Jesus Christ said in Matthew 11:22-24(ESV), “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” In this passage, our Great Teacher used a mountain to teach us about faith in God as well as the power of our confessions to overcome adversity and obstacles. God created mountains to be humongous and glorious things in nature, but if we attempt to climb them without skill, strength, and agility, they can be very dangerous and seem impossible to overcome. So, Jesus’s use of a mountain to illustrate faith is extremely meaningful. He reveals that the problems of this life can seem insurmountable, but they are nothing if we have faith in God and do not doubt in our hearts.
Many of us are facing what seems like mountains in our relationships, jobs, finances, health, and emotional well-being, and in many cases, there’s opposition standing in our way. It’s blocking us from having the happiness and wholeness that God says we can have. We feel like we’re standing in front of a mountain, looking at it, but feeling helpless to do anything about it. This is exhausting, and we might feel like giving up because from our vantage point, our struggles may look insurmountable. We’re wrestling with the feelings that come from heartbreak, discouragement, shame, sadness, betrayal, addiction, anxiety, fragmentation, and guilt. It can be a spiritual battle that is full of pain and confusion, but the reality is that we can overcome it all through our faith in Jesus Christ because he will help us.
Romans 8:36-39(NKJV) teaches, “36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Through every situation, problem, adversity, obstacle, or issue, God has made us not just conquerors, but more than conquerors through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. It is not our strength and power, because we have no real strength and power of our own. All that we are and all that we have comes from God. When we lean on Him and allow His strength and power to work through, in, and by us, there isn’t anything we can’t overcome.
He tells us in Colossians 2:10(NLT), “So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.” We are completely, completely, complete because of our union with Christ. He is the head of our lives and the head over every ruler and authority in the earth. We need to know and believe this truth in the depths of our hearts and minds. It’s very easy to think that our lives are controlled by institutions and the people who run them and that they have all the power, but God is the Creator of all that we survey. He is omnipotent, omniscient, holy, righteous, loving, and perfect beyond the scope of our imaginations. He is Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and no one will ever compare to His majesty and total rule. We can’t ever get this twisted or confused in our minds. God is Alpha and Omega, the Great I Am, and faith in Him demands that we are firmly anchored in the reality of who He is.
It’s God who fights our battles. Isaiah 40:31(NIV) says, “but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” We can’t do this for ourselves. God does it! He causes our strength to be renewed and our wings to soar like eagles. He gives us the breath to run and not get tired and to walk and not become weary. Psalm 23:2-3 tells us that He makes us lie down in green pastures and leads us beside still waters. He restores our souls and leads us in the paths of righteousness for the glory and honor of His holy name. He does this for those who place their hope and faith in Him, for those who understand that through Him, we can mow right over any opposition that tries to block our blessings.
While we’re praying to receive a blessing and even when we receive it, there is opposition sent by the enemy to block us. Our response should never be one of worry or fear over what the enemy is doing. God tells us in Philippians 4:6 not to worry about anything, but instead pray about everything; we’re to tell Him what we need and then thank Him for all He has done and all He will do for us in the future. Our Heavenly Father will take care of those who try to prevent and interfere with His plan for our peace and prosperity. Deuteronomy 28:7(ESV) says, “The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.” If we keep the faith and do not doubt Him, God will solve our problems, handle our enemies, and keep us in His perfect peace. This is what He promised, and He always keeps His Word.■
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Mow Right over Opposition”, written for Springfield Fellowship © 2023. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.