OUR TOPIC THIS SUNDAY IS TITLED "THE NECESSITY OF FAITH"

The lesson for today centres around the theme of faith and the unimaginable negative impact of unbelief on our lives and prayers.

Our case in point today is: Matthew 17:14-21

Matthew  17:14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying,  17:15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatic, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.  17:16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.  17:17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.  17:18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.  17:19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?  17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.  17:21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

From the Bible passage

above, we realise that Unbelief or the sheer lack of faith had not only cost the disciples a convert, but had also cost the Lunatic his sanity if not for the timely intervention of Jesus.
In the same vein, faithlessness has cost a lot of people their miracles, it has cost a lot of Barren Women their babies and the sick their healing.

Apart from the spiritual realm, doubt and mistrust has also led to the break of marriages, and the loss of profits for businessmen, in some instances, it may have even barred some people from getting their dream Jobs.

Surely, faithlessness is a greater problem than any other, because it is indeed with faith that we can move Mountains of difficulties, sicknesses and challenges. Little wonder even Jesus Christ in his closing remark on the incident stated in verse 21 that, "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting" (KJV), indicating that casting out demons only took faith, while casting out unbelief or faithlessness takes Fasting and prayers to achieve.

I know this is a new interpretation of this verse for many of us, but i beckon on you to reflect on this first before raising your criticisms.

I wish you all a Faith-filled week ahead. 

Written by ONYEOZIRI Favour as preached pastor Joshua Nice.