Topic: Changing Your Course

James 3:1-4 NKJV
(1)  My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.
(2)  For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
(3)  Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
(4)  Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.

We can change the course of our lives simply by changing what we are saying and begin to speak what God says about us.

Faith always begins where the will of God is known.

Confession unto Faith:

Romans 10:17 NKJV
(17)  So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

You will believe what you hear yourself say. Faith is built in you by the words that you speak.

While you are building your faith does not mean that your words are not having any effect. They are working in you.

Philemon 1:6 KJV 
(6)  That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

Paul is letting you know that it is essential for you to possess:

• a knowledge of exactly who you are in Jesus Christ.
• a knowledge of what Jesus has purchased in your redemption.
• a knowledge of every good thing that God has placed in you by Jesus Christ.

To make these truths real in your life, you have to put the key in the ignition switch.

• The key is the Word of God.
• The ignition is your mouth.
• The key is turned in the ignition when you open your mouth and start to speak the truth.
• The good things in you are activated the moment you start confessing the truth.

 The way to make these blessings real in your life is to:

1) thoroughly know them through diligent study;
2) put these truths into your heart; and
3) speak them out loud!

That is how you turn the key in your ignition and energize these truths until they begin to manifest in you!

So quit talking negatively about yourself, and begin to bring the words of your mouth into agreement with the truths God has deposited in your life.

• God’s Word says you’re healed, so begin to say you’re healed.
• God’s Word says you have the mind of Christ, so begin to say you have the mind of Christ.
• God’s Word says you’re blessed, so begin to say you’re blessed.

You turn the key in the ignition by getting your mouth in agreement with God’s Word. And as you start speaking what God says about you, all your potential will start becoming a manifested reality!

Confession of Faith:

Mark 11:12-14 NKJV
(12)  Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.
(13)  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.
(14)  In response Jesus said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.” And His disciples heard it.

Mark 11:19-24 NKJV
(19)  When evening had come, He went out of the city.
(20)  Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.
(21)  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.”
(22)  So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.
(23)  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.
(24)  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Did you notice that Jesus said in verse 23, if a person confesses something “and shall not doubt in his heart” – in other words, if he believes the words he is speaking with his mouth – he will have exactly what he says. The word “doubt” is from the Greek word diakrinomai, which means to hesitate, to waver, to doubt, or to differ.

In context, Jesus is saying that when a person’s heart doesn’t differ from what his mouth is saying, the combination of his heart and mouth in agreement will always make things happen!

James 1:5-8 NKJV
(5)  If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
(6)  But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
(7)  For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
(8)  he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

 I call this concept “the heart-mouth connection.”

• For instance, if you believe in your heart that Jesus purchased your salvation, and you put your heartfelt faith together with the confession of your mouth, you can literally receive that salvation and make it an eternal fact.

For instance, if you believe in your heart that Jesus purchased your healing, and you put your heartfelt faith together with the confession of your mouth, you can literally bring that healing into manifestation in your physical body.

God’s creative power is released when the heart and mouth get into agreement!

That is why you must be careful about what you believe in your heart and say with your mouth, because when your heart and mouth get “in sync” with each other, it literally makes things come to pass!

• Notice that Jesus did not pray about the mountain – He did not ask God to remove the mountain for Him. There is nothing wrong with praying about your mountain, but that is not enough. Speak to your mountain.

• Jesus said that we could speak to the mountain in OUR lives, but we don’t have the right to speak to the mountains in the lives of others (except those we have authority over or have their permission – that’s where prayer comes in).

• Notice that Jesus’ words went to work at the root of the situation and the effect was not immediately visible to the natural eye. The change started at the root (invisible) and then worked its way outward (visible).

Why does this work?

John 17:17 NKJV
(17)  Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.

God’s truth is the highest truth.

Psalms 138:2 NKJV
(2)  I will worship toward Your holy temple, And praise Your name For Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.

God’s Word is the very foundation of His integrity and holiness.

Romans 1:22-25 NLT
(22)  Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.
(23)  And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.
(24)  So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies.
(25)  They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator Himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.

God has a problem with this because these people chose to worship something that is below the Creator instead of worshiping Him.

The creation is never greater than the Creator. So the creation is subject to the Creator.

