From the Book, Rules For Life: According To Jesus

5. Live By Faith 

Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God.  I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.  But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. But if you refuse to forgive, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.”

Mark 11:22-26

This is very interesting. Not only does faith work to save you (make you right with God), but it also has power in your life to do amazing things—things like Jesus did when He walked the Earth. And lest you think that He was only talking about His apostles, read this one:

“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works…” 

John 14:12

Did you catch the part where He said, “anyone who believes in me”? This means that if you believe in Jesus for your salvation, you can also believe that He will empower you to do “even greater works” than He did. Amazing.

Of course, one catch is that you must believe and not doubt (I would add, even a little bit). Another catch is that you cannot carry a grudge against anyone else. 

Consider His apostle Peter. Peter was the only other person recorded as having walked on water. It may have only been a few quick steps, but he did it. And what did Jesus say to him after he began to sink into the water? “You have so little faith.” (Matthew 14:31)

I think that it is extremely difficult for us (especially adults) living in this modern world of medicine and science to believe whole-heartedly in the power of miracles. But that is exactly what the promise of Jesus is, if we believe and do not doubt. 

It is interesting to add that Jesus didn’t pray that God would heal infirmities, raise the dead, cast out demons, and all of the other amazing works He did; He simply did them by faith. But I should also add that He had the help of the Holy Spirit, Who was upon Him since His baptism. But He didn’t doubt, and He didn’t have any grudges against anyone. 

I know that it takes practice to “hear” the quiet voice of God in our minds. And I also know from personal experience (just recently, actually), that the Holy Spirit can and does “come upon” believers for specific reasons. But that’s another story for another time. For now, the important message is that Jesus will do anything for anyone who believes in Him, as long as they have enough faith and a clear conscience toward others. 

I should also add that just like Jesus, we might simply make these things happen with the right amount of faith and the right motives (see James 4:3), without praying, just doing. Faith. It’s something to really LIVE by.

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Sections in this study:
Introduction
1: Repent
2: Be Born Again
3: Place God First
4: Love and Serve One Another
5: Live By Faith
6: Forgive Others
7: Remain in Jesus
8: Live Righteously Before Men
9: Avoid Bad Influences
10: Stay On The Narrow Path
11: Do Not Return Evil With Evil
12: Give More Than Is Demanded
13: Love Your Enemies
14: Check Your Motives
15: Pray Simply
16: Do Not Worry
17: Store Up Treasures In Heaven
18: Do Not Be Judgmental
19: Guard what is Sacred
20: Care For Those In Distress
21: Do Not Swear Oaths
22: Watch out for false prophets
23: Exercise Spiritual Power
24: Have Childlike Faith
25: Do Not Exalt Yourself
26: Settle Disputes Quickly
27: Settle Disputes Between Believers
28: Do not Oppose Brethren
29: Remember Me
30: Be Merciful
31: Make Disciples
32: Be Ready
33: Obey Jesus’ Commands
Closing Comments