Day 3: Session 1 – Pastor Mark Hankins

Blog Admin Jan 25, 2015

During the 8:00am Sunday service, Pastor Mark Hankins continued his teaching on faith. The title of the message was The Four Steps to Activate Your Faith. The reference verse was Mark 5:24-34 which tells the story of the woman with the issue of blood and how by her faith, she received her healing from Jesus.

Pastor Mark related this to Kenneth E. Hagin’s experience as a child when he was ill and on the death bed. Brother Hagin narrated that all the ministers who prayed for him were emphatic that the age of miracles had ended and so all they did was pray that his family would be comforted and he be strengthened until his death. However, Kenneth E. Hagin didn’t want to die and constantly declared this. God then directed him to Mark 5:34 and assured him that the age of faith had not passed and that through faith he could also be healed.

God told him that the age of faith could never cease because it was only through faith that salvation in Jesus Christ could be received. Through the application of faith Kenneth Hagin received his miraculous healing and his desire to know more about how to apply faith in his life.

Pastor Hankins then made reference to another period in Brother Hagin’s life (as referred to in his book “I believe in visions”) where he had an open vision with Jesus. He asked Jesus for guidance to be able to properly communicate the faith message in Mark 5. To this end Jesus told him that there were four principles/steps demonstrated by the woman with the issue of blood. Furthermore, Jesus said if these steps are followed by anybody, anywhere in the world they would always receive whatever they want, or need from God. These desires or needs were also not restricted to only healing, but anything and everything else.

The woman took the following steps:

1. She said it (vs 28) –she continually spoke words that were in agreement with the word she heard about Jesus. For our faith to work we must confess God’s word consistently.
2. She acted (vs 27) – after speaking the words of faith she acted by moving towards Jesus despite the large crowd around him. For our faith to be effective it is not enough to speak the Word but we have to act as well. Faith will first move your mouth, then it will move you to act.
3. She received it (vs 29) – by touching Jesus’ hem she received the power of God that granted her healing. Before we see the manifestation of God in our lives we must exercise faith, which is being convinced that God will fulfill His Word in our lives.
4. She told her story (vs 33) – Testifying of God’s goodness is part of exercising our faith. Once we have seen God’s manifestation in our lives we need to share our story to tell of God’s faithfulness and power.

While sharing the principles, Pastor Mark took some time to explain the two types of unbelief that exist.

1. Ignorance – this is lack of knowledge of the Word of God and can be cured by spending time in God’s Word and humbling one’s self under sound biblical teaching
2. Being “un-persuaded” to act on God’s Word – this was the type of unbelief that the nation of Israel had and this can be cured by acting on God’s Word.

After Jesus had finished listing the four steps, Brother Hagin wondered how these principles were supposed to work now that Jesus was no longer physically present. Jesus’ reply to him was that it was even easier to practice these principles today because of the Holy Spirit. With His death and resurrection, Jesus has been made Lord over all things and has given us the Holy Spirit as a representation of Himself in every Christian on earth. Therefore as Christians we no longer need to go to a physical location to receive the power of God in our lives, we have access wherever we are.