God's Word is His bond. He is as good as His Word. He cannot NOT keep it.
The Bible reveals in chapters 2 & 3 of Genesis that Adam and Eve were created to live in faith in their relationship with God and His Word. The Temptation of the Serpent caused them to doubt their their Father and the veracity of His Word. The direct result was the broken relationship, and sin that flooded their lives and every life ever born into the earth afterwards. Every anger, murder, guilt, fear, disease and poverty all find their root cause in that one devastating moment.
But, everything was changed!
John 11:33-34
“Lazarus, come forth!” And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with grave-clothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”
To rectify the problem, God sent His own Son, Jesus Christ (the Word of God - John 1:1-18) to provide a way for us all to be reconciled back to the Father and teach us how to once again live by total faith in Father and His Word.
When reading the Gospel accounts of Jesus' earthly ministry, we clearly see that Jesus operated and taught His disciples to operate in faith by believing and speaking God's Word to their situations in life. Today, we take one example recorded in the Gospel of John to see Jesus operating by believing and confessing the Word of God. Hopefully this will help clear up some
misunderstandings for some believers who have said they've tried confessing the Word and it didn't work.
Well, that is like saying God is a liar and His Word is not true. This is exactly what we see in the Garden of Eden with the Serpent and Adam and Eve. The Serpent told them God's Word to them was not true (Genesis 3:4). But God cannot lie. He is Holy and holiness is the complete absence of deception. If He can lie, then how can you ever believe Him at all? How can you believe Him for salvation then? If you are a born again follower of Jesus, then you KNOW His Word must be true because it worked in your life when you believed He died for your sin, forgave you and came to live in your heart by the power of His Spirit. Salvation and the connected transformation from darkness to light, from sinner to saint, is the greatest miracle and, if this miracle occured when you believed and confessed, then we can believe the other sorts of miracles promised in the Word of God will also manifest when we believe and confess His Word with an absolute trust and assurance in our hearts, rejecting every doubtful thought that enters our mind.
So, let us take a look at how Jesus operated in regards to the death of His close friend Lazarus.
1. Lazarus is prematurely dead - the situation. This miracle does not occur because Lazarus' faith was working. It did not depend on Lazarus' faith. This was Jesus showing us how faith filled words work.
2. Jesus, the Word of God, arrives at the scene. He is right there at hand for us all, no-matter the situation. There are times and situations we can go through where we can do literally nothing. But the end of our ability means the beginning of His ability. 'Grace' means we get what we can never earn or deserve. 'Mercy' means we do not get what we do deserve. So both Grace and Mercy work on our behalf if we simply believe the very best of Jesus. He is there in every situation to do for you what you cannot do for yourself.
3. He cries out "Take away the stone." This is the command of the Word of God. Remove the blockage and barrier between the Word and the situation. He is making a way for us to see the power of confessing the Word really works. Doubt, unbelief and unforgiveness must all be cast aside and be replaced by a faith-filled, thankful disposition and we must forgive those who hurt or offended us. For example, a lady was brought to my home for prayer. She was bent over, almost in half and could not stand up straight. She had a curved spine. In just a few minutes it was clear what needed to be dealt with first before we could even pray and believe for her miracle. She was ferociously angry and bitter toward her son.
We explained that unforgiveness can prevent miracles happening in our lives and and quite quickly we led her to the Lord and she forgave her son audibly. Before we had even a chance to pray for this lady, she suddenly stood completely upright and started praising the Lord. She almost started to dance around the room she was so happy. Sadly, just a few weeks later I saw her and she was bent over once again. Again a torrent of bitter words towards her son come out of her mouth. Her unforgiveness had returned and she had lost her miracle healing.
4. Instantly the Word is spoken Martha reacts with doubt and reasoning, reminding Jesus, that Lazarus has been in the grave four days already and there will be a stench of death. It is as if Jesus, who knows ALL things, is not aware of this one fact and Martha needs Him to know it, so He can stop doing this. Is she afraid it will not work and Jesus will look a fool in the eyes of her neighbours? Or is it more likely that she is afraid of her own reputation and being embarrassed in front of them? Martha was seemingly always the one so concerned about what people thought, more than what Jesus thought. We will not see miracles unless we learn to die to the endorsements and reputation people can give us.
