Wigglesworth
many times was called “the apostle of faith” because he believed God unequivocally.
Many
today use the title “apostle” very freely and loosely, when it needs safeguarding.
Even
the Apostle Paul was careful in his use of the term. In Romans 1:1, he said he
was called to be an apostle.
Obviously
he viewed the title differently at various times in his life, but the marks of
an apostle — the reality that is more than a name — was
ever present. (2 Cor. 12:12.)
Wigglesworth
also recognized that it is not the title you have, nor the gift you claim, but
the manifestation of the power of God that counts. (1 Cor. 1:31.) The
manifestation of the power of God was shown in his life through
faith.
Seeing
the evidence of his faith, we are moved to ask, “is such a faith within my reach? Can I possess such precious faith?”
I
trust this write up will help and encourage those true seekers after that kind
of faith. I have two important observations to make concerning such faith:
First, Wigglesworth did not arrive at his degree of faith in one leap.
He reached it by a process of failure and success. Whoever you are, whatever
situation you are in, however weak your faith is at this moment, your faith can grow.
Secondly, Wigglesworth believed that God has no favorites. He
believed all Christians have the potential to grow into strong faith.
Every
believer can have enough faith for the fulfillment of God’s
will in his or her life. Wigglesworth had a noble concept of God’s
plan for him and was determined to seek God for the faith required to exercise
his ministry.
Not
all will have the same calling; not all will need the same dramatic faith. But
all Christians have the potential for the gifts of the Spirit to operate
through them, and all Christians can possess faith for the effective exercise
of whatever gift He chooses to operate through them.
William
Hacking, a pastor in the north of England, had Wigglesworth in his church for
meetings. One day some of the young men of his church, soul-winning young men,
accompanied the evangelist on a walk.
He
said, “Well, young men, you can ask me any question you like, and I’ll
answer it best as I can”
One
of them asked the inevitable question, “Mr. Wigglesworth, how can we come
to possess great faith?”
“Now, listen; ‘said
Wigglesworth, “ here is the answer: ‘First the blade, then the ear,
after that the full corn in the ear”. Mark 4:28’
Wigglesworth
saw three degrees of faith. The first degree is saving faith. All who receive Jesus as Savior have received that faith.
This faith is seed that, nourished by hearing the Word of God, can grow: “For by
grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of ourselves: it is the gift of
God.” Ephesians 2:8
The
second degree he saw was the faith of the Lord Jesus. In Galatians 2:20, Wigglesworth saw that it was the faith of the
Lord Jesus being spoken of, not faith in the Son of God. It is Christ's
own faith imparted to His children.
I
am crucified with Christ: nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in
me: and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the
Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Thirdly
he said, there is the gift of faith:
But
the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal . . . to
another faith by the same Spirit.
1
Corinthians 12:7, 9
There
were those who quibbled over these distinctions, but Wigglesworth blithely
ignored their quibbles and went
on
demonstrating he had a faith that glorified God in practical results.
Faith
that saves is a faith that works. Faith
that achieves is a faith that acts. (James
2:18-20.)
For
Wigglesworth, there was one thing more: He pressed through by faith in the Word of God to faith in the
God of the Word. There is a distinction. Romans 4:3 say
that Abraham believed God. The Apostle Paul did not write that Abraham believed about God
nor even believed in God. Abraham believed God as a
Person.
It
follows inevitably that if you believe God as a Person, you will believe every
word that He speaks. Faith in God Himself is direct contact with God. It is a
confidence that inspires action.
For
Smith Wigglesworth, Hebrews 12:2, “Looking unto Jesus the author and
finisher of our faith~ meant unbroken communion with Jesus, dwelling deeply in
the presence of the Lord. As he gazed on Jesus, his faith grew, and he was
changed from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18.) That same place of abiding, that
same privilege of gazing on the Lord, is open to us!
He
believed that faith means action. Once while preaching, he said, “if
there is anything in your heart in the way of condemnation, you cannot pray the
prayer of faith. Purity is vital to faith. How is faith received? It is received by your acting with what you
now have. If you act with what you have, your faith will be increased. You can
never increase faith but by acting”.
Once
a lady wrote a long letter to Wigglesworth telling about her problems and
quoting a large number of scriptures.
He
sent the letter back to her with these words written on it, “Believe your
own letter”
She
did — and was healed. In other words, she acted on
what she already had.
John
Wesley taught his preachers, “Preach faith until you have it, and then because you have it, you
will preach
faith”.
Faith
is reciprocal — act in faith, and you will have greater faith. So many people,
seeing Wigglesworth in his later ministry forgot, or most likely never knew of,
his early struggles.
He
knew poverty and hard work, even as a youngster of six beginning to work in the
turnip fields by 6 a.m. and staying at it for ten to twelve hours. But from a
child, he was determined to know God, “precept upon precept; line
upon
line” (Is. 28:10).
He
said, “Great faith is the product of great fights. Great testimonies are the
outcome of great tests. Great triumphs can only come out of great trials”.
The
tests he went through led him to a simple, basic faith startling in its
simplicity. He had such confidence in
God
that he took him at His Word. Consequently, he was not moved by human opinion.
He knew the danger spoken of by the Lord:
How
can ye believe, which received honor one of another, and seek not the honor
that cometh from God only?
John
5:44
Wigglesworth
knew that Hebrews 12:2 — Jesus is the “author and finisher of our faith” — was the basis of “New Testament
faith” faith based on total trust in Jesus. That is the faith that
supported the early Christians, the faith
Faith
Wigglesworth had, and the faith
we need today.
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