18 September 2016

The way to overcome: Believe! (8/18)


p. 3
by Smith Wigglesworth
Weekly Evangel, 18 August 1918.

1 John 5.

The greatest weakness in the world is unbelief. The greatest power is the faith that worketh by love. Love, mercy and grace are bound eternally to faith. Fear is the opposite to faith, but there is no fear in love, and those whose hearts are filled with a divine faith and love have no question in their hearts as to being caught up when Jesus comes. The world is filled with fear, torment, remorse and brokenness, but faith and love are sure to overcome.

“Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God.” God has established the earth and humanity on the lines of faith. As you come into line, fear is cast out, the word of God comes into operation, and you find bedrock. All the promises are yea and amen to those who believe. When you have real faith in Christ the love of God is so real that you feel that you could do anything for Jesus. They that believe, love.

“We love him because he first loved us.” When did he love us? When we were in the mire. What did he say? “Thy sins are forgiven thee.” Why did he say it? Because he loved us. What for? That he might bring many sons to glory. His object? That we might be with him forever. All the pathway is an education for this high vocation and calling. How glorious is this hidden mystery of love to us the undeserving!

“Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” To believe is to overcome. I am heir to all the promises because I believe. A great heritage! I overcome because I believe the truth, and the truth makes me free. Christ is the root and source of our faith, and because he is in it what we believe for will come to pass.

No wavering! This is the principle. He who believes is definite. A definite faith will bring a definite experience and a definite utterance. There is no limit to the power that God will cause to come upon those who cry to him in faith, for God is rich to all who will call upon him. Lay in your claim for your children, your families, your co-workers, that many sons may be brought to glory. As your prayer rests on the simple principle of faith, nothing shall be impossible to you. The root principle of all this divine overcoming faith in the human heart is Christ, and when you are grafted deeply into him you may win thousands of lives to the faith. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, the secret to every hard problem in your heart.

“Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.” He that hath this hope in him, purifieth himself, and God confirms this faith in us that we may be refined in the world, having neither spot nor blemish nor any such thing. It is the Lord who purifies and brings to the place where the fire burns up the dross, and then anoints us with fresh oil, that at all times we may be ready for his appearing. God is separating us for himself just as he separated Enoch to a walk with himself, and because of a divinely implanted faith, he had the testimony before his translation that he pleased God. As the day of the Lord hastens on, we too need to walk by faith, until, overcoming all things through our simple belief in Jesus Christ our Lord, we walk right into the glory.

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Apostle of Faith

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  3. “Then the ear…”
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  7. In labors more abundant.
  8. Miracles in Australia and New Zealand.
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Ever Increasing Faith

  1. Have faith in God. (12/22)
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Faith That Prevails

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Credits

I started this site ’cause I took a Pentecostal history class in grad school, used several Wigglesworth articles for a paper, and rather than just throw away my source materials, I stuck ’em on the internet. I’ve been adding to them since. Thanks for the encouraging feedback!

Yes, the Wigglesworth articles are edited for spelling, punctuation, paragraph breaks, and verse references. But that’s all. Most of the source materials are transcripts of what he spoke aloud, so I believe such alterations are justifiable. I’ve included scans of the original publications in case you wish to compare. Any further typos are because the OCR software made them and I didn’t catch them. Sorry.

If you come across another version of these articles with significant differences (including in print!) it’s because their editor decided to take further liberties with Wigglesworth than I would. There comes a point when such editing becomes less about Wigglesworth’s own words, and more about editors wishing to reshape Wigglesworth to suit them. Or the times. There are certain things Wigglesworth said and taught where I personally can’t agree, and honestly don’t believe the scriptures back him up. (You want my view, visit Christ Almighty.) But as an historian I’m posting what he said, disagreements or not. I wouldn’t appreciate it if people bent my words in like manner, and I’m not editing him for anyone’s theological sensibilities—neither mine nor yours.

You have my permission to link to this blog, and make fair-use quotations of it. But as for republication, the rights don’t belong to me. Thanks to Disney’s continued lobbying for copyright extensions, they won’t be out of copyright in the United States till 2042—if ever. So the copyrights belong to Wigglesworth, the respective publications, and their successors. All rights reserved.

Bible links go to good old Bible Gateway. Wigglesworth used the Authorized (King James) Version, and any discrepancies are because he impressively quoted from memory.

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—K.W. Leslie

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