Only that which is part of God, the Creator is permanent. Everything else is subject to change or temporary.

Everything in this visible realm was created by the Word of God and therefore is subject to the Word of God.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NKJV
(17)  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,
(18)  while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Those things that are temporary in our lives, are subject to the Word of God, and that includes us!

Don’t ONLY pray about those dead situations and circumstances, speak to them and command them to come forth.

John 11:41-44 NKJV
(41)  Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.
(42)  And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”
(43)  Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!”
(44)  And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”

Ezekiel 37:1-10 NKJV
(1)  The hand of the LORD came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones.
(2)  Then He caused me to pass by them all around, and behold, there were very many in the open valley; and indeed they were very dry.
(3)  And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” So I answered, “O Lord GOD, You know.”
(4)  Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
(5)  Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: “Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live.
(6)  I will put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in you; and you shall live. Then you shall know that I am the LORD.” ‘ ”
(7)  So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone.
(8)  Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them.
(9)  Also He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” ‘ ”
(10)  So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.

James 3:1-4 NKJV
(1)  My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.
(2)  For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
(3)  Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
(4)  Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.

We can change the course of our lives simply by changing what we are saying and begin to speak what God says about us.

Faith always begins where the will of God is known.

Romans 10:17 NKJV
(17)  So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Hearing the Word of God is what drives out those question marks in our thinking that can hinder our faith.

So our faith is increased by hearing and understanding the Word of God. Hearing what? What God has said about your situation or about you.

Let’s take a look at how faith is built:

Hebrews 11:1 AMP
(1)  NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].

We must start with the foundation of hope. When we say that faith comes by hearing the Word, it is implied that hope also comes and actually comes first.

The Word of God first produces hope in the heart of a person.

Hope = Expectation (Greek Dictionary)

So we start with an expectation that God is going to heal us.

In the Amplified, notice it says that faith is the confirmation or the title deed of the things that we hope for. Faith becomes the proof that what we are expecting is already ours, whether we see it or not.

So our faith takes those things that we are expecting to happen and creates ownership of those things now, not in the future.

Faith always takes ownership of that which is expected.

How do you build your capacity for great faith?

Joshua 1:8 NKJV
(8)  This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Four Keys to building strong faith in God’s Word:

1. Find what the Word says about your situation.
2. Meditate in the scriptures from God’s Word.
3. Speak God’s Word.
4. Act on God’s Word.

We need to understand there is a difference between speaking God’s Word out of faith like God does and speaking God’s Word unto faith where we are speaking and getting the Word into our hearts.

Sometimes we need to speak the Word of God as mentioned in Joshua 1:8 so that we get the Word into our hearts. This is a confession UNTO faith.

God created us to be able to hear our own words and build a capacity to believe them in our hearts.

Here is why this is so important:

If you do not understand the importance of speaking God’s Word, you will never be able to overcome the incredible power of doubt.

Anytime you begin to trust God, the enemy will come at your mind to manipulate your imagination to see your life going different from what God has said.

The best way to get a handle on your thoughts and imagination is through the power of speaking God’s word.

But then there are times when you speak forth your faith and you know that faith is in your heart and that which you have spoken is done in the Name of Jesus!

 

Hebrews 4:14 NKJV
(14)  Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.

Hebrews 10:23 NKJV
(23)  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

How does this faith process work?

Mark 11:12-14 NKJV
(12)  Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.
(13)  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.
(14)  In response Jesus said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.” And His disciples heard it.

Mark 11:19-24 NKJV
(19)  When evening had come, He went out of the city.
(20)  Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.
(21)  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.”
(22)  So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.
(23)  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.
(24)  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Notice Jesus came to the fig tree and desired fruit from it. It had none so Jesus cursed the fig tree saying, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.”

There was nothing that visibly changed immediately with the fig tree or else the disciples, especially Peter would have pointed it out. He said the words and then simply went on about His business.

They conduct their business in Jerusalem and are on their way out of the city and passed by the fig tree. There was still no visible change or else again, the disciples would have said something about it. This did not phase Jesus at all.

They go back to Bethany and spend the night and then head back to Jerusalem again. This time they passed by the fig tree and there was change because they noticed it. They noticed it but Peter is the only one that said anything about it.

