Faith For Fruitfulness

Faith For Fruitfulness

By Apostle Felix

22  Jesus replied, “Let the faith of God be in you!
23  Listen to the truth I speak to you: If someone says to this mountain with great faith and having no doubt, ‘Mountain, be lifted up and thrown into the midst of the sea,’ and believes that what he says will happen, it will be done.
24  This is the reason I urge you to boldly believe for whatever you ask for in prayer—believe that you have received it and it will be yours.

Mark 11: 22 – 24

Faith is as important to christian life as oxygen is to living on earth. It is the faith in Jesus Christ that distinguishes believers from the rest of the faiths. The christian faith is essentially faith in Jesus and His finished work of redemption. One may demonstrate faith but the faith should be examined whether it is the faith in Christ or not. Man can have faith in many other things. There those whose faith is in Buddha, and are called Buddhists. They are those whose faith is in Muhammad and are called Moslems. There are so many faiths around the world and time cannot permit us to name them all.

16  Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. 

Galatians 2: 16

Our faith is in Christ. It is this faith in Christ that has the ability to produce the fruit of righteousness in us. It is not possible to have faith in this worldly philosophies  and then be able to produce the fruit of God. Obviously, one will produce the fruit of this world. Logically, you cannot harvest potatoes when you had planted sweet potatoes. Worldly knowledge planted in one’s life, produces faith in the worldly system. This is the reason why we should not allow Hollywood to be the one educating us and our children. Many families have surrendered their children to Hollywood to educate them on their behalf. The cartons, children are watching today are full of diabolical themes, such as homosexuality and satanism. So, the children are growing up with perverted and twisted faith.

17  Faith, then, is birthed in a heart that responds to God’s anointed utterance of the Anointed One. 

Romans 10: 17

Faith comes as the result of the word of God proclaimed. It is not every word that produces faith in the heart of man, but the word that reveals who and what Christ has accomplished for man. It is that word which will produce the fruit of God. Unfortunately, we have believers who claim to have been saved for so many years, but yet there lives have zero fruit of God. What could be the problem?

The problem lies with the message. It is the kind of message that determines the nature of the fruit produced. Motivational messages will produce confidence in self. It will make a person to have a good esteem of oneself. But good self esteem cannot produce the fruit of the Spirit in one’s life. The message preached in our congregations is cardinal to fruit production. The message that is promoting works above grace will produce pride in man.

9  So no one will ever be able to boast, for salvation is never a reward for good works or human striving. 

Ephesians 2: 9

God resists the proud but He gives more grace to the humble. The key to fruitfulness is the message that makes us to have faith in Christ’s finished work of redemption. It is the message that will strip one off self and exalt Jesus Christ. When the flesh is exalted, the works of the flesh begin to manifest in one’s life without effort.

14  Instead it is each person’s own desires and thoughts that drag them into evil and lure them away into darkness.
15  Evil desires give birth to evil actions. And when sin is fully mature it can murder you! 

James 1: 14, 15

A carnal mind, that is a mind influenced by worldly thoughts is a mind whose desires are worldly. Men are lured into sinful acts when there own desires are perverted. What creates desires in us? Words do. The words that we listen to time and time again shape our world. The music you listen to, will shape your world view. Give yourself to listening to the world of God. The more word, the stronger your faith will be.