âUndergoing Construction: Build Your Faith! pt. 4â
Pastor Jim Lowe III
Sunday Morning, 9:30am Stream 09/21/24 (4th Sunday Message)
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{All scriptures are NIV84 unless stated}
Message Title:
âUndergoing Construction: Build Your Faith! pt. 4â
Hebrews 11:1-2
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.
Today weâre going to finish up the series. âthe words we sayâŠ
The Power of Your Command!
Learning to SPEAK things!
Last week we talked about the man of God Elisha. letâs talk about the person he served under.
1 Kings 17:1
Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, âAs the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.â
This man named Elijah.
he comes out of nowhere. We know nothing about this man.
but the first records of him⊠mention him.
and IMMEDIATELY what he says.
As the Lord God of Israel livesâŠ
there will be no dew NOR rain in the next few years⊠unless âIâ say so.
He said he serves God.
and beCAUSE he serves God,
The rain would stopâŠ
and would not come back. until HE said so!
He says this, turns and leaves.
1 Kings 17:7
7 Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.
The water had dried up⊠why?
Because there was no rain. why?
because it was COMMANDED to stop!
What Type Of Faith Did Elijah Have?
he believed he could speak something. and it would happen.
If You Know Godâs Will For You, You Can Command It!
If you have shown yourself to be faithful to God⊠and you know his willâŠ
you can speak things!
Question:
Why Do We Say We Have The Power To Command Things?
Mark 11:22-24
22 âHave faith in God,â Jesus answered. 23 âI tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, âGo, throw yourself into the sea,â and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.
This was after Jesus cursed the fig tree.
the scripture states that whoever says to this MOUNTAIN. you can SPEAK directly to that thing.
you can COMMAND that thing to move! as long as you donât doubtâŠ
it WILL BE DONE.
Proverbs 18:21
21 The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Life - creation.
God in the very beginning said âLet there be lightâ light was formed.
He created everything from words⊠but with usâŠ
he had to touch us.
Genesis 1:26
26 Then God said, âLet us make man in our image, in our likenessâŠ
We arenât just created in the image of God.
we arenât just created to LOOK like him.
We are created in the LIKENESS of Him! We have some of his attiributes!
Genesis 2:7
7 the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
The Lord BREATHED into you!
That same breath is what you use when you speak!
Your Words Are Powerful And Can Change Things!
So after Elijah declared the drought..
1 Kings 17:8-10
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 9 âGo at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food.â 10 So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticksâŠ
Elijah is told to go at once.
The Lord commanded a widow to be there and take care of him.
Elijah listens and leaves at once.
when he GOT to the gate there was a widow.
The widow was gathering sticks.
if Elijah had not left when he didâŠ
she would not have been there.
Having Faith Means To Act When The Lord Says So!
Elijah meets the widow
Verse 10-12
10 So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, âWould you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?â 11 As she was going to get it, he called, âAnd bring me, please, a piece of bread.â 12 âAs surely as the Lord your God lives,â she replied, âI donât have any breadâonly a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat itâand die.â
She says she doesnât have any food.
She was going to use the last of what she had so her and her son could die.
But the Lord said she would have food to give Elijah. but she doesnât have any food!
Sometimes the situation may not look like how God said it would. Thatâs when you know itâs time to do something about it!
Verse 13-14
13 Elijah said to her, âDonât be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: âThe jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land.â â
Elijah said the Lord said youâd have food.
so apparently youâre about to have food. We need to do the same thing with our situations.
If Your Situation Looks DiïŹerent Than How God Said, Itâs Time To Do Something About It!
This widow probably would have died if Elijah didnât speak over her.
We might be missing out because we donât speak over ourselves or others!
Are Our Lives Up To The Standard God Said? If Not, We Need To Start Commanding What God Said!
What did he say?
Faith Building Scriptures:
2 Corinthians 5:7
7 We live by faith, not by sight.
It doesnât matter what you see.
Whatâs it supposed to be?
Habakkuk 2:4(b)
but the righteous will live by his faith.
What did God say it would be?? He said if you are obedient to the Lord:
You will be Blessed!
Deuteronomy 28:3-6
3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. 4 The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock
âthe calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. 5 Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. 6 You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
If your lives are NOT blessed right nowâŠ
If some of you are going through more trials than triumphs⊠some of you need to start SPEAKING UP!
Build Up Your Faith By Speaking Up!
Deuteronomy 28:7
7 The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.
All of these things might come at you in one direction⊠but the Lord is going to scatter it ALL.
These things donât come against you⊠they come against the Lord!
2 Chronicles 20:15
15 He said: âListen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: âDo not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but Godâs.
David told Goliath last week:
You come against me as another trial. your name doesnât matter.
the lion didnât have a name. the bear didnât have a name.
it was only âfinished.â
You are another trial!
Today the fight is over!
We Have To Learn To Start Speaking Things By Faith!
Remember doubt kills faith! Keep building your faith!
More Faith Building Scriptures:
Exodus 14:14 (AMP)
14 The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace and remain at rest.
Romans 8:37
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
Remember, when you speak⊠learn to kill your doubtâŠ
doubt will kill your faith.
Doubt Is âWhat Ifâ Faith Is âEven Withâ
Your faith has to go beyond what you see⊠If itâs not lining upâŠ
Speak Godâs Word Back To Him!
âIâm Blessed!â (Deut. 28)
âIâm Healed!â (Isa. 53:5; Ex. 15:26)
âIâm At Peace!â (Isa. 41:10; Ps 23:4; Luk. 14:27)
âIâm Delivered From My Problems!â (Isa. 41:10; Ps. 37:17)
âIâm Financially Blessed!â (1 Sam 2:7; Gal. 6:9)
âIâve Recovered From My Past!â (Joel 2:25-26; Jer 30:17)
âIâm Protected!â (Isa. 54:17; Ps. 46:1; 2 Thess 3:3)
In Jesusâ Name! Amen!
