Most Word-Faith teachers will use Mark 11:22 - 24 to justify their teaching and practise on "Faith as Positive Confession".
Mark 11:22 - 24 (NASB)
Word-Faith teachers propogate that whatever you confess will come to pass but you must believe you have already received it. Therefore, if you still have lingering symptoms of an illness, confess that you are healed and not mention your symptoms then you are healed. I believe there's a place for confession but confession as a means to FAITH i.e. confess God's word until you have faith is what I would consider an extreme and unbiblical practise. In Mark 11:22, Jesus told his disciples to first and foremost have faith in GOD and not have faith in positive confession.
In the literal context of Mark 11:23 - 24. It is about praying with faith in God. It's about addressing the obstacles (mountain) in faith, it is about having faith and not doubting. The main focus is about having faith in God and when one prays instead of CONFESSION as the Word- Faith preachers tend to read INTO the text.
Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they wil be granted."
This verse has been misintepreted. To believe you have receive is not to confess that you have received. It is to aligned your attitudes and actions according to what you believed. Heb 11:1 - 39 tells us that the faith of these people were seen and lived through their obedience i.e. their faith were evidenced by their actions and not by their verbal confession.
Verses 23 and vs 24 juxtaposes each other.
vs 23 "... but believes what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him."
vs 24 "... pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you."
We can't lift a passage out of context and put our own meaning into it without systematically intepreting the verses before and after. A practise that one propogates as a 'spiritual exercise' must be well supported by scriptures, it must be what the early apostles themselves were doing as well. Unfortunately, the teaching of Faith as positive confession do not have biblical reference/support of the apostles themselves practising it.
To ensure that a practise is biblical, we must also not ignore the rest of the teachings on the same subject, in this case, Faith & Prayer and it's qualifications to receiving an answered prayer.
- God the Father is glorified from that request > John 14:13 – 14
- we have an abiding relationship with Him > John 15:7
- we keep his commands & do the things pleasing in His sight > 1 John 3:22
- we pray according to his will > 1 John 5:14,15
- we pray with the right motives > James 4:3
Mark 11:22 - 24 (NASB)
22And Jesus answered saying to them, "Have faith in God.
23Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and castinto the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he saysis going to happen, it will be granted him.
24Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe thatyou have received them, and they will be granted you.
25Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone,so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions.
In the literal context of Mark 11:23 - 24. It is about praying with faith in God. It's about addressing the obstacles (mountain) in faith, it is about having faith and not doubting. The main focus is about having faith in God and when one prays instead of CONFESSION as the Word- Faith preachers tend to read INTO the text.
Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they wil be granted."
This verse has been misintepreted. To believe you have receive is not to confess that you have received. It is to aligned your attitudes and actions according to what you believed. Heb 11:1 - 39 tells us that the faith of these people were seen and lived through their obedience i.e. their faith were evidenced by their actions and not by their verbal confession.
Verses 23 and vs 24 juxtaposes each other.
vs 23 "... but believes what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him."
vs 24 "... pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you."
We can't lift a passage out of context and put our own meaning into it without systematically intepreting the verses before and after. A practise that one propogates as a 'spiritual exercise' must be well supported by scriptures, it must be what the early apostles themselves were doing as well. Unfortunately, the teaching of Faith as positive confession do not have biblical reference/support of the apostles themselves practising it.
To ensure that a practise is biblical, we must also not ignore the rest of the teachings on the same subject, in this case, Faith & Prayer and it's qualifications to receiving an answered prayer.
- God the Father is glorified from that request > John 14:13 – 14
- we have an abiding relationship with Him > John 15:7
- we keep his commands & do the things pleasing in His sight > 1 John 3:22
- we pray according to his will > 1 John 5:14,15
- we pray with the right motives > James 4:3
If we ever want to justify an act as faith, it is the act of persistent prayer - Luke 18
Mark 11:22 - 25 will even be more understood if we deal with the events of Jesus cleansing the temple as well as cursing the fig tree because all these events took place on a single day and therefore had a continuation of thought.
For now, I am just contented with dealing with the intepretation of Mark 11:22 - 25 on its own and explain the context of the other two events on another day when I am in the 'mood' to do so.
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