Message

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HAVE FAITH IN GOD

Mark 11:20-25

Key Verse: 11:22  “Have faith in God” Jesus answered.”

Happy Mother’s Day! The title of today’s message is “Have faith in God”.  Then, what is ‘faith’? The word ‘faith’ is defined in the Webster’s College Dictionary as follows: 1) “unquestioning belief that does not require proof or evidence  2) “unquestioning belief in God…” Here the word “unquestioning” indicates absolute belief. Hebrews 11:1 defines the word ‘faith’ in this way, “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and being certain of what we do not see.” According to this verse, to have faith in God means that we believe unquestionably that God will do the great things which we expect and pray. 

  Today, Jesus talks with his disciples about the fig tree that withered overnight (20-25). In this dialogue Jesus teaches his disciples what kind of faith they must have. We will also learn why Jesus wanted his disciples to have such faith on the way to Jerusalem.

First, the withered fig tree and Peter’s surprise (20-21). Look at verses 20,21. “In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!” Verses 12-14 say that as Jesus and his company were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.”And his disciples heard him say it.  Next day when they saw the fig tree, it withered completely from the roots.

Someone might ask, “Wasn’t it too harsh to curse an innocent fig tree like that?” But, when Jesus cursed the fruitless fig tree, he had the temple on his mind. He associated the corrupted people in the temple of God with the fruitless fig tree.

  In any event, to Peter it was a big surprise. Generally it takes time at least two or three days for a tree to be withered. But, by the single words of Jesus, the flourishing fig tree withered from the roots overnight. Peter was astonished by the power and authority of Jesus’ words.  Peter might have repeated the words, “How come? How come?”, expecting to have such power and authority which Jesus had. Peter really wanted to have such spiritual authority and power so that he could exercise it over the other disciples. He might have thought that he would rebuke James and John of their selfish ambition saying, ‘You selfish brothers. Repent!”  Then, Peter might have expected that James and John would immediately repent from the bottom of their hearts and become his loyal younger brothers. But, in reality Peter did not have such spiritual power and authority. It was his dilemma. How did Jesus help Peter and his disciples who were wondering about the withered fig tree?

Second, have faith in God (22-23). Look at verse 22. “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. In this verse Jesus taught his disciples that power and authority come from absolute faith in God. In the movie “Facing the Giants” the football coach gave his players strict training which they could hardly bear. But, none of them complained about his strict and tough training because of the coach’s authority which came from absolute faith that indeed God would give them victory. We also must have absolute faith in God that God may work through our faith. 

  Let’s think more about the meaning of Jesus’ words, ‘Have faith in God’. When Jesus said, “Have faith in God”, he meant, “Our God is Almighty God, so we can do nothing but he can do everything for us when we believe in him.” When Jesus said, “ Have faith in God,” he meant, “Believe in God Almighty absolutely and see the great things God will do for you.” We must believe that God made the heavens and the earth our of nothing. Our God is the Almighty Creator God who made the world out of nothing. (Ge 1and 2)  Around 40 years ago in Korea while Koreans were still struggling to recover from the Korean War, the pastor Dr. Samuel Lee suggested a prayer topic to Korean students in UBF that we might have our first Bible conference at Niagara Falls in the USA with 200 students attending. At that time, if getting a USA visa for students was as difficult as catching a flying bird with bare hands, how much more difficult was it for Korean UBF to send missionaries to the USA? People thought that it was a mission impossible. But, all the students in Korea UBF gathered at the Bible house and began to pray that God would send missionaries to the USA and enable them to have the first Bible conference at Niagara Falls. They prayed and prayed because they had faith that they could do nothing, but God can do everything for them when they believe in him. In 1975 we had the first summer Bible conference at Niagara Falls with 331 attendants.  Praise God who answered our prayer and blessed the faith of our UBF founding fathers and mothers! 

We will have the summer Bible conference at Niagara Falls this coming July. When we have faith in God the Almighty, we will see the great things which God will do for us and in us. We will see many young people repent and receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We will see our young disciples deliver heart-moving messages and life-testimonies during the conference. We will see those who only desired sight-seeing the waterfalls repent and rededicate themselves to Christ and for Bible America. We will see the great things that God will do for us and we will find the footprints of our spiritual ancestors of faith. Amen.

When we live by faith in God, we always confront obstacles whether they are big or small which are the “mountains.” What then are the mountains? The mountains can be all problems such as sickness, poverty, loss of a job, loss of beloved ones, broken relationships, and so on. To some Korean missionaries their mountains are the English language. But, what is the mountain which Jesus spoke of in verse 23? Let us read verse 23 all together. “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.” In this verse what is the mountain which Jesus pointed out? It is doubt. Doubt is a mountain which confronts our faith. When we live by faith, all kinds of doubts come into our hearts. It is because where there is faith in a person, doubt follows like shade follows a tree. So people frequently ask, ‘Can I really do this thing?” “Does it really happen to me?” Then, what will Satan answer them?  “No, you can’t” or “No, it will not happen to you.”  As we know well, Satan’s main mission is to plant doubt in man’s heart.(Ge 3:1) While Satan always discourages us, Jesus always encourages us to have faith in God the Almighty.

