Only Believe

Mark 5:36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not be afraid; only believe.”

Jarius, a person of Jewish stature, a ruler of the church, had humbled himself at Jesus’ feet and pled for Christ to come heal his deathly ill daughter. He was going against the religious of the day, and believing Jesus could perform that miracle. He had the faith to ask for help, and not the pride to resist. Jarius witnessed a healing of a woman on the way to his home with Jesus; she had simply touched His garment and the power had went out of him because of her faith also. Jarius’ faith was surely strengthened again by witnessing it. Then messengers reached them with the news of his daughters death; Jarius likely lost it and went into shock of emotions. Fear set in with the reality of loosing his daughter, yet he walked by the side with the One who held life in his hands. Jesus assured him to just calm down and have the faith to believe it all was under God’s control. Jarius was about to be a part of a miracle to the point it made historical history in the Bible to encourage us today. Just to have faith that God is always in control.

We can’t grasp it; the fears and the questions always come in life. We always wonder why some things happen to us, why other things don’t, why evil abounds, why bad people prosper, why God allows the things God allows. Our sin nature, the sin in us, the power Satan has in us that breeds those fears. Our sin weakens our faith, but God is always in control. I was reading of Solomon this morning, and how Israel became divided after his death and was about to war upon each other. God sent a prophet to Rehoboam and said, “’Thus says the Lord: “You shall not go up or fight against your brethren! Let every man return to his house, for this thing is from Me.” (2 Chronicles 11:4) God is always in control. There is a purpose behind every thing that happens in our lives. Free Will is intertwined with God’s control through a complexity we cannot begin to grasp.

What weakens your fears and strengthens your faith? Simply put is the daily pursuit of God through prayer and time in his Word. The heart that seeks him is the heart that finds him on a level that will change your outlook on life. Once you begin to experience the revelations of how real God is, how personal God is, how he controls even the smallest details of your life, your faith will be strengthened. You will begin to understand that fear is from Satan, sent only as a Spiritual attack. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7) God will use your faith to encourage and draw others unto himself by your testimony to him. You will walk with a new outlook on life, seeing this life as it is, temporary, and see the blessing of eternal paradise with Him. That alone strengthens your faith to face whatever comes for the day. You begin to face life only one day at a time. Fear is worrying about a future event, and your future is secure in heaven.