Mark 11:23-24(NKJV) 23For 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 be done, he will have whatever he says. 24Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
We have been looking at Mark 11:22-24 and the power of words in our Christian walk. Jesus, in response to Peter’s surprise that a fig tree had obeyed his words, tells his disciples to have faith in God. He goes on to say that this faith, when released in words, could even cause the mountain they are in front of to be plucked up and cast into the sea. The condition they must meet for this to happen is that they not doubt in their heart.
This statement is very extreme. It is highly unlikely that anyone would ever need to cast a mountain into the sea, but Jesus wants them to understand how powerful faith filled words can be. Although I know of no time in the bible or otherwise that a mountain has been thrown into the sea, there is the story of Joshua stopping the sun and the moon so that he could complete a battle against Israel’s enemies. In effect, Joshua stopped time. That seems at least as extreme as moving a mountain. Joshua 10:12-14 tells us that this happened because Joshua spoke to the sun and moon.
We ended yesterday by pointing out that the first word in Mark 11:24 is “therefore.” This word connects verse 24 with verse 23. Verse 24 is about prayer. Verse 23 is about the power of our words when we release them in faith. How do these things relate?
As I was reading this recently I realized that Jesus was pointing out something very powerful. The natural creation will respond to words spoken by faith. The fig tree obeyed Jesus. Jesus said the mountain would obey the disciples. The sun and moon, or time itself, obeyed Joshua. These are natural things obeying spiritual words. That is a powerful truth. I can and should speak the word of God over my natural life.
I speak to my finances. I speak to my car. Like David, who said, “bless the Lord oh my soul” I sometimes have to speak to my emotions and tell them to get in line with the Word. I have even spoken to weather when necessary and I have seen all these things obey the word of God spoken by faith. Not only have I seen them obey scripture as it is quoted, but I have seen them obey my words, based on scriptural truth, when I have spoken them by faith.
Mark 11:23 is highlighting this truth to the disciples. Then Jesus says “therefore” and speaks of prayer. In other words he says, “If the words you speak to fig trees and mountains by faith can produce such results, imagine what this same principle applied to prayer can produce.”
What is prayer? Prayer is communication with God. There are a number of different types of prayer with different functions. One type of prayer is the prayer of fellowship with the Lord. In this type of praying, we may spend time with the Lord and unburden our heart to him. There is a time for this. David prayed this way often. He would tell the Lord how he felt when the enemies were pressing against him. He would share his heart with the Lord when he felt overwhelmed. It is valid to do this. Most of us need to do this kind of praying at times. However, this is not the kind of praying Jesus is speaking of in this verse.
If you read the psalms, you will usually find that David not only expresses his feelings but also will, at some point in the psalm, express how he knows that God is with him and will deliver him. The kind of praying Jesus is teaching about in Mark 11:24 is this latter type. It is the prayer of requesting by faith. Paul speaks of it in Philippians.
Philippians 4:6-7(NKJV) 6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Notice the similarity of language here. Jesus says, “When you pray, believe you receive.” Paul says, “Let your requests be made know to God with thanksgiving.” If you give thanks for the request, you believe that the one that you have asked will do what you ask. If, at the moment you pray, you choose to believe that you have already received the request, you will give thanks. Both of these scriptures are saying the same thing.
If we speak words of faith to the natural creation, it will obey us. If we use the same principle in prayer, the release of power is even greater because we are not just speaking to the natural. We are speaking by faith to the creator of the universe. We cannot only change the natural but the spiritual as well. All of the power of God comes into play when we speak words of faith in prayer to God. When we do not doubt these words in our heart, there is even more assurance that we will have what we say.
Most people think of prayer in terms of the first aspect we spoke of in psalms. When we pray we share our problems with God. This is fine to a point, but there comes a time when all we are doing is complaining to God. When we tell him our problems over and over again and never release any faith that he can do something about those problems, we may feel better but we are not giving the Lord anything to work with. He will comfort us. Comfort means that we will feel better. That is a good thing, but we will end up right back needing more comfort the next day if we do not find solutions.
God is a faith God and it is faith that moves him. He needs our faith in order to have something to work with so he can solve the problem. When we choose to speak words of faith to God we get more than comfort. We get results. Andrew Murray said, “Most people pray as a spiritual exercise, but Jesus prayed to get results.” We often pray to feel better, but the prayer of faith is the prayer that actually changes things. Of course, the first thing that it will change is you. That is not always easy, but do you want to feel better for a day or two or do you want results?
In Isaiah 55:8-11 the Lord tells us that his word will not return to him void but it will accomplish what he sent it to do. How does his word return to him? I would like to submit to you that one way it returns to him is through the prayers of faith that come from the saints. When we find a promise in the Word of God, we need to return that promise to God by faith. “I thank you that your word says you will meet my needs. I trust you to be good for your word. I thank you that you are moving now to provide what I need. I do not doubt this promise in my heart but I am persuaded that you will do what you said you would do.”
When you return the Word of God to him by faith, the promise Jesus gives us is that we will have what we ask. In verse 23 he says we can have what we say. In verse 24 he tells us that if we apply this same principle to the words we speak in prayer, we will have what we ask for. With both of these principles working in your life, you will have victory over anything that seeks to defeat you in your walk with the Lord.
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