Some say that when we focus our eyes on the problem itself, it looks like a mountain. But when we focus our eyes on God himself, the problem looks as small as a sand. What really matters to us is our faith in God not problem itself. The real mountain is not the problem itself, but doubt in our hearts. So Jesus asked his disciples to remove doubt first from their hearts in doing the work of God.

Soon and very soon, after Jesus’ death and resurrection, the disciples would take over Jesus’ ministry. They were called and anointed to be the Apostles and would become spiritual leaders next to Jesus. (Mk 3:13,14)  They would carry out the great world mission which Jesus would commission them. Then, how the disciples could carry out the great commission because they were unschooled, powerless and still immature in many ways to be spiritual leaders of the world? Where could they gain necessary and absolute spiritual authority and power? Jesus answered, “Have faith in God!” (22) Jesus encouraged his disciples to remove doubt from their hearts and have absolute faith in God the Almighty. Jesus encouraged them not to depend on themselves or something else from this world, but on God himself. Jesus encouraged them to expect the great things which God will do for them when they have faith in God. Indeed, when they had faith in God, God worked mightily through their faith as we study in the book of Acts.

Some of us may ask, ‘What can I do for Bible America and world mission since I have poor English?”  Others may say, “It is too hard to evangelize students in Wash U because they are too smart and high-minded to accept the gospel.” Those who depend on their own abilities or their past experiences or seemingly unfavorable situations always make conclusions saying, “No, I can’t do. Nothing is possible with me!” But, we must repent of our unbelief and remove doubt from our hearts. And we must expect the great things which God will do for us and in us. I cannot but confess that I belong to the second group of doubting people. I repent and restore God’s vision and his hope for America and for Wash U. students. We must have faith in God and expect the great things which God will complete in our lives.

William Carrey, who is known as ‘the father of modern mission”, lived by the motto, “Attempt great things for God. Expect great things from God.”  Since he accepted John 3:16, “For God so loved the world,…” his heart was burning for world mission. So he not only formed missionary groups in England, but also he himself left for India as a missionary. He worked hard day and night for Bible India, especially by translating the Bible into several Indian languages. Despite his effort and labor, for seven years he did not get any converted Indians not even one. But he did not despair, but continued to preach and teach the Bible. Finally, he got one converted Indian named Kirshna Pal, and next hundreds, thousands, then millions after him. May God raise many William Carreys among us and among American students. Amen.

Third, the power of prayer. (24-25)  In this verse Jesus taught his disciples how to depend on God through prayer. Look at verse 24. “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Between prayer and faith there is an inseparable connection. Those who have faith pray and those who pray have faith. What is prayer? Prayer is total dependence on God. Prayer is to believe that I can do nothing but God can do everything. So those who pray have faith in God.

  In verse 23, Jesus taught his disciples to have mountain-moving faith. Now in verse 24, Jesus encouraged them to pray. When we pray, we must believe that we have already received what we requested. For example, when we prayed for Russia in the late 1980’, we believed that God already had sent missionaries to Russia. Therefore, we ate Russian bread and drank Russian teas as if we were in Russia. For Christmas worship service, we danced Russian dancing every year as if we already had the conference in Russia with Russian students. As we had prayed, exactly it happened in the early 1990’s. Attempt great things for God. Expect great things from God. Then, it will happen to us. Amen.

Jesus wanted his disciples to forgive others before they pray. Look at verse 25. “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Forgiving others is not an easy task. So to someone in order to forgive others even one time he needs great faith. Then, why should we forgive others before we pray? It is because sin hinders our prayer. Sin blocks the channel between God and us. As long as we have old grudge and hatred against others, God cannot hear us. That is why we should forgive others before we pray. In Matthew 5:23,24 Jesus said, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.” There is another reason why we have to forgive others. It is because God forgave us through his son Jesus Christ who died on the cross for our sins. Jesus prayed on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk 23:34a) Amen.

  Today we learned what kind of faith Jesus wanted his disciples to have in order to become spiritual leaders. Jesus said “Have faith in God” We must overcome unbelief, remove doubt from our hearts and expect the great things which God will do for us and in us. We also must forgive others and pray hard until God moves away all mountains in front of us. May God bless our Summer Bible Conference at Niagara Fall and use young disciples as excellent Bible speakers and teachers.  May God make America a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Amen.

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Attachment

• pamk11bm-2009.doc