The Power of Belief
Because of their unbelief. Matthew penned these words after Jesus visited His hometown of Nazareth. The lack of mighty works performed by Jesus was directly correlated to the Nazarenes’ lack of belief. See, what we believe and how we believe matters.
This is true outside of spiritual realities as well. It’s proven that students perform better on tests when they go into a test believing they are going to do well. Having confidence and trust in your abilities on a baseball field frees you up to play well, as opposed to the fear of failure. Belief matters.
Friends, we’ve talked about this with frequency that Jesus is after our hearts. His desire is for us to pick up the way of life that He showed us during his time here on earth. That we would walk hand-in-hand with Him through the trials and triumphs of existing.
There is something about belief that has the power to change our hearts. Let me say it this way, belief many times resembles more of a conclusion of the heart than simply a feeling of the heart. Matthew’s words describing Jesus’ time in His hometown make a little more sense if said this way, “He did not do many mighty works there, because of their conclusions” (Matthew 13:58, emp added).
Even if Jesus walked in the miraculous, the Nazarenes had decided in their hearts that this Man should not be who He seems to be. In their minds, He could be no one other than the carpenter’s son who they knew as a kid. No sign given by Jesus was going to change that. And because Jesus never walked as one in a circus might, He performed no mighty works there.
These couple words convicted me this morning. If the Nazarenes’ unbelief changed the way Jesus expressed Himself 2,000 years ago, then the way I believe has an effect on how Jesus may or may not work in my life today.
This is a tough pill to swallow. When I took a step back and soberly considered what I truly believed that Jesus is able to do in my life today, I was hit by the amount of questions and doubts that began to surface as opposed to hope and belief. Do I really believe that God can provide a future for me, or a relationship, or a job, or a community? Those were hard questions to ask myself.
My prayer is that you are filled with hope and belief when you think about the possibilities of God’s power working in your life. However, if the doubts I mentioned resonate with you, hope is not lost. Follow me in this practice of thanksgiving and confession.
Thank the Lord that you’ve begun to see areas where your belief has been lacking. The first step to solving any issue is first recognizing there is one. Then, confess those things to the Lord in prayer. Be brutally honest with Him. I’m sorry Lord, that I struggle to truly believe that there are good things in store for my future. If this is where you are, that’s OK, let Him know that.
Many areas are like the story we read in Mark where Jesus tells the father of a demon-possessed boy to believe and the father’s response is, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief” (Mark 9:24). A truly honest prayer.
Friends, God is willing and able to do far more in our lives than we can even think or imagine. We must be careful to not walk in an unbelieving way so as to stifle the power of God working in our lives. When we come across those places in our heart of unbelief, let us be quick to repent, confess, and turn back towards the path of faith, trust, and belief.
