I've seen it. I'll see it again. So can YOU!