Day 18: God’s Miracles Happen When Faith is Acted Upon

One day, while Jesus was teaching in front of the religious law-keepers and teachers of the law inside a house, a loud noise was heard coming from atop the roof. From the hole just made in the roof, a bed was being lowered slowly by four friends before Jesus. And on it was a sick man.

When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the man, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” “I say to you, get up. Take your bed and go to your home.” At once the sick man got up in front of them. He took his bed and went to his home thanking God.

Luke 5:20, 24-25

This bring us to the next story: Jesus saw a man which was blind from his birth and spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle. He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay and He said unto him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam.” The blind man went his way, washed in the pool of Siloam, and came seeing. He then reported what has happened to him to the neighbors and the Pharisees:

“A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed my eyes, and said unto me: ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.’ I went and washed, and I received sight.”

John 9:11, 15

Faith comes in different forms and sizes. Some may have great faith – able to move mountains; others, a mustard seed-sized faith, enough for God to start working something awesome in their lives. Sometimes, we need other persons’ faith to carry us over some circumstances of life – friends assisting us during times of need, family members supporting us when it seemed impossible to face the challenges, or even a community of believers just praying with us and for us. Regardless, faith is the currency that the Kingdom of God operates; faith is how to obtain the things of God.

But faith alone, without the corresponding action, is dead (James 2: 17). What then does this mean? Simply stated, we have to act upon the faith that is inherent in us. We have to activate the faith – what we’ve believed and what we’re believing, into action. Therefore, for faith to manifest the intended results, it needs to be active, not passive.

With the first story above, it is the faith of the four friends – on Jesus’ miraculous healing powers, and the corresponding action to their faith – to bring the sick friend, for him to encounter Jesus. And as a result, the sick man was healed! With the second story, it is the faith of the blind man, and his corresponding action to the command of Jesus to go and wash in the pool of Siloam. And as a result, his blindness was healed, and now he can see!

Reflection Question:

What have you been believing God to do for you and in you? What corresponding action(s), related to what you’ve been believing, have you done? Could it be, that the reason why God’s miracle hasn’t happened yet in your life, is because you haven’t activated your faith or acted upon the faith you’re believing in?

Radical Faith in Action:

Realize that God needs your cooperation, through faith in action, for His miracles to happen. Without the corresponding action to your faith, the results cannot materialize. It is important to take heed and act upon what you’ve been believing God to do for you and in you, just like the stories we’ve shared above. We pray that as you activate your faith, what you’ve been believing will come to pass. Remember: Faith plus God’s faithfulness to fulfill His promises in your life equals a life more abundantly!