The Word Works Effectively in Those Who Believe

Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!"
—Mark 9:24
 
Just as faith can arise from hearing God's Word, unbelief can gradually seep into the heart, obstructing the flow of God's grace. Jesus' miraculous works were limited in Nazareth due to the people's unbelief (Matthew 13:58). 
 
Faith can be a sensitive topic for many people. It’s easy to confuse our understanding of faith with actually experiencing it. While knowledge lives in our minds, faith truly comes from the heart. Doubt may start in our thoughts, but when it becomes unbelief, it puts down roots in our hearts.
 
Some regard faith as a force within us, allowing us to pray when it is needed. But do we ask in faith (James 1:6) or merely out of habit? Genuine faith is a response nurtured in us through fellowship with God and hearing His Word (Romans 10:17, John 5:19). Merely knowing about faith, understanding it, and believing we possess it doesn’t guarantee a fresh quickening of the Holy Spirit. Yesterday's faith will not sustain us today. 
 
Unbelief often arises from what we feel and our emotions. It focuses on what is visible, waiting for tangible evidence before accepting belief. For example, the disciples were given the important task of healing the sick and succeeded in many instances. However, there was one occasion when they couldn’t help a father with his son, and Jesus rebuked them for their unbelief. Perhaps they had begun to rely on their past experiences with healing instead of remaining closely connected to the true Author of faith.
 
Belief is powerful, but so is unbelief. Unbelief prevents God from manifesting His truth in us. Our senses often cannot distinguish unbelief. For instance, some individuals who believe in healing and declare their faith may wrestle with unbelief. The father of the son whom the disciples couldn’t heal admitted this. I have experienced this, too. Sometimes, we cannot fully see what is happening in our hearts and need the Holy Spirit to reveal it to us. Guilt, condemnation, bitterness, unforgiveness, and fear can all hinder genuine faith. The mind can be convinced, but the heart may be in turmoil.
 
Just like electricity, faith can only flow when a switch is turned on. In this example, the switch represents fellowship with God and listening to His voice. The faith that originates from God requires that His life dwell within the believer’s heart and what has been stirred within them to be spoken. We must grow spiritually in our relationship with God by praying His Word and meditating on it until it comes to life within us. Then, we can speak from the good treasure of our hearts and bring forth good things (Matthew 12:35, Proverbs 18:21).
 
Unbelief often waits to see results, but God's kind of faith confidently expects results even before they arrive. God isn’t limited; however, we frequently restrict Him through our unbelief. We appeal to Him based on what we sense rather than by putting our faith in the reality of what our senses have yet to experience. 
 
Jesus speaks to us as He spoke to the father who sought deliverance for his son: "All things are possible to him who believes." The father heard Jesus' words, and they quickened his heart. "Lord, I believe!" the father cried out. "Help my unbelief!" The father listened to the words Jesus spoke, and his faith was ignited.
 
The disciples later came to Jesus and asked him why they couldn’t cast the demon from the boy. 
 
"Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20).
 
Do I believe Jesus? Does He lack honor in my life as He did in Nazareth?
 
I can't work up the faith to believe. Jesus helps me overcome my unbelief. I must sow the Word, that mustard seed of faith, in my heart, nourish it, and protect it until it comes to life within me, and I "believe." Then I can speak to my mountain. That mountain may move quickly or take longer. But it shall move. Nothing is impossible when I “believe.”
 
Quit trying to muster your faith to believe. Meditate on the Word. Renew your mind and let the Holy Spirit begin His work to convince you. Be patient. Don’t rush Him. Surrender your heart to the divine work of Jesus. Listen. The Holy Spirit is always speaking, and you will hear the Word you need quickened in your heart. You shall “believe.”  

“For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13).

Welcome Jesus, the Word. He works effectively in those who believe.