Do You Believe I Am Able To Do This? | Questions Jesus Asked | Week 5
Pastor Dave Pretlove

Matthew 9:27-317 Marks of a Healthy Faith

1. Healthy faith is inspired by what God has already done.
   • Matthew 9:18-26
2. Healthy faith usually leads to obvious action.
   • Matthew 9:27-28
3. Healthy faith does not give up easily.
   • Matthew 9:28-29
   • Luke 18:1-8
4. Healthy faith invites more of God’s activity.
   • Matthew 9:29, 22
   • Luke 17:19
   • Matthew 8:13
   • Mark 6:1-6
5. Healthy faith is hard to keep quiet.
   • Matthew 9:30-31
6. Healthy faith trusts God’s heart even when I can’t see his hand.
   • Daniel 3:16-18, 24-25
7. Healthy faith affects every “THIS” in your life.

 

1. How did Sunday’s sermon impact you? What point specifically stood out to you or resonated with you? Spend a few minutes praying about or journaling about an insight or thought from Sunday’s sermon.
2. Read Matthew 13:53-58. What differences do you find in this story compared to the story of Matthew 9:27-31? What do you notice about belief and unbelief? How do you resonate with both of these stories?
3. Consider Pastor Dave’s final question: “What is your this?” Jesus asks, “Do you believe I’m able to do this?” What is the thing that Jesus is asking you to believe him about? Where can you surrender and pray for healthy faith this week?

 

“And after He entered the house, the men who were blind came up to Him, and Jesus said to them, ‘Do you believe that I am able to do this?’ They said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord.’ Then He touched their eyes, saying, ‘It shall be done for you according to your faith.’”
Matthew 9:28-29 NASB20

This week, explore the spiritual practice of meditation. When writing about meditation, Dallas Willard said, “We not only read and hear and inquire [the Word of God], but we meditate on what comes before us; that is, we withdraw into silence where we prayerfully and steadily focus upon it.”

This week, slowly meditate and memorize Hebrews 11:1 – “now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”. Pray and ask God to increase healthy faith in your life.

How do we invite more of God’s activity in our life? Pastor Dave talked about how healthy faith invites more of God’s activity. When I surrender my “this” when Jesus asks me, “Do you believe that I’m able to do this?”, I’m inviting him to come in and do more.

When I surrender, it’s not just this one thing that I’m handing over. I think it’s an invitation for Jesus to come in and do even more and even greater than what I think. The thing I think I’m handing over to him, he’s actually multiplying and handing back more for the sake of more of his activity.

A friend was recently praying with me and helping me surrender things to the Lord. After surrendering and confessing, she guided me to ask God what he wants to give back to me. I realized I never thought about God giving me something in return when I release or surrender something. If I truly believe God is a good father, and good parents want to give good gifts to their children (Matthew 7:11), why would I not think he wants to give something back?

I don’t mean that if I surrender my greed, God will send a check to my mailbox. I mean if I surrender my greed, he may want to gift me with contentment. If I confess and release my pride, God may want to gift me with me humility. He’s a good father that wants to give his children good gifts. Trust him with healthy faith this week. And as you release and surrender your “this”, ask the Holy Spirit what he wants to give back to you – then receive it with joy and invite more of his activity!

Blessings,
Lydia Long