“And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda. And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate.” Acts 12:13,14
Poor Rhoda. I wonder if she will ever live it down that she left Peter standing at the door knocking. Did you ever think about that? Assuming that she kept the faith, when you make it to heaven and meet her, will it be on the tip of your tongue, “Oh, you’re the girl that forgot to let Peter in!” The others that were there were just as bad. They didn’t believe it either. What on earth were they praying about all night, if they were in disbelief that their prayers were answered?
Isn’t that very much like us? We pray, because we are supposed to, and tell ourselves that we believe that God hears our prayers. “Sometimes He answers them, and sometimes He doesn’t. Oh well. On to the next request.” Is that Faith?
Faith cannot be turned on like a light switch. We can’t convince ourselves to believe just because we’re supposed to. Faith has to be enabled – or a better word would be “empowered”. It is true that faith comes by hearing, but our ears must be opened and turned to the Truth in order to hear. If we turn our ears from the Truth to listen only to what we want to hear, then we harden our hearts to the real Truth of God’s Word. Faith will find no fertile ground to grow in a heart that has been hardened to Holy Ghost conviction.
It takes power in God to receive the faith to move mountains. There’s a price to pay for the kind of power that brings us into a deep walk in the Spirit. It isn’t cheap. But then, neither was the price that Jesus paid to open the door to us so we could enter into that kind of a walk with God. You have rights to the Throne of God because you have kept His Word and have gained power in Him through the Blood of Jesus Christ and your faithfulness.
Walk in His Word. Seek the face of God. Separate yourself from the things of this world. When He becomes the passion of your life, your heart, and your soul, then you will enter into that place in God where your faith is empowered to ‘ask what you will’ and know He will answer. That’s when you’ve got the holy boldness, like Elijah, to storm the Throne of God to stop up the heavens from rain. And that’s how you get the faith to cry out to God to send the rain, the latter rain, and give us the greatest revival of all time.
Honor is not having a high position in this world or in your church. Honor – real honor – is when God hears your prayers…and answers them. That is honor!
“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” Jeremiah 33:3