Not By Sight
Do you know anyone who has hit rock bottom and has been completely changed? Ever wonder why they are so different? Are you desiring the change you see in their life, but don’t want to go through the pain they went through to experience the changed life?
We all are seeking the best life possible. There are many people teaching you that you should have the best things in life. Why not have everything your heart desires? All you have to have is a little faith, right?
I have found it interesting to watch from a distance the amount of people seeking a changed life through the miraculous. Entire ministries have thrived through the ability to “heal” and “save” the sick. Thousands flock to arenas to be healed of a disease, illness, physical deformity, money crisis, etc. They see others being healed and want it for themselves. Why not? If people are being healed and seeing will help you believe, faith becomes easy.
Is this the kind of faith Jesus desires for each one of us? Jesus healed the sick and drove out the demons. So this must be right.
In the gospel of Luke, Jesus addresses faith. In the fifth chapter a paralytic man was brought to Jesus. However, the crowds were so great the friends trying to bring the man to Jesus was unable to get through the crowds. Determined and believing Jesus was the only way for healing, they took the man to the roof and lowered him through the roof. This man was not going to be kept away from Jesus. He had a faith that was not going to be denied.
When the man was in front of Jesus, Jesus acknowledged their faith and said “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” Now he didn’t come to Jesus to be forgiven, he came so he could walk. He wanted the change you can see and so did the crowd. People in the crowd started to think about how can Jesus forgive a man, only God can forgive.
They were seeing Jesus for his miracles, not his true identity as the Son of God.
The change they were seeking was for the man to walk. Seeing the man walk would require faith. But how much faith did it take to see a miracle? Wouldn’t it take more faith to believe a miracle of the heart?
Jesus knew what the crowd was thinking and called them on their thinking, “Which is easier; to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say ‘Get up and walk’?” Ouch! The crowd doubted the unseen and the deeper faith it required to believe Jesus could change a heart. So what did Jesus do, he commanded the paralytic man to get up and walk. When the man got up, the crowd was amazed with the little faith it took to see the miracle.
My life was changed when I hit my rock bottom. My 22 years of sexual addiction brought me to a place where I could continue destroying my life and my family or I could trust Jesus to change my life but I would have to increase my faith to the point of giving him everything. My faith was small and I spent years asking Him to change my life but only change the things that didn’t really require faith to change. I wanted to be rid of my addiction and change my habits, but not change my heart and acknowledge how little I trusted Jesus with my life.
Jesus changed me, but only when I reached the point of trusting him with everything. The day I told my wife about my addiction, I agreed to trust Jesus with my marriage, kids, job, home, friends, church and reputation. To trust Him, I gave up control of everything and expected to lose it all. What happened?
The only thing I lost was the secret of my addiction. Through putting my faith in the unseen, Jesus changed my heart. In changing my heart, he changed my life! My wife and I are thriving 10 years later. We were blessed with another child, I left my full-time job and I am now leading this ministry to help others, all because Jesus changed me from a faith I could not see.
Where do you find your faith? Do you find it in the crowds who believe by sight or do you believe because you have let go of everything and live by faith that comes from giving Jesus your heart?