Do You Believe He is Able?

"He entered the house, the blind men came up to Him, and Jesus
said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?"
Matthew 9:28

Have you ever read the Bible and wondered why Jesus would ask a
blind or lame man if they wanted to be healed before He healed
them? The Bible says in John 5:6, that Jesus saw a man who had
been crippled for 38 years lying next to a pool and asked him, "Do
you wish to get well?" More specifically, in Matthew 9:28 the
bible says, "He (Jesus) entered the house, the blind men came up
to Him, and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to
do this? "

The reason Jesus ask these needy individuals these
seemingly obvious questions, is becasue Jesus understood that there
is a real connection between what we "believe" and what we
"receive". Jesus knew they first must believe that they can be
delivered before they were able to receive deliverance. It is
possible for someone to have been in a condition for so long that
they they refuse to believe that anyone can help them. For God to
change many of our situations we must first believe that things
can be better, and that better is God's will for our lives."

In Romans 4:3, we are given the secret to the blessing Abraham
enjoyed in his life. The text says, "Abraham believed God and it
was credited to him as righteousness." The secret is simply -
Abraham "believed God". As a matter of fact, God granted him the
desire of his heart, not because he was perfect and obeyed His
every command, but that he believed Him. Abraham didn't earn what
God gave him, he simply believed God for what he could not do in
his own power.

Your ability to believe in God's goodness and His
predetermined purpose for your life is what gives you the ability
to exceed your limitations. The Bible says that Abraham believed
God despite living in an objectively dead situation. His belief in
God's goodness above the deadness of his situation is what gave
birth to his blessing.

Belief that life has something better in store for you is what will
empower you to overcome what otherwise has overcome you. The reason
so many people's situation becomes their destination is because
they believe that their situation can't change. What we believe is
the most important and determinative factor in our lives. What we
believe will determine what we strive to accomplish and what we
will settle for. Believing in something gives it life and makes it
a reality in our lives.

What is it that you need or want to change in your life? In order
to see better, you must believe better. Better is available, but
you have to believe that it is God's will for your life and that it
is available. Just as we saw above, Jesus is asking you the same
question He asked the blind men in the text, "Do you believe that I
am able to do this?"

Dr. J.C. Matthews, Senior Pastor of Dunamis Life Ministries and Chancellor of The International Kingdom Institute.