He Had Faith

ByJim Stephens

Scripture: Acts 14

8 While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. 9 He was listening as Paul preached, and Paul noticed him and realized he had faith to be healed. (Acts 14:8-9 NLT)

Paul and Barnabas were traveling from town to town, telling the Good News first in the Jewish meeting places, then wherever they could get some people to listen. On this occasion, a man crippled from birth heard Paul telling about God’s love and God’s power. Paul noticed him listening intently and, looking him in the eye, saw that he had faith. He was ready to believe, ready for God to work in his life!

Paul wasn’t just preaching a sermon to a nameless, faceless crowd. He was giving a message of hope to individuals. Paul looked at this crippled man with spiritual eyes. He could see that the man was ready – ready for God’s work, ready to believe. So Paul immediately challenged the crippled man to act on his ready faith!

So Paul called to him in a loud voice, “Stand up!” And the man jumped to his feet and started walking. (Acts 14:10 NLT)

The crippled man’s faith, his readiness to believe, became full active faith when he responded to Paul’s challenge! He jumped to his feet, completely healed!

I want to be able to see when people have faith, when they are ready to believe and ready to allow God to work in their lives. I’m prepared to pay close attention to people – to look them in the eye. I want to see what Paul saw – their level of readiness for God’s work in their lives. I want to know what Paul knew – what to say, how to challenge their “readiness to believe” to become full and powerful faith.

Pray this prayer with me today:

Father, I ask for a greater ability to focus on each person I encounter. I want to see each person as an individual and look them in the eye. I want to be able to see through crowds and comparisons to individuals and through eyes to hearts. Please give me spiritual eyesight to see when people are ready for God’s work in their lives and spiritual insight to know how to challenge their readiness to believe into fully activated faith. Please grant me grace and wisdom to know what to do and say to help them most. Amen.