When do we FINALLY come to realize we need faith to please God? Is it after we are up to our armpits in alligators? So many times we try to come up with all these “recipes” or “formulas”, “The 12 steps to getting prayers answered” and we muddy up the waters of the Gospel so much that the “Rivers of living waters” become “Rivers of muddy waters”. So we try everything we can think of, and everything everyone else can think of, to try to get answers to our prayers. And when that doesn’t get the results we need, only then, SOMETIMES we are ready to listen to God. And that’s only because OUR way didn’t work. He’s talking to you right now, you know. Are you listening? I am. There are times I really need to get God’s attention, and I mean right now! Are any of you in that boat right now? OK then, stand up. Jump out of the boat. It’s sinking, anyway. There’s no hope there anymore. Go walk on the water over to Jesus. Here’s how.
When you’re sick, and the doctors have done all they can, and we call on God, He comes in and does what they cannot. When? When we believe. When you can’t pay the bills and you’ve done all you can, there’s a God who can set you above and not beneath. There’s a God of breakthrough. There’s a God who loves you and wants to help you, more than you want to be helped!! When? When you believe.
There’s a book in your house that tells you how to personally know and touch that God. It’s called the HOLY BIBLE. And in that book God talks about faith. In fact, He seems to talk a LOT about faith. Surely there must be a reason. He knows without faith, He can do nothing for us. So to make sure He can do something for us, guess what? He gives us the measure of faith we need. Did you get that? HE gives unto every man the measure of faith. You had nothing to do with it. God did it for you. One size fits all, it’s the only measure there is, and guess what? You have it. How do I know that? It is written in Romans 12:3,
For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
There are different kinds of faith that the Bible speaks of, there is NO FAITH, there is LITTLE FAITH, there is GREAT FAITH. and there is YOUR FAITH. Which is the best? Obviously, the one that works. And according to God’s word, YOUR FAITH will work any time you put it to work.
How do I know that? Because God never creates junk. Everything He makes is Good. If God created it, it’s gotta work and it’s good. And if what you have doesn’t work, then you must use the measure of faith He gave you to MAKE it do what you need. And by the way, He gave you the authority to use that measure of faith, so you can’t say, MY FAITH WON’T WORK. Look at God’s creation. In the beginning it was good. Sin made a mess of things, but God made a way to fix it. He gave us faith. He gave YOU faith. Not just any old faith. HIS FAITH! Wait! You can’t see that? If God gave it, then it was HIS to give. So, if He gave it to you, and He did, then it was HIS FAITH.
OK, now that we have that settled, let’s move on. Sometimes we hit a snag in life. Sometimes that snag hits us. No matter. A problem is still a problem. I remember when I was a little kid, sitting in my Dad’s boat out on the lake fishing. I’d cast out my line and many times, the line would get so tangled up coming out of the reel, that it seemed impossible to untie it. It was a cheap reel, and I had a cheap Daddy, because we were poor. And I’d get discouraged and just take out my knife and cut the line off and throw it in the lake. After a few times of that, and I had no line left. As you can imagine, I bought a lot of fishing line because I couldn’t get the knots out. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t cast that piece of junk pole without knotting up my line about half the time. Over and over I’d make the same misnakes. mistakes, whatever. I didn’t know about faith then. But I do now.

 
I found out there is a faith that refuses to be denied, a faith that will indeed move YOUR mountains. That faith was demonstrated by blind Bartimaeus in Mark 10:46-52;
Mar 10:46 And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.
Mar 10:47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.
Mar 10:48 And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.
Mar 10:49 And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
Mar 10:50 And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
Mar 10:51 And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.  Mar 10:52 And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
When we look at that account, we see several things going on. First, when the blind man heard Jesus was coming, he knew here was his chance to be healed and stop being a beggar forever. So he cried out to Jesus to have mercy on him. We’ve all done that, haven’t we?
Of course when he did that, the people around him told him to be quiet, and some people might have given up right there and just determined that it was not really their day to be healed after all. But not this man. There was something different about him. He wanted something…
Instead, he cried out all the more, determined he would not be denied. He had heard of the miracles of Jesus, and he was going to get his, no matter what he had to do to get it! When we get desperate enough, we will take desperate measures. This man was desperate. He had to have some help! And he had to have it RIGHT NOW! How about you? Are you needing God’s help RIGHT NOW?
OR, are you willing to let the devil put you off again to another time like the last time? I can’t make that decision for you. But I can tell you this, that if you refuse to let your faith be refused, it will work miracles for you. Let’s go on…Jesus heard the blind man, and STOOD STILL! Surely many were crying out to Jesus, but there was something DIFFERENT about this cry. It was URGENT and it REFUSED TO BE DENIED! JESUS, THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME!!
HE JUST WOULD NOT BE SHUT UP BY THOSE AROUND HIM TELLING HIM TO BE QUIET AND JUST PUT UP WITH BEING BLIND! He had had ENOUGH! So Jesus commanded him to be called, and they called the blind man saying Be of good comfort, rise, he calleth thee. The blind man had what he wanted right then, whether we realize it or not. But he knew it. He cast away his beggar’s garment, and came to Jesus. Why did he cast away his beggar’s garment?
Because he would never need it again! He knew that once you have God’s attention, your need is met, no matter how big the problem is. And he definitely had God’s attention, didn’t he? Well, it goes on,
Jesus said What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? and the blind man said, Lord that I might receive my sight. Look at this…Jesus didn’t try to talk him out of his healing. He wasn’t like religious people today. He didn’t say, you don’t deserve it. He didn’t say, have you repented of your sins? He didn’t say, are you “born again”? And He didn’t say, have you given your tithe?

Hello?? It sure got quiet out there all of a sudden.
He simply said GO THY WAY, THY FAITH HATH MADE THEE WHOLE! While we’re looking at what Jesus said, let’s also look at what He didn’t say…He didn’t say MY FAITH HAS MADE YOU WHOLE. Yours will work just fine.
You see, there’s a part YOU have to play. God has given you the measure of faith.
What will you do with it? Blind Bartimaeus used his, and refused to let it fail him. Faith worked for him, and it will work for YOU if you will put it to use. We see the end result of Bartimaeus’ faith here, “And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.” I like that…immediately!
How can it be so simple? Surely there are hoops to jump through! Surely you must get religion first! Surely it can’t be that easy?
Or could it be, there is a way to get help that the churches are not teaching us today? I propose to you today, that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has not lost it’s power, and that faith still works. It’s just that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been misrepresented to us. Just look in the Book of Acts. The blood of Jesus has NOT lost it’s power, God has NOT turned His back on humanity, and God has NOT changed His mind about healing people or delivering them from their captivity, even if THEY CAUSED IT THEMSELVES! God is the God of another chance.
So then, why do men try to put so many conditions on healing? I don’t see it in the Bible. Jesus said Believe only! Jesus said, Fear not! Sometimes I have to tell myself these same things whenever a mountain blocks my path.
I have a huge one in my path right now but my faith refuses to be moved from the job God has given me to do. You see, I have to work my faith just as well as you do. I don’t just preach faith, I live it. Faith works for Jesus, it worked for Bartimaeus, and it works for me, and it will work for YOU! IF YOU USE IT!!! So, what are you waiting for?

 THY FAITH HATH MADE THEE WHOLE.