This morning, we continue our series, “The Miracles of Jesus.”
Before we get into the miracle, let’s look at the foundational scripture I will share be sharing with you all year.
(Psalm 126:4 TPT)
Now, Lord, do it again! Restore us to our former glory! May streams of your refreshing flow over us until our dry hearts are drenched again.
This is a season of refreshing and restoring for us. I pray you get refreshed and restored as we study each miracle.
Read Mark 5:21-43
For the past two days, we have been looking at the story of Jairus. We will continue with the story today. Yesterday we ended off when Jairus’ daughter died. Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. What it looks like to be in a faith-fight.
Imagine you are Jairus for a minute. Put yourself in the shoes. You have a dire situation, and you go to Jesus just before the crisis hits a point when you consider it to be over. You engage with Jesus. You start your statement to Jesus by acknowledging how bad the situation is. But you then openly declare, by faith, what you believe the outcome will be. You have a divine impulse from the Holy Spirit to call those things which be not as though they were. You have a picture of how you believe the situation will turn out. And you declare what you believe. You declare it by faith. You declare it in worship. You declare it humbly, from your knees and from your heart. And Jesus says, “Okay, let’s go!”
You have successfully engaged Jesus, and He is on the way to making it happen for you. He agreed with what you said. He agreed that what you said is His will. He is in partnership with you. He is engaged with you. He is in the process of bringing it to pass. But then, while Jesus is with you, on the way to your breakthrough, the situation turns for the worse. In this case, Jesus stopped to talk to a woman who had an issue of blood. In your case, it could be something else. God is God, so we don’t know all the things He is working on while it seems like we are waiting. Even when it looks like God is not working, God is always working.
When Jesus was done talking to the woman, Jairus got the news that his daughter was dead. The bearer of the bad news told Jairus not to even bother Jesus anymore. Put yourself in his shoes. You know God is with you, but while you are waiting for the timing to be right and for God to do what only HE can do, your situation gets so bad that it looks like it’s dead. What you were afraid could happen just happened. What you feared the most just came to pass. Now, what are you going to do?
Fear is flooding your heart and your mind. You feel disappointed and dejected. You feel like the situation is over. You feel like all hope is gone. Have you ever been there? I have. I know what that feels like.
But at that moment, Jesus reminds you that He is still with you. Not only is He still there, but Jesus reminds you that He is still able. Jesus reminds you that what you prayed for can still come to pass. Jesus encourages you to keep believing.
What would you do? Would you keep believing, or would you tell Jesus that the situation is over? This, my friends, is what we call being in the middle of a faith-fight. When you are in the middle of a faith-fight, you must continue to believe God. It’s not over until God says it’s over.
In the space between your prayer and the performance, in the space between your confession and the completion, you must keep your faith switch in the “ON” position! That’s how you win a faith-fight.
2. We serve a God who calls those things which be not as though they are, and He will lead you to do the same.
(Romans 7:17 KJV)
(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.
— This text teaches us that God gives life to DEAD situations, and He calls those things which be not as though they were.
— God speaks to our “TO BE” stage from our “RIGHT NOW” stage.
When you walk with God, and you are led by His Spirit, the Holy Spirit will lead you to speak the way God speaks. That is exactly what happened with Jairus in this story. Jairus fell at Jesus’ feet, he acknowledged the gravity of the situation, and he then spoke the desired outcome. Where did he get the image of Jesus going to his house, laying hands on his daughter, for her to “recover” and “live“? I believe he got that image from God!
Listen, when you walk with God, the Holy Spirit will lead you to say things and pray things that are better understood when you think about them later. There are things that God tells you that you do not understand until circumstances and situation’s unfold. Notice what Jairus was led to say to Jesus. He said, “If you would come and lay hands on my daughter. She shall recover, and she shall live. My daughter is at the point of death. But if you would come and lay hands on my daughter. She shall recover, and she shall live.”
Why would Jairus need to say, “She shall live,” while she was still living? I believe he was led by God to say this without truly understanding what he was saying.
— There are some things that God will lead you to say that He needs you to say OUT LOUD, in faith, without wavering, that you may not even understand until later.
— There are some things that you will pray for, and you won’t even truly know what you’re praying for until later.
— Jairus’ daughter died. But his declaration was still good. He had already called those things which be not as though they were. Just as long as he did not cancel out what he had already said, his declaration of faith was good.
— Fear cancels out faith. Faith cancels out fear. You need to be careful not to cancel out what you prayed in faith with words of fear, doubt, and unbelief.
— If God leads you to say something that has not happened yet, you must continue to SAY what God SAID until you SEE what God SAID. And you cannot be moved by what SEE with your natural eyes. Don’t allow what you SEE to cause you to change what you SAY!
— The UNSEEN realm has to become more real to you than the SEEN. The Bible says,
(2 Cor 4:18 NIV)
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
(2 Cor 5:7 TPT)
For we live by faith, not by what we see with our eyes.
(2 Cor 5:7 ERV)
We live by what we believe will happen, not by what we can see.
— You must not be moved by what you see.
— Jesus knew fear had gripped Jairus’ heart. So Jesus said, “Be not afraid. Keep believing!” That’s what God says to you this morning. Be not afraid. Keep calling those things which be NOT as though they were until they come to pass!
3. Faith has a language.
When I joined the military, I had to learn the lingo. When I joined God’s Kingdom, I had to do the same.
— The language of faith speaks pertinent promises. It speaks what you believe God is leading you to say.
— The language of faith speaks the desired outcome (Rom 4:17). You must train yourself to not to simply speak what you see.
— Under this new language, you must speak things in accordance with God’s reality. He will lead you to speak the desired outcome before it happens.
— The language of faith continues to speak the desired outcome until it comes to pass. The key is not to allow what you see (opposition) to change what you say (faith).
— The language of faith never cancels out their declaration of faith with doubt and unbelief (James 1:7). Never speak doubt after you have spoken faith.
That’s enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, this is a season of refreshing and restoring for me!
As I study the miracles of Jesus, my faith is increased!
You are a God who calls those things which be NOT as though they were. You speak to my TO BE stage from my RIGHT NOW stage. You call the end from the beginning.
I am Your child. You teach me to be like You. You teach me to call those things which be not as though they were. You train me to declare the end from the beginning. You then encourage me NOT to be moved by what I see.
So I speak the language of faith, and I am not moved by circumstances or situations. I am only moved by You, Your Word, and Your Spirit. The UNSEEN realm is more real to me than the SEEN!
I walk by faith and not by sight. This is how I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
