God spoke this Word to me this morning. I was seeking Him for revelation in a situation I was in when He took me to Luke 17.
Luke 17:5 The apostles said to the Lord, Increase our faith (that trust and confidence that spring from our belief in God). 6 And the Lord answered, If you had faith (trust and confidence in God) even [so small] like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, Be pulled up by the roots, and be planted in the sea, and it would obey you. 7 Will any man of you who has a servant plowing or tending sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, Come at once and take your place at the table? 8 Will he not instead tell him, Get my supper ready and gird yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; then afterward you yourself shall eat and drink? 9 Is he grateful and does he praise the servant because he did what he was ordered to do? 10 Even so on your part, when you have done everything that was assigned and commanded you, say, We are unworthy servants [possessing no merit, for we have not gone beyond our obligation]; we have [merely] done what was our duty to do. AMPC
I didn’t get it so of course I said, “Lord I don’t get it, what are you saying to me?” He said clearly, “Faith is Your Slave!” What I did I just hear? I was astonished of what I heard and so I rushed to my computer to study this thing out!
Yes just as I heard Him say that faith is my slave, Luke tells us Jesus said faith is your servant.
So what is God saying? He is saying it is one thing to get faith but it is another to send our faith out to do it’s work. God was telling me that as I get faith by hearing the Word, I have to not just have coffee with my faith, not just believe, but I have to put my faith to work.
Paying attention to the Word, hearing it and getting it in our hearts is a major work we have to do to get faith. We should always be increasing in faith because and we need faith (it’s our substance) to activate the Word of God. Then after we have that faith —we have to go that extra mile and put it to work!
James 2:17 So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead).
Faith is the substance
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]. AMPC
Thus we have to get faith and Romans 10:17 tells us we get faith by hearing the Word of God. The Word is God and so when we look at the Word we are getting faith. Faith also comes from hearing God Himself, as I did this morning when He spoke His Word to me. As soon as I heard I got excited because I had faith from hearing Him talk to me. My hope was without delay — as soon as I heard God speak hope to me faith came. Now all I have to do is follow those instructions God gave me to make my faith work for me by making it my slave!
What does that look like? As we keep reading we can see Jesus demonstrate as He put His faith to work. As soon as He finished explaining to the disciples how to make faith our slave, He put His faith to work.
Luke 17:14 And when He saw them, He said to them, Go [at once] and show yourselves to the priests. And as they went, they were cured and made clean. AMPC
Faith works as you order it to do what you believe. Jesus said go at once; show yourselves to the priests. He used His faith and gave them a faith action. By doing what Jesus said they had faith action (James 2:17) and were healed on the way. They put their faith to work by going to show what they hadn’t seen yet, but they believed — the priests.
Jesus taught us how to make our faith work.
Mark 11:14 And He said to it, No one ever again shall eat fruit from you. And His disciples were listening [to what He said]. AMPC
Mark 11:20 In the morning, when they were passing along, they noticed that the fig tree was withered [completely] away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to Him, Master, look! The fig tree which You doomed has withered away! 22 And Jesus, replying, said to them, Have faith in God [constantly]. 23 Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! and does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him. 24 For this reason I am telling you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe (trust and be confident) that it is granted to you, and you will [get it]. 25 And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop (leave it, let it go), in order that your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your [own] failings and shortcomings and let them drop. 26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your failings and shortcomings. AMPC
Jesus clearly explains that first we have to have faith. Then we have to put it to work by saying it, and then believing what we say, and of course then expecting it. Expecting that our slave which is our faith in action will manifest our results.
The only stipulation is love, — of course