1 Corinthians 12:9, “… to another faith by the same Spirit.”
The third gift that Paul mentions is the “gift of faith.” The gift of faith is, “a supernatural infilling of faith to accomplish the divine will of God.” Lester Sumrall said, “The gift of faith functions on behalf of the believer to bring about what otherwise would not be possible through that person’s efforts.”
Through the gift of faith God gives a person the faith needed to respond to an impossible situation and see a miracle or blessing manifested.
A biblical example of the gift of faith would be when Peter walked on water with Jesus (Matthew 14:27-30). The command from Jesus inspired Peter to do what was impossible. None of the other disciples had the gift of faith given to them, that is why they remained in the boat. Another example is when Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow before King Nebuchadnezzar’s idol. They were given extraordinary faith to face the fiery flames of furnace without fear (Daniel 3).
A modern day example of this gift would be the time when our new church was looking for a building to meet in and I was told by God to walk into a neighborhood church and ask to use the building without any money. Within 48 hours we had the keys and were able to start holding services because God had given me the gift of faith to receive His blessing.
The common or normal act of faith is based on hearing and believing God’s Word as Paul taught in Romans 10:17. This kind of “normal faith” is essential to the everyday life of the disciple. The author of Hebrews taught that without this kind of faith it’s impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). However, the “gift of faith” is a spontaneous infusion of boldness to do what one would normally have to pray and work up courage to do.
On one hand, normal faith is common and should be built up by God’s Word and in prayer everyday (Jude 1:20). The author of Hebrews wrote, “1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for” (Hebrew 11:1-2). On the other hand, we should always be ready for those rare instantaneous moments when God gives us the gift of faith to do something impossible!
Reflection
Action
- Ask God to use you in the gift of faith.
- Be sensitive to hear God’s voice and be quick to obey whenever He gives you faith for the impossible.
- Remember, God will never ask you to do something that will harm you, hurt others or break his Word. The gift of faith always results in God’s intervention. Don’t be weird and try dangerous things and then say, “God told me to do it.”
