Weapons of Our Warfare - Faith

“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.” MATTHEW 7:24-25

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. HEBREWS 11:1 & 6

The LORD God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet,And He will make me walk on my high hills. HABBAKUK 3:19

FAITH

Faith - Belief, trust, and loyalty to a person or thing. The Greek translation for the Hebrew word for faith is pisteuein/pistos [πιστεύω/πιστός]. Faith means primarily confident trust based on God's promise as understood through his Word. (Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary)

How is faith a weapon of warfare? Let’s go back to the innocent days of childhood when we believed pretty much everything we were told. If your parents told you they were going to do something for you (buy you something special, spend quality time with you, take you somewhere you want to go, etc.), especially if they promised, we believed them wholeheartedly. Why? Because they are your parents and you trust them. They would not do anything to hurt you or deceive you. You had faith that they would come through with their promise. You believed them, trust them, put your hope in that promise they made, and don’t doubt them for a second.

This kind of faith, child like faith in our Heavenly Father is a lethal weapon in our arsenal because when we believe God wholeheartedly we cannot be moved or swayed by our enemy. We believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is faithful and that He will come through. Faith reminds us that God is not a liar when the enemy tries to tell us otherwise. Faith shuts the devil’s mouth when he tries to sow doubt into our minds. Jesus compared the faith of a child to the faith that we should have in Him. A child believes without doubting and expects to see what it is he/she is hoping for. Christians should already see that which they hope for before receiving it because their hope is in God!

In the first set of verses Jesus compares the person who believes His words and does them to a wise man who built his house on the rock. Why a rock? Well if you ever lived on an island, country, or state where natural disasters are seasonal you would notice that people that have lived there for many years usually would have houses built of cement or have a cement foundation. This is because when these natural disasters such as, hurricanes, tornados, and tropical storms, were in season and the wind and rain began thrashing the house it would remain in tack because it was made of cement. So is the man or woman who has faith! The storms of life will come and trash at you and blow at you but you will not be moved because you have built your house or your faith on the Rock which is Jesus Christ! How wonderful is that?! Praise God!!

The second set of verses speaks directly of what faith is and how you need faith to please God. Faith is the substance, the belief, the hope, the trust of things hope for – you cannot see your blessing, your breakthrough, your healing, or your miracle but you believe wholeheartedly that it is there and you see it in the spirit. The evidence of things not seen – when you believe in the God of whom you put your trust in, you don’t have to see with your natural eyes to know that it is there!! But without faith it is impossible to please God – why? – Because we must believe that He IS! And that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. We must believe that He is able to keep His promises, that He is able to sustain us, that He is able to strengthen us and mold us according to His will and purpose when we seek Him. WE MUST BELIEVE THAT HE IS GOD!!! Romans 10:17 says that faith comes from hearing the word of God. Jesus said if you hear my words and do them. Hearing the word of God produces faith, being obedient to God’s word strengthens your faith, FAITH MOVES MOUNTAINS!!

They devil cannot come against a person of faith and win. Oh he will try! But guess what? You who have faith are taking up your shield that quenches all his fiery darts of doubt and confusion. You who have faith are like the palm tree that bends with the wind but cannot be uprooted. You who have faith are like the wise man that built his house on the rock – you CANNOT be MOVED!!! When the enemy sees that you are standing in your faith despite what he is trying to bombard you with, despite your negative surroundings, despite the gloom and doom that is everywhere around you in these dark times you are standing in the Light of your salvation, he has to slink away back to whatever hole he crawled out of because he cannot overcome you! When you stand in the promises of God and the word of God, when you do what God’s word says to do, when your life is direct response to God’s call and a reflection of His goodness, the enemy cannot knock you down.

Faith my brothers and sisters is a powerful, deadly weapon against the enemy. With faith we believe all things are possible because there is nothing impossible for the God that we serve. He is JEHOVAH JIREH who provides for us when we are in abundance and more so when we are in scarcity. He is JEHOVAH SHALOM who gives us peace when the storm is swirling and raging all around us. He is JEHOVAH RAPHA who heals us when the enemy tells us we are going to die from whatever is ailing our bodies. He is the TRUTH. He is EL SHADDAI God Almighty!!!! Praise His holy name!! Hallelujah!! Believe in the One who called you out of darkness as a child believes and trusts in his/her father to guide and protect them so let us believe and trust in our Heavenly Father who will never leave us nor forsake us and in doing so put out the flaming arrows of the evil one.

The last verse is one of my personal favorites because it describes what it is to have total trust in God. The Lord God is my strength – is a declaration that my trust, my confidence, my life is in the Lord and He gives me strength. He will make my feet like deer’s feet and He will make me walk on my high hills – He will help me dodge the enemy’s bullets, torpedoes, and arrows and He will help me overcome and defeat the giants I face. What an awesome word!!! Oh if that don’t make you want to shout I don’t what will!!!! I am ready to jump out of my seat and shout unto God and give Him praise!!! HALLELUJAH!! Be encouraged and begin to use your weapon of faith if you are not already doing so. Strengthen it by reading the word of God and listening to the word of God. Apply God’s word to your daily situations and watch the Lord give you the victory!

God bless you!