Faith Science - Unbelief Kills Faith

So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure
him. Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse
generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear
with you? Bring him here to Me.” And Jesus rebuked the demon,
and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very
hour. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why
could we not cast it out?” So Jesus said to them, “Because of your
unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard
seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’
and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
Matthew 17:16–20 nkjv

Can you believe that the same disciples who had enough faith in
Jesus to leave everything behind and follow him hit a roadblock
when it came to using their faith to change certain things? Isn’t
that the same problem with us today? Many of us have the faith to
receive salvation, but from that point we struggle to progress. Jesus
lamented the faithlessness of his generation, so if he was on the
earth today he would surely lament over us also.

Why can’t we proficiently cast out demons? Because of our unbelief!
Why can’t we lay hands on the sick and consistently see them
recover? Because of our unbelief! Why can’t we speak to nature by
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and see it obey the word of the
Lord? Because of our unbelief!

Instead of accepting that something is wrong with us, most people
I encounter continue to make excuses for the lack of tangible
power in the Western church. They lie on the Holy Spirit and say
that prophecy ended with John the Baptist. They claim that miracles
are only necessary for people who don’t understand the Scriptures.
They say we’re actually more advanced because of our knowledge,
even though we can’t show physical results. They continue to provide
natural solutions for clearly spiritual issues. They continue in
unbelief and wonder why there is such a big gap between what they
read in the Bible and what they see in their lives.

I refuse to limit myself to what other people believe or don’t
believe. Jesus Christ said, “For assuredly, I say to you, if you have
faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from
here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for
you,” (Matthew 17:20 nkjv). He also said, “If you can believe, all
things are possible to him who believes,” (Mark 9:23, nkjv).

In response to those words, a desperate father in need of healing
for his son with tears in his eyes cried out, “Lord, I believe; help
my unbelief,” (Mark 9:24 nkjv). Now that you’ve heard the same
words, what will your response be today? In John 11:27, Martha’s
belief opened the door for Jesus to raise her brother Lazarus from
the dead. In Mark 9:36, Jairus’ belief opened the door for his daughter
to rise from the dead. All the same, if you can’t believe just like
they did, your unbelief will shut the door on your miracle!

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables,
that He departed from there. When He had come to His own
country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were
astonished and said, “Where did this Man get this wisdom and
these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His
mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and
Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did
this Man get all these things?” So they were offended at Him.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except
in his own country and in his own house.” Now He did not do
many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Matthew 13:53–58 nkjv

The Word of the Lord is described in 1 Peter 1:23 as incorruptible
seed. In other words, as an entity of its own, it cannot be destroyed.
In Mark 4:13–20, Jesus explained that the condition of your heart
determines whether or not the incorruptible seed of the Word brings
fruit in your life. One of the most toxic environments possible is a
heart of unbelief. It is so bad that it stopped the power of Jesus from
operating among his people in the town where he grew up. The
same Jesus who could read minds, disappear into the midst of hostile
crowds, heal any sickness, control the weather, walk on water, raise
the dead, and save us from eternal death could not do much in an
environment full of unbelief.