You’re It!
Pastor Datha Thomas
14 At the foot of the mountain, a large crowd was waiting for them. A man came and knelt before Jesus and said, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son. He has seizures and suffers terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. 16 So I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn’t heal him.
17 Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” 18 Then Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy, and it left him. From that moment the boy was well.
19 Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, “Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?”
20 “You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” — Matthew 17:14-16
I believe the church is waking up and realizing that we must once again become vessels that are hungry for the signs and wonders that we read about in the Bible.
We only have to open our Bible and realize that fasting and praying are the keys to unlock the realm of the spirit. These verses in Matthew chapter 17 have always challenged me as a Christian. I have also wondered when situations did not change or it seemed that someone was not heard, “why not?”.
When the disciples wanted to know why they did not cast out the demon, Jesus was quick to give them the answer. The Word of God said, “This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.”.
We have to be challenged by the Word and realize that if we want greater miracles than we must increase our time of prayer and fasting. I loved playing tag especially when the tagger would say, “YOU’RE IT!”. This is how I feel about Jesus calling us to be used of God for signs and wonders — “YOU’RE IT!”.
Prayer and fasting is the doorway to the supernatural presence and power of God. In the Word, we find over and over again that prayer and fasting is the key for miracles, signs, and wonders.
In the New Testament, there were a group of prophets and teachers gathered together in the church at Antioch and were ministering to the Lord and fasting. The Spirit of God moved and the course of history was changed!
2 One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.” 3 So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.
4 So Barnabas and Saul were sent out by the Holy Spirit. They went down to the seaport of Seleucia and then sailed for the island of Cyprus. 5 There, in the town of Salamis, they went to the Jewish synagogues and preached the word of God. John Mark went with them as their assistant.
6 Afterward they traveled from town to town across the entire island until finally they reached Paphos, where they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to visit him, for he wanted to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing.
9 Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye.10 Then he said, “You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good! Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord? 11 Watch now, for the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You will not see the sunlight for some time.” Instantly mist and darkness came over the man’s eyes, and he began groping around begging for someone to take his hand and lead him.
12 When the governor saw what had happened, he became a believer, for he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord. — Acts 13 : 2-12
WOW WOW WOW! So much could be taught through these scriptures. One of the most challenging parts of these scriptures is to understand that they spent time ministering to the Lord and as a result the Holy Spirit gave them instructions.
Paul and Barnabas were chosen to be sent out as team members not by the congregation but by the Spirit of God. This was a divine hook-up! I believe that Paul being chosen and sent out to the Gentiles was a decision that could not have been made by man. Too often, we are guided by what we think. Once again, we are challenged by the truth that fasting and praying will result in us choosing to be led by the Spirit of God and not our own thinking. Their fasting and praying revealed the will of God and as a result the gospel spread throughout the Roman Empire! This became a move of God that could not be stopped. You must be prepared for challenges by the enemy but know that the enemy cannot stop you from fulfilling your destiny. You may have been hindered for a season but never give up!
Prayer and fasting is mentioned throughout the Bible.
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. — Romans 8:14-18
As joint heirs with Jesus, we carry the power and authority of the King. We must begin to think with a kingdom mentality and approach God’s throne with confidence. Jesus declared the Word of God when He ministered. We must also declare that the power of God is in us and that signs and wonders will follow us as believers!
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” — Luke 4: 18-21
Christians! Let us boldly declare that we are believers and that the anointing of the Holy Spirit is on us as a result of our prayer and fasting. Now, let us go and do the work of the ministry!
— Pastor Datha
Fasting information available at theseedchurch.com/2022