"Accepting The Impossible"

Matthew 21:18-22

18) Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.

19) And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away.

20) And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away!

21) Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

22) And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

I

t is hard for most to get past their understanding and hard for them to be convinced that they do not, know what they think that they know. One "thing" that most believe that they know is Jesus, yet many things about Him they neither understand nor accept.

We are definitely living in an age in which man complains about a lack of miracles. Failing to see what they believe they should from God, they turn to those miracles "manufactured" by men.

Why does it seem as if we see fewer miracles of the sort manifested in Christ's day? For one thing, we allow too much of our "self" into our faith. Consequently, we rely more on our intellect than on the word of God. So, we go "without" because man cannot receive what he does not believe. So not only have we no miracles, but we still are held accountable for not believing, for this is our requirement whether or not we understand.

If one will ever really be "saved" after salvation, something must happen in his mind. It must be renewed and transformed so that he realizes his complete and utter dependence upon the Lord. There can be nothing in Man that leaves him comfortable with relying on his own mind.

Whenever we proclaim that something does not "make sense" and therefore, perplexes us, we are referring to "human" sense as opposed to spiritual sense. Things which are spiritual are not required to make sense, for God is a God of the "extraordinary," not the "ordinary."

Obviously, by accepting the impossible we will receive the blessing of witnessing and experiencing miracles, but long before this we are blessed in the act of acceptance, itself. You see, one who is able to accept the things of God will be privileged in experiencing God, Himself. Yes, we can receive blessings if we believe as did Thomas, but how much happier, successful and more profitable we will be when we believe as did Peter?

Our text today, points out to us that as Jesus left Bethany and was hungry, He approached a fig tree having the evidence of bearing fruit, yet being barren. Because of this, He cursed the tree that fruit would never grow on it again. Obviously, being God, He knew why there was no fruit and knew before He got to it that there would be none. So, as in most instances, there is a greater purpose to what God said and did. Actually our problem is not with knowing this, but with the fact that His reasoning does not always match our reasoning.

The example of this fig tree is important to us because there are many in the kingdom of God like this. Too many people portray a lifestyle of being fruitful for the Lord, yet in actuality, bear no fruit. The Lord considered the fig tree such an illustrative example of this type of "deception" that He made sure that it would never "speak" again. Even the disciples marveled at how quickly the tree withered. Just think of how important the Lord considers "truth" in one's walk that He went to the trouble of leaving us such an example.

If we would only "have faith and doubt not..." not only would we see much of what we want to see, we would see other people blessed by the move of God, as well. But too often we "stop everybody's train" because we get hung up on how He will do something. What does it matter as long as He does what He says?

The One who brought us salvation walked here on earth simply to teach us faith. He could have come in the flesh and decided to die without any "in-between." But He lived as He did and suffered what He did that we might be taught to survive in the spiritual world. The solutions He provided for us were never intended to be "situational." What He presented as successful in one situation, once proven in that situation, will work in all.

What we need to understand about our sins and weaknesses is just that—that they are our sins and weaknesses for there is no habit of the flesh for which God has not already paid the price of redemption. Therefore, being redeemed, if we keep them, we keep them by choice.

This is certain: had the Lord intended to leave anything undone, He would never have gone to the Cross. And just as certainly, we will never be rid of problems unless we consciously and deliberately accept our deliverance. After doing this all that's left is the praise. For God is to be praised for victory over the body of flesh, the joy of the Holy Ghost, the victory in the Spirit and peace. Praise is due God for anything we count as already done. Praise is profitable when we use it to divert Satan's attention from us.

When we look back on that life form which we have been delivered, how can we help but praise Him? How can we not see that He is deserving of all that we can give—and more?

The "stability" for which man works, is freely given to us in God. We are to exhibit not only stability, but joy, but too often our joy is lost in that we try to mix the spiritual with the natural.

The saint of God can be both blessed and happy, successful and profitable, joyful and amazed. The last is possible only as we are willing to believe. If we can and will dare to visualize, we will see. If we can accept that not only able, but that He has already manifested, we can "kiss our problems goodbye."

Actually, this is as easy as believing one thing: "If" God can do anything, He can do everything!" Accepting the impossible will prove this to us.