FAITH STOPS CHRIST TO LOOK OUR WAY AND HEAR OUR CRY

Faith, and faith alone, weighs upon God and stops Him in His tracks. God cannot resist a man of faith. Remember Zacchaeus, who desired to see Jesus, but was too short to see above the crowds, Luke 19:2. So he ran ahead of the crowd (good idea) and climbed a tree to have a good view. Now when Jesus passed, He stopped and looked up. Thousands of people sought Christ's attention, but Jesus stopped for Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus had faith that got the notice of the Son of God.

And what of the woman who had a serious medical problem of bleeding. She had heard Jesus had the ability to heal. So she sought Christ and pushed her way through the thronging crowds which followed Jesus wherever He went. She literally had to fight her way to Christ and when she came upon Him, she touched Him. Jesus stopped and asked, "Who touched Me?" The disciples were astonished. They said,

Jesus only asked, "Who touched Me by faith?" Jesus cannot escape a man or woman of faith. Our faith is a force Christ must deal with. He is ever bound to address each and every man that touches Him by faith, and faith alone. He welcomes our faith. He takes delight and glories in our faith. He does not disappoint the persistent believer. And He did not disappoint the woman. She was healed instantly.

I could go on with other examples- like the two who were commended for "great faith." You can read these in Mat. 8:5-13 and Mat. 15:22-28. But let me end with one last example of "stopping faith" from the book of Matthew in the twentieth chaper. And this is a typical illustration of how Christ interacts with a persistent, focused believer, so take note: An outline would look something like this.

• The word is heard and believed.
• Belief is challenged.
• Belief is held to.
• Christ takes notice.
• Christ responds.
• Christ grants request.

30 And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!"
31 And the multitude sternly told them to be quiet; but they cried out all the more, saying, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!"
32 And Jesus stopped and called them, and said, "What do you want Me to do for you?"
33 They *said to Him, "Lord, we want our eyes to be opened."
34 And moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.

Scripture was written for our instruction and encouragement, for our spiritual health and well-being. But it must be acted upon without fear of the doubting, carnal crowds. Let us remember God taking a personal interest in those believers we have mentioned. They were the ones remember who looked heavenward and dared to believe beyond the natural realm. In each and every time God responded and provided a solution. What God did for them, my friend, God will do for you.

The spiritual life is a life of faith and such a life "pleases God." You cannot be spiritual without the filling of the Spirit. Such a state is referred to as "experiential sanctification". Experiential sanctification is to be differentiated from "positional sanctification". Positional sanctification is a state of eternal life held by all who "believe in Christ." It is a state which is guaranteed to us by God, not ourselves. God's integrity is at stake. Therefore, we will not ever lose our eternal salvation. God will see to that. But we can lose our "experiential sanctification." We lose it through sin.

FOCUS, FILLING, FELLOWSHIP

Experiential Sanctification is a mental state held only by Christians who not only have come to believe in Christ as Saviour, but serve Him as the Lord of their lives. And that means, one is focused upon Christ Jesus to please God the Father and not self. Focus upon Christ leads to filling of the Spirit. Such "filling" allows us to have intimate contact and relations with Christ, or allows one to have "fellowship" with God, Himself. Experiential sanctification is a state where we are truly "set apart" unto God. It is a mental state of holiness.

God desires all His children to live the spiritual life. He even commands it: "be filled with the Spirit", Eph. 5:18. He wants us to "cease striving [by means of pride so that we might] know that He is God", Ps. 46:10. He wants us to give Him our whole heart, because He wants to give you and I all of Him. There is much He is willing to do in our behalf, IF we will cease striving.