Faith's Equation
//Craig Hagin
A very familiar scripture for those who follow this ministry is Mark 11:23: “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”
We see from this verse that when we say something and never doubt that what we say will come to pass, we will have what we say. When I look at this scripture, I see the simple mathematical equation x + y = z, or “saying plus believing equals having.”
x
In looking at Mark 11:23 as an equation of faith, the first part of the formula is “saying.”
It’s important to watch what we say. One reason our faith doesn’t work when we go through difficult times is that we speak the wrong words. For example, I have heard people say, “I never have enough money to pay my bills.”
Although it may be true that they are experiencing lack in their finances, if they continually talk about their lack, they are actually tying the hands of God and preventing Him from moving on their behalf. And instead of rising above their circumstances, they remain bound by them.
Others have said, “I didn’t finish my college education, so I will never be able to get a good job,” or “I’m always sick and tired,” or “I’m always lonely and depressed.” We must realize that we form our world with our words. So if we always talk like this, we shouldn’t be surprised that we have what we say.
That’s why I always make a point of saying things such as, “I never worry, because I have the peace of God that passes all understanding” (Phil. 4:7), or “The joy of the Lord is my strength” (Neh. 8:10). When I talk like this, I am putting myself on a pathway of victory. And no matter what I encounter, I know that I’m victorious in Christ.
y
The second part of faith’s equation is “believing.” A lot of times people become disheartened when they are believing God for something but don’t receive it right away. Because they didn’t get it as soon as they thought they should have, they begin questioning God. And as soon as they begin to doubt, they have stepped out of the arena of faith.
Let’s look at something that happened in Jesus’ life. It’s an example of a time when He spoke and it didn’t look as if anything had changed. In Mark chapter 11, Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem with His disciples. He saw a fig tree in the distance and thought there were figs on the tree. But when He discovered that the tree didn’t have any fruit on it, He cursed it (v. 14).
Jesus and His disciples continued into Jerusalem, where Jesus cleansed the temple. Then they left and spent the night outside the city. The next morning as they were returning to Jerusalem they passed by the fig tree, and Peter noticed that it had dried up from the roots and died (v. 20–21).
Although nothing appeared to happen the day before when Jesus cursed the fig tree, it died immediately. It just took a little while to see the effects of Jesus’ words.
The same is true for us. As soon as we speak words of faith, even though we may not see or feel anything different, our situation begins to change. We have to be patient. When we are, we will see our words and our faith change our circumstances.
z
The last part of faith’s equation, “having,” or receiving from God, doesn’t have to be difficult. When things don’t seem to be any different, we just have to keep looking heavenward. By doing this, we’ll be reminded of how big our God is. The God we serve created the universe. He created the sun, moon, and stars. Our God created the earth and everything in it. No problem we will ever encounter is bigger than the universe God made. And as we focus on the bigness of God, our circumstances won’t look so big after all.
It’s not about us; it’s about God. And what may be impossible for us is possible with God (Luke 18:27). Jesus said, “. . . If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth” (Mark 9:23).
Our simple faith equation is “saying plus believing equals having.” If we stick with what we believe and never change our confession, or our words, we will receive the end of our faith. This is what brought my grandfather, Kenneth E. Hagin, off of his deathbed. And this same formula will work in our lives as well.
To learn more about faith, check out our FREE Study Center. Visit www.rhema.org and click on: