BELIEVING AND SAYING--THE KEY TO FAITH !

BELIEVING AND SAYING -- THE KEY TO FAITH: (Romans 10:13 through 17). "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed ? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard ? And how shall they hear without a preacher ? . . . So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Revelation 19:12- 13). "His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothes with a vesture dipped in blood; and his name is called The Word of God." The apostle John says, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." I believe that the Word of God is still God over our situations and circumstances when we call upon the Word of God ! Just as faith comes by hearing the Word of God, so does anything we receive from God. The God kind of faith comes by hearing God's Word. In other words, God causes the God kind of faith to come into the hearts of those who hear. And hearing should cause one to act upon what they hear ! No wonder Jesus said, "Take heed therefore how you hear" (Luke 8:18). You can't let it go in one ear and out the other, because that won't do any good. Metaphorically speaking that is what people do. Faith won't come. If you act as if the word of God were some fairy tale, or some story book. Faith will not come. But when you except it reverently and sincerely -- when you act upon it -- faith comes. Paul wrote to the Church Or body of Believers at Corinth, "We haveing the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak" (2 Corinthians 4:13). Not everybody has the same spirit of faith ! Paul said we have the same spirit of faith. And what belongs to the Church or body of believers at Corinth belongs to the Church or body of believers today. On no occasion did Paul or any of the apostles ever right to encourage the people to believe; never did they tell them to have faith. Our having to encourage believers to believe or have faith is a result of the word of God's having lost its reality to us. We are believers ! Not doubters nor are we debaters of the Word of God. When your children are away from home, you don't have to write them and said, "Be sure to keep breathing." They will continue to breathe as long as they are alive. Neither do we have to encourage believers to believe, because that is what they are -- believers.