Notice the fig tree dried up from the roots. This is the same as will happen with anything that we are using our faith on.

The moment that you begin attending to the Word of God, the Word goes to work on the root of the problem, not the external things that you can see. If it were to address the leaves only, then the root would still be there and then it could grow back.

Example: Roundup weed killer will kill weeds by attacking the root of the weed then the leaves. You can spray it on and it may take 2 or 3 days before you begin to see any visible results from what you did – BUT THEY WILL COME.

The key is not to quit when you don’t see the immediate results.

Just know that as you are speaking the Word, it is working in you and on the situation just like that weed killer.

Some people believe that it is enough for you to have the Word of God in your heart.

Our relationship with Jesus is begun with not only what we believe in our hearts but also what we say with our mouths.

Romans 10:9-10 NKJV
(9)  that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
(10)  For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation

 

James 3:1-4 NKJV
(1)  My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.
(2)  For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
(3)  Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
(4)  Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.

We can change the course of our lives simply by changing what we are saying and begin to speak what God says about us.

A simple understanding of how faith works is necessary for us to begin to walk in this principle.

We must start with a basic assumption that the Word of God is true and if I can find that the Bible says it, then I am going to believe it.

Faith always begins where the will of God is known.

You cannot have faith for something that you are not sure is the will of God for your life.

Your faith will never rise above that question mark in your thinking.

 Romans 12:3 KJV
(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.

We are created to be believers. All of us believe something, even if it is the wrong thing. Doubt and unbelief is not making the decision to believe nothing, but rather making the choice to believe the wrong things.

Don’t let the enemy try and convince you that you do not have the faith for that. You do have the faith but it may not be developed in that area.

Romans 10:17 NKJV
(17)  So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Hearing the Word of God is what drives out those question marks in our thinking that can hinder our faith.

Let’s look at an example of this from Jesus’ ministry:

Mark 5:21-42 NKJV
(21)  Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea.
(22)  And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet
(23)  and begged Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.”
(24)  So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.
(25)  Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years,
(26)  and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.
(27)  When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment.
(28)  For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”
(29)  Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.
(30)  And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?”
(31)  But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’ ”
(32)  And He looked around to see her who had done this thing.
(33)  But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.
(34)  And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”
(35)  While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”
(36)  As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not be afraid; only believe.”(37)  And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.
(38)  Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly.
(39)  When He came in, He said to them, “Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping.”
(40)  And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying.
(41)  Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, “Talitha, cumi,” which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.”(42)  Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age. And they were overcome with great amazement.

We see the contrast here of faith coming by hearing about Jesus and fear potential coming when hearing about death.

So our faith is increased by hearing and understanding the Word of God. Hearing what? What God has said about your situation.

Let’s take a look at how faith is built:

Hebrews 11:1 NKJV
(1)  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1 AMP
(1)  NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].

We must start with the foundation of hope. When we say that faith comes by hearing the Word, it is implied that hope also comes and actually comes first.

The Word of God first produces hope in the heart of a person.

Hope = Expectation (Greek Dictionary)

So we start with an expectation that God is going to do something good for us.

In the Amplified, notice it says that faith is the confirmation or the title deed of the things that we hope for. Faith becomes the proof that what we are expecting is already ours, whether we see it or not.

So our faith takes those things that we are expecting to happen and creates ownership of those things now, not in the future.

With faith having arisen in our hearts to take ownership we are ready to pray or simply receive that which has already been provided by the Lord such as healing.

Faith is not just inspiration that comes as a result of inspired preaching of the Word of God. It is a spiritual thing that unlocks the supernatural power of God that is contained in His Word.

But faith always takes ownership of that which is expected.

Please understand that you do not have to understand how God is going to perform His Word, you just simply need to believe it and allow it to work in and for you.

Remember, the story of Mary, the Mother of Jesus when the angel appeared unto her. She did not understand how all of what the angel said was going to happen to her was going to happen but she simply believed and received it.

How do you build your capacity for great faith?

Joshua 1:8 NKJV
(8)  This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Four Keys to building strong faith in God’s Word:

1. Find what the Word says about your situation.
2. Meditate in the scriptures from God’s Word.
3. Speak God’s Word.
4. Act on God’s Word.