“Faith is not belief. Belief is passive. Faith is active.”  Edith Hamilton

And behold, some men were carrying on a bed a man who was paralyzed; and they were trying to bring him in, and to set him down in front of Him. 19And not finding any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher, right in the center, in front of Jesus. 20 And seeing their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven you.”

Luke 5:18-20

24b”……… He said to the paralytic– “I say to you, rise, and take up your stretcher and go home.” 25And at once he rose up before them, and took up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God.  

Luke 5:24b-25

As we read this account of the paralyzed man, we see that faith that moves mountains is released through ordinary men expressing extraordinary love.  These men’s name were never mentioned in the Bible (there were four of them, Mark 2:3), but their faith has been remembered through the ages.  They demonstrate that you do not have a big name to have big faith. These men expressed their faith in simple ways. The first thing these men did was to intercede:

Intercede: to intervene between parties with a goal to reconcile differences:  1) To plead on another’s behalf. 2. To act as mediator

When they carried this man to Jesus they were intervening on his behalf.  They had a goal to reconcile this man to God, for they knew it was only His presence, he would be healed.  They acted as mediators, pleading on his behalf through their actions of love.

They stood in the gap.  The word “gap” is used in the Bible when one intervenes through prayer to reconcile the differences that exists between man and God. They acted as reconcilers between man and God. This act of reconciliation is an act so powerful, that it will be a sign of the last days anointing as seen in:

“Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. [6] “And he will restore (reconcile) the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse.”

Malachi 4:5-6     

As you are Forging Ahead in Trustful Hope, remember that it’s not your name that will move the mountains. It is the simple acts of faith expressed as you stand in the gap for those around you.  Be a reconciler, by being a person of prayer, one who intercedes as a mediator on the behalf of another.  Be a reconciler as you bring people to the presence people of God.  Be a reconciler by partnering with others to bring heaven on earth. “Because God sees faith and rewards it!