9-23-18 Today in the Word

Today in the Word
September 2018
Spiritual Geography: Mountains and Valleys in Scripture
FAITH THAT MOVES MOUNTAINS
Sunday, September 23, 2018 | Matthew 17:14–20
D. L. Moody said: “I believe in definite prayer. Abraham prayed for Sodom. Moses interceded for the children of Israel. How often our prayers go all around the world, without real definite asking for anything! And often, when we do ask, we don’t expect anything. Many people would be surprised if God did answer their prayers.”
Prayer must be accompanied by faith. The object and quality of our faith is what matters; Jesus taught that even if faith were as small as a mustard seed, great things could be done (v. 20). Jesus’ expression “move mountains” has since become an English idiom meaning to overcome enormous challenges or accomplish the impossible (see also Matt. 21:21–22).
On what does the quality of faith depend? James described praying in faith as praying in expectation rather than doubt (James 1:6–8). John explained that the key is asking according to God’s will (1 John 5:14–15). We can have confidence that the sovereign Lord of all will surely hear our prayer. This further suggests that one key purpose of prayer is to align our wills with His.
“Nothing will be impossible for you” does not mean that faith is some sort of magic ticket or mantra, as prosperity gospels claim. In context, Jesus was referring to challenges related to the work of God’s kingdom. One study Bible summarized the meaning this way: “Nothing that Christ authorizes His disciples to do will be impossible.” Jesus also linked such faith with prayerfulness (Mark 9:29).
In today’s verse, Paul pointed out that faith without love is worthless (1 Cor. 13:2). All this indicates that faith that can move mountains is part of an overall lifestyle of Christian discipleship.
APPLY THE WORD
Perhaps it’s time to conduct a deeper check on our prayer lives. Do we, as Moody warned, pray too generally or vaguely because our doubt is stronger than our expectation? Are we praying for our wills to be submitted to and aligned with God’s? Do we truly believe in the power of prayer because we believe in the power of God?

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