What’s the difference between real faith and counterfeit faith? Did you know a person can feel like they have faith, yet deceive themselves? And on the other hand, you can feel weak and helpless, but be in a position of faith? What does real faith that releases God’s power look like? Mind over matter misses the mark! Let’s examine the difference between ‘the power of faith’ and ‘faith in God!’ 

“The Power Of Faith”

 Recently, I shared the stories of remarkable recoveries from last week’s post with a few people I met at a snack bar. Some of them had been healed weeks before when I first met them or tangibly felt God’s presence like a weight coming on them.

Their response to these testimonies was, “Yes, the power of faith is real.” I’ve heard different people respond similarly, and for some reason, it bothered me.

I didn’t know why at first. I believe faith is extremely important, as you may have seen in my recent posts. So what was the problem? I went home and started to think about it.

Then I realized what felt so wrong.

Faith In God Is Personal

Jesus didn’t just say “Have faith.” He said “Have faith in God.” (Mark 11:22) I was so happy about those miracles because I saw Jesus in them. The miracles demonstrated God’s nature and goodness. That was what I wanted people to see.

But they missed the point. They came away with “the power of faith.” It was sad. The “power of faith” is impersonal.

You can believe in “the power of faith” but not believe in a personal, good God. Some people believe in “the power of faith” yet believe in many different spirits and gods, practicing witchcraft or idolatry. Their lives are empty. I’ve ministered to such people and seen them healed. Their belief in “mind over matter” and “the power of faith” had never given them such an experience. I didn’t want anyone walking away just being impressed with “the power of faith.” I wanted them to see Jesus!

Faith in God’s Nature When You Are Weak!

The kind of faith Jesus taught was not just becoming convinced that something would happen. It wasn’t merely supercharged human willpower or “mind over matter.” It wasn’t the same faith that practitioners of spiritism have. Faith in God comes from a revelation of God’s goodness. It is supernaturally empowered by grace.

When I first started healing the sick, I didn’t feel like I had any faith. I felt weak, but I had a revelation of God’s goodness. I decided I was going to lay hands on people until God helped me to have faith.

I wasn’t convinced that anything would happen. I didn’t have faith in my faith. I felt like it was too weak. But I was absolutely convinced that God wanted to heal people. I had a revelation of his nature. Even when I didn’t see anybody healed at first, laying hands on people gave me flashbacks of the healings I had seen at the conference, and I would sometimes start laughing or crying. I didn’t even feel like I had faith yet, but miracles started to happen.

I began to have faith without feeling like I did. I wasn’t focusing on what wasn’t happening. My heart was overwhelmed by God’s goodness. To have faith in God is to behold his glory. We have faith in God when, in the eyes of our hearts, his goodness is far greater than anything else we behold. Our attention is captured by the nature of God.

You can feel weak and helpless in a natural sense and yet come to a place of faith. Despite all weaknesses, you are not relying on yourself, but on God. You are weak, but you are relying on Him. Look at this scripture passage:

2 Corinthians 1:8-10 (NRSV) We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of the affliction we experienced in Asia; for we were so utterly, unbearably crushed that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death so that we would rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He who rescued us from so deadly a peril will continue to rescue us; on him we have set our hope that he will rescue us again

Most people believe God can do anything. Few know how much He wants to do. Even fewer have such an experiential knowledge of His love that even when facing situations that look terrible, their hearts continue to be far more overwhelmed with the goodness of God than they are impressed with the situation. That’s what faith in God looks like. And if you have faith in God, Jesus said nothing would be impossible for you!

Feeling Like I Was In Faith When I Wasn’t

On the other hand, there have been times when I thought I was walking in faith and I wasn’t. The Holy Spirit has helped me recognize what was wrong in these situations.

I remember laying hands on so many knees that were healed, one after another. I began to think “If it’s a knee, it’s a done deal.” Then all of a sudden, it stopped working! Why wasn’t the knee healed?

I began to put my faith in past experiences. “I’ve seen so many knees healed before, that of course it’s going to happen this time.” I started to look at visible things with natural eyes, instead of seeing the invisible with spiritual eyes. I was putting my faith in a past experience, not putting my trust in God. I got my eyes off of the Lord.

If I was thinking that the knees would be healed because I had already seen so many knees healed, then what would I think if confronted with AIDS? I hadn’t seen AIDS healed yet. Can you see how I turned from having my eyes on God’s goodness and grace, to natural, carnal thinking? 

Is it possible to rely on “my faith,” and thus turn from relying on the Lord as we behold his glory? Could it be that sometimes we turn away from the faith in God which Jesus spoke about, by getting our eyes on “our faith?” I think so. When we do so we are really doubting, because doubt is misplaced faith. Faith in our own faith is really doubt! No matter how many miracles we have seen before, we are helpless in this moment without the Holy Spirit. Our trust must be in him, and not in the experiences of the past!

Many Christians deceive themselves by confusing assenting to doctrine about God with knowing God. Real faith in God goes beyond doctrine to the heart level. It is unmoveable. It beholds God’s glory so the revelation of his goodness becomes more real than whatever else we face. When you have that kind of faith, you don’t feel the heaviness of a bad report because you are so full of joy in his presence. You laugh because anything you face seems so small compared to Jesus. Nothing the devil does or tries to do can have your attention. You are looking into heaven and beholding the glory of God. The peace, the love, and the joy in God’s presence are more real than anything else!

“The power of faith” without God will fail. Having a misplaced “power of faith” is unbelief towards God. It’s humanistic and self-centered. We are in unbelief when anything else becomes bigger in our perception than the presence of the Lord. The people who responded to my testimonies by talking about “the power of faith” are still in unbelief, because they don’t see Jesus yet. Their belief in the power of faith will never produce the results that faith in God does! They must turn from darkness to light to see the God’s goodness and nature revealed in those testimonies. The main point is Jesus, not faith!

If you have faith in God, you will speak to the mountain, it will be cast into the sea, and nothing will be impossible for you! (Mark 11:22-24) Faith in God comes from the knowledge of the Lord, and we are growing in the knowledge of the Lord (Colossians 1:10) as we are strengthened in our innermost beings by the power of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 3:16) and the eyes of our hearts are opened (Ephesians 1:17-19) to see Him as He is. Behold God’s glory in the face of Jesus, and put your faith in God!