Hungry for God: In Proportion to Your Faith

“And He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.’”—Mark 5:34

God works in proportion to our faith. Not just in reference to our salvation, but in our sanctification. We have to have faith to believe in God for salvation, but we also must have faith for His working in our sanctification. As the Bible says,

“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him”—Hebrews 11:6.

God has made many promises in His Word to work on our behalf, but the sad truth is that although we may pay lip service to His promises, very rarely do we actually step out in faith. Why? Because we fear. We fear man, we fear failure, we fear not getting what we want, etc. We must remember the truth that “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control”—2 Timothy 1:7.

And if it’s not fear, then it’s simple unbelief. And when there is unbelief, God doesn’t work, as the Scripture says: “And He did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief”—Matthew 13:48.

God wants us to boldly come before Him, faithfully claiming His promises for ourselves. He delights in showing Himself true to His Word and to His promises, as He did with the Israelites in reference to tithing,

“Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put Me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.”—Malachi 3:10-12.

Do you have fear that God will fail? He won’t. There are some things that God can’t do—He can’t lie and He can’t fail—it’s against His nature. Are you struggling with unbelief? Jesus said, “All things are possible for one who believes”—Mark 9:23. May your prayer be “I believe; help my unbelief!”—Mark 9:24. And then be prepared to witness God’s work at hand in your life—for His glory and your joy. Amen.