Walking in Faith

“Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”; So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.“ – Luke 17:12-14

Picture with me the scene in the above passage.  Ten men ignored and isolated due to a disease with no cure.  Everyone that encountered them kept their distance for fear of becoming like them.

Except Jesus. 

When they cried out to Him, He answered.  But his answer wasn’t “I’ve heard your cry and you are healed” or “Your faith has made you well, go in peace.” In this passage there’s a lesson for those of us who have wavering faith, whose prayers are more of a list of wishes than prayers of faith.

What Jesus said is “Go”, and they were going before they were healed.  The passage says they were healed as they went. 

Logically, they would have said, “This is crazy! Here we are lepers and we’re going to the priests?  They’ll not come near us!  They’ll throw us out!”  Or, “Look at us, my skin is oozing still.  When will this oozing end Jesus?  You know I cannot go there looking like this.” 

But they had to walk in faith that their healing would come before they reached the priests.  And, it did!

God’s actions are not always completed in microwave seconds.  But our prayers are instantly heard and attended.  While not all are a “Yes”, and some are in fact a resounding “No” for your own good.  But those that fall into a third category of “Wait” require us to walk in faith.  Praying without ceasing in this season of waiting is not to bend God’s actions, for He already has your answer.  He knows the end from the beginning.  Instead, your prayers are evidence of faith, or evidence of fear and trembling.  When you have faith, there is no fear and trembling, but peace resides as you wait.

There’s nothing wrong with praying where you have no faith, with fear and trembling.  David prayed with fear and trembling in Psalms 55, the woman with the issue of blood approached Jesus with fear and trembling in Mark 5.  This is how your faith grows!  Philippians 2:12 says to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”.  You faith walk must be built with things that test your faith, and cause you to fear.  How else will you see the faithfulness of God?  How else would you grow to know His heart?

In the waiting moments, walk in faith.  If the answer is no, you’ve still gained a greater relationship with Christ.  If the answer is yes, you’ve gained a testimony to help others walk in faith.