The moment you start to confess God's Word in faith, you will soon have a retaliation from the spirit-world that bombards your mind with logical reasoning telling you to "stop, it doesn't work, you will look silly when it doesn't happen." The natural stench of death does not offend the Word, but the stench of death that He is not pleased with is unbelief. Since the day of Adam and Eve He has constantly had people who did not believe Him and doubted His Word. Faith in His Word pleases Him (Hebrews 11:6). We must learn to doubt our doubts if we wish to see miracles. Learn to control what enters your thoughts and cast out every negative, doubting, fearful word and think on the Word of God in its place. Your mind is simply that.....it is yours. You chose what it thinks on and doesn't think on. You chose what remains in your mind. You cannot stop doubts hitting your mind, but you truly can stop them remaining in it. Begin memorising the Word of God and His promises and fill your mind every day with His Word and when those negative, doubt-filled words enter your mind, throw them out immediately and start confessing what God's Word says about the situation.
5. In great mercy Jesus spoke to Martha, the troubled one and reminded her that He, the Word of God, is the Resurrection and the Life. He encouraged her faith to believe and not doubt even when she doubted. If you draw near to the Word, then He will always encourage your faith to simply believe and you will see.
6. Jesus cried out "Lazarus, come forth." These are spiritual words, because Lazarus is literally dead. This reveals the Word is spirit and goes to our spirit, not our head, to release a miracle. Lazarus received the miracle Word of power into his spirit. It by-passed his brain because his brain was dead. But it still worked! This shows it is not done by logic, reasoning or academical intelligence. It is spiritual truth.
7. The miracle was instant. It instantly worked. But it took some time for Lazarus to emerge from the grave. Just because you don't 'see' an immediate response, it does not mean the Word of God has failed, or is powerless to change the situation. You have to add patience to your faith. Hebrews 6:12 reveals we need 'faith and patience' to inherit the promises (the Word) of God. Simply trusting it works even though it seems nothing has changed at all. But everything HAS changed, even though your eyes have not seen it yet. Eyes of faith see it is done, before your natural eyes see it fulfilled.
8. They all had to wait for Lazarus to climb off the slab where he was lain and make his way to the opening of the grave and step out. All of this was miraculous because he was completely wrapped in grave clothes. He couldn't even move. The power of life in the Word was causing him to do what he couldn't naturally do for himself. Just because he didn't emerge from the grave instantly, does not mean it isn't working. It is the waiting time that tests us and reveals whether we will stand on, or shrink back from faith and trusting the Word when it seems that nothing is changing. It HAS changed. Now we wait in faith for it to become realised.
9. Although now outside the tomb, Lazarus had to be unwrapped from the grave clothes. The miracle was instant, but the journey and the unravelling from the clothing (mindset/experience) of death isn't. Jesus told the people to unwrap Lazarus from the clothing that bound him. The grave-clothes represent the ‘stinking thinking’ mindset of religion, doubt and fear that entrap people and keep them from walking in miracles.
This is what my blogs, videos, Facebook posts and sermons have been doing for years. We need others who know the Word of God to help unwrap us from 'stinking thinking' to reveal the full outworking of the greatest mystery of God. "Christ in us, the hope of Glory." It is not over if the Word declares it is not over.
10. Finally, notice that Jesus didn't pray a 2nd time. He simply thanked Father for the miracle. Thanksgiving is a doorway between the natural world and the supernatural world of the Kingdom of Heaven (Psalm 100:4). The miracle when Jesus took a few fish and rolls of bread and multiplied them to feed over 5000 people all began when He lifted up the loaves and fish and thanked Father for the miracle. Don't belittle the power of thanksgiving. It is the gateway to miracles in your life. Don't keep praying the same prayer. When you pray, believe you have already received the answered prayer and then thank Father the answer is "Yes & Amen" (2 Corinthians 2:20).
Mark 11:24
"Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."
2 Corinthians 2:20
"For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen.”