THE WORD “IF” SIGNIFIES DOUBT OR UNBELIEF

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Mark 5:25-29, 34
25 And there was a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years,

26 And who had endured much suffering under [the hands of] many physicians and had spent all that she had, and was no better but instead grew worse.

27 She had heard the reports concerning Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the throng and touched His garment,

28 For she kept saying, If I only touch His garments, I shall be restored to health.

29 And immediately her flow of blood was dried up at the source, and [suddenly] she felt in her body that she was healed of her [distressing] ailment.

34 And He (Jesus) said to her, Daughter, your faith (your trust and confidence in Me, springing from faith in God) has restored you to health. Go in (into) peace and be continually healed and freed from your [distressing bodily] disease.

Dear people of God, today we want to look at a word Christians use carelessly that hinders them from getting what they have prayed for.

That word is “IF.”

The word IF can signify unbelief or doubt. For instance, someone says “IF only God can hear my prayer and heal my child of this ailment.”

Another may say “IF only God can give me this job or this business I have been praying for.”

Yet another might say, “IF only this child can be obedient to simple instructions.”

Dear friend, in each of these 3 statements, the persons involved are speaking conditional statements that are not hinged on any fact.

They are therefore statements of doubt or unbelief and since God Almighty and Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is moved by faith, He does not respond to statements of doubts or unbelief.

This is clear from Hebrews 11:6, “But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him (God). For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].”

The operative words here are faith, earnestly and diligently.

In today’s lead Holy Bible text, the woman who suffered a hemorrhage for 12 years used the same word IF in verse 28 of Mark 5 but she got her healing. So what is the difference here?

Take note that verse 27 says “She had heard the reports concerning Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the throng and touched His garment,”

From reports or testimonies of others, this lady already knew the Lord Jesus Christ as a divine Healer using God’s power and she went ahead and touch his garment even as she kept saying IF I can just do it, then I would be whole.

Having spent all her resources on physicians without any results, she was basing her statement on a certain fact or sure outcome that she would receive a healing once she touched Jesus’ garment. This is faith in action and she got the result she knew she would have.

You can see further proof of the lady’s faith when you consider the Scriptures in Matthew 14:35-36, “And when the men of that place recognized Him (Jesus), they sent around into all the surrounding country and brought to Him all who were sick

36 And begged Him to let them merely touch the fringe of His garment; and as many as touched it were perfectly restored.

Again, the report was widespread that touching the hem of the Lord’s garment would bring a healing to any sick person. Those who acted on this information were acting in faith because they were sure of the outcome of their action and not just a wish like the 3 earlier example statements we gave above.

So rather than say IF, a Christian who wants to act in faith should say WHEN, which connotes faith in God’s ability to do what He has stated in His Word in the Holy Bible.

Rather than say, “IF the ailment stops, then I know God has healed my child”, you should say “WHEN the ailment stops, then I know God has healed my child.”

There is power in the words we speak because we are created in God’s image and likeness and so we must not speak carelessly but we must deliberately and carefully choose to speak words of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ’s Divine ability to do all things for us according to His Word in the Holy Bible.

Then you will always have the things you have prayed for and continue to thank God for them as having received them.

May the good Lord bless you as you heed His Word today, act on it and share with others in Jesus’ Most Powerful Name, Amen.
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