Put Your Faith to Work: See the Invisible

Hebrews 11:1 sets the whole thing right at the start: faith is the substance, the realization, the confidence of things hoped for and things not seen. Faith sees. Faith does not just stare at what is happening in the natural, because “to believe the impossible, faith must see the invisible.” God has given a measure of faith, and now faith has to get to work.

Elisha’s story shows that natural eyes can be open and spiritual eyes can still need opening. Gehazi saw the enemy, the horses, the chariots, and the danger, but Elisha saw another dimension. Elisha prayed, “Lord, open his eyes,” and God showed the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire. The Spirit gives the Christian the ability to discern what natural ability, education, and carnal thinking cannot touch.

Paul says God does not build faith on flesh, nobility, might, or smarts. God chooses the weak, the foolish, and the despised so no flesh can glory in His presence. Romans 12 says God has dealt to each one a measure of faith, so the real question becomes what kind of faith is being used. Jesus points straight to it in Mark 11: “Have faith in God,” or have the faith of God.

The fig tree shows that faith speaks. Jesus spoke to a tree, and the tree responded. If Jesus could speak to a tree, faith can speak to sickness, storms, disease, family situations, and anything standing against the Word of God. God framed the worlds by His Word, and His faith brought visible things out of invisible things.

Jesus at Jairus’s house shows that God’s truth is the highest level of reality. Jesus did not say what everybody saw. Jesus said what the Father said: “She’s not dead, she’s only asleep.” Faith cannot simply repeat the doctor’s report, the bad report, or the natural picture. Faith says what God said.

Words matter because words make pictures. The ten spies gave Israel a bad report, and those words painted fear so deeply that a whole generation wandered forty years. Caleb spoke another spirit: “Let us go up at once.” The centurion honored Jesus’ words so highly that “only speak a word” was enough. God watches over His Word to perform it, and faith puts that Word in the mouth, guards the heart, prays in the Spirit, and gets to work.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Faith sees the invisible army Elisha’s servant saw the enemy clearly, but Elisha saw what God had already placed around them. Faith does not deny the army in front of the city, but faith refuses to make that army the final reality. Spiritual sight lets fear lose its authority because God’s help is not imaginary, it is simply unseen until the Lord opens the eyes. [51:51]
• 2. God’s faith speaks God’s Word Jesus spoke to the fig tree, and the tree withered from the roots. Faith is not just inward agreement, because faith puts God’s Word in the mouth and sends it toward the situation. The issue is not saying what is seen, but saying what God has said, because His truth is the highest level of reality. [57:36]
• 3. Words create pictures inside The ten spies did more than report facts, because their words painted Israel as grasshoppers. Caleb’s words carried possession and victory, but the bad report filled the camp with fear and unbelief. Words build an inner vision, and that vision either trains faith to move forward or teaches the heart to wander. [70:27]
• 4. Faith stays vertical and now Faith is now, not someday out in the distance. Linear thinking keeps pushing God’s promise into the future, but vertical faith receives from heaven what God has already settled. When faith knows the Word is true now, the mouth can speak with assurance instead of waiting for natural proof. [65:08]
• 5. Prayer puts faith to work Faith develops by hearing the Word, exercising trust, praying the Word, and praying in the Spirit. Prayer is not religious filler, because it stirs the gift, edifies the heart, and makes room for God’s mysteries. A believer with something going on does not have to stand alone when faith-filled prayer can agree with God’s Word.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [48:58] - Faith Is Substance And Sight
• [49:31] - Put Faith To Work
• [51:24] - Elisha And The Invisible Army
• [54:18] - God Chooses Faith, Not Flesh
• [56:30] - A Measure Of Faith
• [56:57] - Jesus Speaks To The Fig Tree
• [59:18] - Have God’s Faith
• [62:03] - Jairus And The Highest Reality
• [65:08] - Faith Is Vertical And Now
• [67:25] - No Corrupt Words
• [68:49] - Caleb, The Spies, And Reports
• [72:23] - God Sees Moving Faith
• [74:20] - The Centurion Values The Word
• [79:57] - Developing Faith Through Prayer

Bible Reading

Hebrews 11:1
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” [48:58]

2 Kings 6:15-18
“When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, 'Alas, my master! What shall we do?' He said, 'Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.' Then Elisha prayed and said, 'O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.' So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” [51:24]

Mark 11:12-14, 20-24
“On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, 'May no one ever eat fruit from you again.' And his disciples heard it. As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. And Peter remembered and said to him, 'Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.' And Jesus answered them, 'Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, "Be taken up and thrown into the sea," and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.'” [56:57]

Romans 12:3
“For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” [56:30]

Observation questions

1. In 2 Kings 6, what did Gehazi see first, and what did Elisha say was also true about their situation? [51:51]
2. In Mark 11, what exactly did Jesus say to the fig tree, and who heard Him say it? [57:36]
3. According to Romans 12:3, what has God assigned to each believer, and how does that shape the way a Christian should think about himself or herself?
4. In the story of the spies, what kind of report did the ten bring, and what picture did their words create in the people? [01:10:27]

Interpretation questions

1. Hebrews 11:1 says faith deals with things hoped for and things not seen. What does it mean to say that faith “sees” without denying the real pressure of the situation? [49:19]
2. Elisha’s servant had natural sight, but he still needed the Lord to open his eyes. What does that suggest about the difference between seeing a problem in the natural and discerning what God is doing in the Spirit? [52:08]
3. Jesus said to the fig tree, and then taught, “Have faith in God.” What does that show about the connection between faith, words, and trust in God rather than trust in human ability? [58:37]
4. Jesus said at Jairus’s house, “She’s not dead, she’s only asleep.” How does that help explain the idea that God’s truth is the highest level of reality, even when the visible facts look final? [01:02:52]

Application questions

1. Most people can name a situation that feels bigger than them right now. In this season, where is it hardest to see that “those who are with us are more than those who are with them”? What would it look like to ask the Lord to open the eyes of faith there? [52:38]
2. Faith speaks to the situation instead of only talking about the situation. What are the words that have been filling the mouth lately around health, family, work, or finances? Are those words repeating what is seen, or are they agreeing with what God has said? [01:03:08]
3. Words create pictures inside people. What kind of inner picture has been forming lately through repeated thoughts, conversations, media, or reports? Is that picture producing courage like Caleb, or fear like the ten spies? [01:11:21]
4. Faith is now, not someday. Is there an area where the heart keeps pushing God’s promise off into the future instead of receiving it as settled in Him now? How might that show up in everyday speech? [01:05:08]
5. God has given each believer a measure of faith. Where could that faith be put to work this week in a simple, concrete way instead of waiting for a bigger moment? [49:33]
6. “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth” reaches into everyday conversation. What kinds of useless, fearful, harsh, or negative words most easily slip out in daily life? What would it look like to replace them with words that give grace? [01:07:32]
7. Prayer stirs faith, edifies the heart, and makes room for God’s work. What is one real way prayer could become more active and less occasional in this season—whether praying the Word, praying in the Spirit, or asking others to stand in faith together? [01:20:49]