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Confession of God’s Word Builds Faith

7 Aug2018 KEHarticle TimelessTeaching// KENNETH E. HAGIN

WHENEVER THE WORD "confession" is used, we instinctively think of confession of sin. But that is the negative side of the word. There is a positive side, and the Bible has more to say about the positive than the negative.

Confession is stating something we believe in our hearts. It is giving evidence to something we know to be true. It is testifying to a truth we have accepted.

Confession at Work—Preaching the Word

In Mark 16:15, Jesus said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." God works through us by His Word on our lips.

We carry the Word to the lost. If we don't, then we waste our time praying for God to do something. It would be useless to pray for an unsaved person if we do not carry the Gospel of salvation to him.

In obedience to Christ's command to go into all the world and preach, the disciples preached the Word everywhere. And the Lord worked with them, confirming the Word with signs following. But He didn't do anything until the disciples preached the Word.

Signs don't follow an individual; they follow the Word. Give the Word out, and the signs will take care of themselves. You don't follow signs. Signs follow the Word.

God moves only in line with His Word and has magnified His Word above His Name (Ps. 138:2). We cannot expect to get help from God if we are taking sides against His Word, even though it may be an unconscious act on our part. We should treat the Word of God with the same reverence we would show to Jesus if He were present with us.

Confession Dispels Fear

Have you ever noticed, when reading the Bible, how many times God told His children to "fear not"?

When Jairus wanted Jesus to heal his daughter, the Lord said to him, "FEAR NOT: believe only, and she shall be made whole" (Luke 8:50). When Jesus preached to His disciples, He said, "FEAR NOT, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32).

When the Lord appeared to Isaac in the Old Testament, renewing the covenant He had made with his father Abraham, the Lord said, "FEAR NOT, for I am with thee, and will bless thee" (Gen. 26:24).

If God had just said, "Don't be afraid," and had left us there, we might say, "I can't help being afraid." Not only did He say, "Fear not," but He also said, "I am with thee." Can we really believe He is with us and still be afraid? No, if we are afraid, it is because we doubted Him.

You may be facing a problem that seems impossible. Instead of talking about how impossible it is, look to Him Who is inside you and say, "God is in me now." You'll find your confession of faith will cause Him to work on your behalf. He will rise up in you and give you success.

The Master of Creation is in you! You can face life fearlessly because you know that greater is He Who is in you than any forces that may be arrayed against you. This should be your continual confession.

Confession Increases Faith

There is no faith without confession. Confession is faith's way of expressing itself.

Faith, like love, is of the heart—of the spirit. And we know there is no love without word or action. We cannot reason love into people, nor can we reason love out of them. It is of the heart. Since faith is also of the spirit or heart, we can safely say that there is no faith without confession. Faith grows with confession.

The confession of the believer does two things for him. First, it identifies him. Second, it sets the boundaries of his life. He will never have more than his confession.

MARK 11:23
23 For verily I say unto you, That WHOSOEVER SHALL SAY unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall BELIEVE THAT THOSE THINGS WHICH HE SAITH shall come to pass; HE SHALL HAVE WHATSOEVER HE SAITH.

If we say we can't do something, then we can't. But if we say we can, then we can. According to Mark 11:23, we can have whatever we say or confess—whether it is belief or unbelief, success or failure, sickness or health.

The reason the majority of Christians—although sincere—are weak is because they have never dared to confess who and what they are in Christ. They must find out how God looks at them and then confess it.

These privileges are found mostly in the New Testament Epistles, because they were written to the Church. When you discover all that God has for you, boldly confess what the Word declares you are in Christ. As you do this, your faith will abound.

The reason faith is held in bondage is that you have never dared to confess what God says you are. Remember, faith never grows beyond your confession. Your daily confession of what the Father is to you, of what Jesus is doing for you now at the right hand of the Father, and of what His Holy Spirit is doing in you will build a solid, positive faith life.

You will not be afraid of any circumstances or diseases. You will face life fearlessly, as a conqueror. And to be a conqueror you must confess you are one: "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us" (Rom. 8:37).

In Romans 10:10, we see in capsule form God's law of faith: "With the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." In seeking anything from God, we must first believe in our heart, because the Word said it. Then we must confess with our mouth that it is so.

Believe it; confess it; receive it. "Whosoever shall . . . BELIEVE that those things which he SAITH shall come to pass; he SHALL HAVE WHATSOEVER HE SAITH" (Mark 11:23).

As you study Scripture and learn what the Word says you are, who you are, and what you have in Christ Jesus, start confessing, "Yes, that's mine, according to God's Word." Although it may not seem real to you at first, you will soon find that faith's confession creates reality.

[Editor's Note: This article was adapted from a faith lesson in the Kenneth E. Hagin Legacy Bible.]