DAY 46 of #100daysofJesus
On at least two occasions, Jesus taught his disciples that with faith they can move mountains.
One such occasion followed the cursing of a non-productive fig tree. Jesus told his marveling disciples, "Have faith in God" and then taught this important lesson:
"Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them."
The formula given here to move mountains appears to be:
faith + prayer - doubt = moving mountains.
On another occasion, the disciples had struggled to cast devils out of a man. Jesus then rebuked the devil and healed him. The disciples wondered why they were unsuccessful, and Jesus answered that it was "because of your unbelief." He then taught the lesson:
"If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting."
The formula seems to be pretty consistent:
faith (just a little) + prayer (sometimes with fasting) = moving mountains
I don't think Jesus was talking about literal mountains in these teachings. He used the metaphor of a mountain to represent something huge and seemingly impossible. His point was that with faith (in Him) and prayer, we can do the impossible.
Do you have mountains in your life that you would like to remove and cast into the sea?
A mountain I'm currently chipping away at is anxiety. I'm praying, fasting, and shoveling with faith. I can see the mountain being removed, one shovel at a time, as I continue to work at it in faith. I'm making progress. Jesus never said the mountain would remove all at once or without effort (though wouldn't that be nice!). But He did promise we could remove our mountains if we follow the formula he taught.
Do you have faith that Jesus can help you remove or conquer the mountains in your life? Is that faith moving you to action? Are you praying for that help?
Jesus is a God of Miracles. It is His great pleasure to help us remove the mountains in our lives as we continue to progress in our mortal journey. Have faith. Trust Jesus.
(References: Matthew 17:14-21, Mark 11:20-24)
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