Faith in Jesus makes up the Mechanics of Life.
Someone from the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought my son to You. A demon keeps him from talking. I asked Your disciples to force out the demon, but they couldn’t do it.” Jesus said, “You people don’t have any faith! Bring the boy to Me.” As soon as the demon saw Jesus, it made the boy shake all over. Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” The man answered, “Ever since he was a child. Please have pity and help us if You can!” Jesus replied, “Why do You say ‘if you can’? Anything is possible for someone who has faith!” Right away the boy’s father shouted, “I do have faith! Please help me to have even more.” Jesus spoke sternly to the evil spirit. He said, “I order you to come out of the boy!” The spirit screamed and made the boy shake all over. Then it went out of him. Jesus took hold of his hand and helped him stand up. (Mark 9:17-27)
Imagine! Creating a world-wide business empire upon the foundation of a talking mouse whose name was “Mickey”! Walt Disney was the master of fantasy! Not surprisingly this is the plaque he created for the entrance of Disneyland in California: “Here you leave today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow and fantasy.” On May 2, 2006, the two-billionth customer to attend a Disney park visited Disneyland. Obviously, Disney saw the power of fantasy, though at the beginning most thought he was a looney tune!
OOPS! I had better backtrack on that statement. Jesus said: “Anything is possible for someone who has faith!” Now, that’s fantasy! Note the scope of this declaration: anything and anyone. I think that includes you and me. Paul confirms it: “Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” This is the fantasy of faith!
Tragically, some teachers have misused the fantasy of faith to advance what’s called “The Prosperity Gospel” … usually for their own gain. So, please heed Jesus’ own amplification: “The person who trusts Me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things, because I am giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing. You can count on it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing, I’ll do it. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I’ll do.”
Corrie ten Boom captured the Fantasy of Faith: “Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable, and receives the impossible.”
So, employing the words of C.S. Lewis, here’s our choice: “Either this man Jesus was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon OR you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God.”
Check back next Friday as we continue our Faith on Fridays series.