Today’s readings are 2 Chronicles 24, 2 Kings 12, and Matthew 9. Our focus will be on Matthew 9.
What are you praying and asking God for right now? Do you believe it can happen? More importantly, you believe it will happen?
James 1:6-8 says…
6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
God instructs us here to ask in faith. So, what is faith?
Here is what Hebrews 11:1 says faith is..
1To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see.
Are you sure of things you hope for and certain of things you can’t see? I wish as a Christ-follower I could consistently say yes.
In Matthew 9 we see 5 miracles Jesus performed with all 5 of them showing the person who the miracle was performed for or someone close to them showing faith.
- Jesus Heals a Paralytic (Matthew 9:1-8) – A paralytic was brought to Jesus by his friends, and it specifically states Jesus healed him when he saw their faith in verse 2.
- Jesus Heals a Ruler’s Daughter (Matthew 9:18-19, 23-26) – The ruler came to Jesus with his daughter dying and explicitly tells Jesus he knows she’ll live if Jesus lays hands on her in verse 18.
- Jesus Heals a Woman with Blood Discharge (Matthew 9:20-22)- The woman had this problem for 12 years but states in verse 21 that if she just touches his cloak only..she believes she will be well.
- Jesus Heals Two Blind Men (Matthew 9:27-30) – Jesus actually asks them if they believe he’s able help them see, and they say yes.
- Jesus Heals a Man Unable to Speak (Matthew 9:32-34) – This one is a little more obscure but we see in verse 32 that the man was brought to Jesus. He wouldn’t have been brought to Jesus if someone didn’t believe Jesus could and would heal him.
There are 2 common denominators in these miracles. The first is Jesus. How many times do we pray for things but then not involve him and try to do it ourselves? The 2nd common denominator is the faith that the miracle would be done. How many times do we pray for something without being sure God will do it?
What do our prayer requests need? More Jesus. More faith.